Bulgaria is a country in Southeastern Europe that is in process of development of inclusive education and early intervention services for children with special needs and their families. One of the leading NGOs actively involved in this process is Karin Dom Foundation. 

Karin Dom is among the first organizations in Bulgaria to create alternative to the institutions model for services and care for children with special needs and their families. It was established in 1994 by the diplomat Ivan Stancioff, who attracted and inspired donors and specialists in order to prove that there are not “uneducable” children. Currently, Karin Dom supports over 300 children and families and trains over 1200 specialists and parents per year. All these activities are carried out in an old building that doesn’t meet the needs of the organization for development.

This is the context for the architecture competition which Karin Dom organizes with the support of the VELUX Foundations, Varna Municipality, the Chamber of Architects and the Union of Architects in Bulgaria. Karin Dom invites all architects from all over the world who are willing to work on, and are interested in social projects, to participate in this competition for schematic design for a new Karin Dom building.

The competition aims to find the most inspired, innovative and at the same time functional and appropriate project for a new building for Karin Dom, that will serve as a model for services for children with special needs and their families and will include a training center through which this model could be disseminated.

The competition is conducted under anonymous judging, respect for professional ethics and the rights of all participants. The competition projects will be evaluated by a nine-member international jury.