Charmaine Maleho is a South African architectural designer and researcher whose work is grounded in spatial justice, sustainable infrastructure, and the transformative potential of architecture. She holds a Master of Architecture from the Graduate School of Architecture ( GSA), where her thesis explored regenerative land use, water systems, and culturally rooted rural development in Taung, located in the arid Northwest Province.

Currently gaining experience at Boogertman + Partners—recently recognised as Best Architecture Firm of the Year—Charmaine contributes to a wide range of architectural projects while refining her technical,spatial, and contextual understanding in practice.Born into the cultural heritage of the Batswana people,Charmaine draws deeply from her upbringing and the fragmented spatial conditions shaped by apartheid-era planning. This lived experience informs her critical engagement with architecture as a tool to reimagine community, land, and access. She is particularly interested in the teachings and historical transformations of architecture in South Africa, and how these continue to shape social landscapes today.Charmaine’s work also spans across borders, having contributed to a cultural and spatial project in Botswana during her Honours year. This project held the same ethos—celebrating Batswana culture, land-based knowledge systems, and the urgent need to reimaginewater infrastructure in the face of aridity. Her research recognises water as a transboundary issue, connecting communities across Southern Africa and serving as afoundation for dignity, livelihood, and resilience.

Her design ethos is rooted in a belief in socialism and the power of shared space—principles experienced in her own upbringing and later explored through research and community engagement. Inspired by thinkers like Francis Kéré, Rahul Mehrotra, and collectives like MADEYOULOOK, she continues to explore how architecture can become a democratic and healing act,reclaiming belonging and building futures grounded in care and cooperation.