prioritize control over care. A trauma-informed approach pushes back — calling for flexibility rather than rigidity, privacy alongside connection, and opportunities for people to make choices aligned with their needs. This is especially true for children, who are too often
treated as secondary users of space rather than survivors in their own right.
Projects with our partner, Haven, in Bozeman, Montana reflect this shift from control-oriented
environments to spaces that actively support healing. In spring 2023, Haven opened a new, 30-bedroom shelter for survivors of domestic violence, greatly expanding their existing programs in a disclosed location. In its first year after opening, the facility served an estimated
1,400 survivors, underscoring both the urgency of the need and the responsibility of the spaces designed to meet it.
From the outset, the shelter was conceived not
as an institution, but as a place of refuge that restores agency at every scale and recognizes the needs of the whole person. Safety is achieved through layered thresholds rather than constant supervision, allowing residents to feel protected without being watched and create community access without exposure. Access to daylight and nature support emotional regulation and calm, while intuitive circulation and wayfinding reduces cognitive stress. Private rooms designed for individuals and families give survivors control over their own space, while shared kitchens, living areas and outdoor spaces offer opportunities for connection on their own terms. This new shelter embodies Havenʼs commitment to both safety and public engagement empowering residents to move between solitude and community, quiet and activity, retreat and engagement to make choices aligned with their preferences.
The goal is not simply to meet basic needs,
but to restore a sense of dignity and self-determination.
Healing is not the absence of trauma — it is the presence of choice, dignity, and connection.
Accompaniment as Practice
As our research deepened, we came to understand that healing through design is as much about process as it is about outcome. This realization required us to confront conventional architectural practice head-on. Tight schedules, extractive engagement, and top-down decision-making leave little room for the voices of those most impacted by design decisions. If we were serious about centering healing, we needed to work differently.
Here, the philosophy of accompaniment — articulated so powerfully by Dr. Paul Farmer — became central to our practice. To accompany is to walk with others, to listen more than direct, and to remain present for the duration of a shared journey. Accompaniment asks us to stay, to listen, and to resist the false promise of quick solutions.
In practice, this means moving at the speed of trust. It means letting go of predetermined agendas and allowing communities to lead. In these moments, insights emerge that no amount of desk research can replace — stories about unsafe corridors, overlooked gathering spaces, or small design details that shape daily life. Accompaniment also requires humility: a willingness to relinquish authorship, slow down,
At MASS (Model of Architecture Serving Society), we begin with a simple conviction: architecture is an act of justice. It is a practice of care. Every design decision carries weight. The spaces we create either reinforce systems of exclusion or help challenge them.
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