By Matilda Ikediobi

Nigerian-born architectural researcher at Ball State University, Olumide Oguntolu, has warned that the United States’ most populous city, Indianapolis, won’t solve its housing crisis until it treats design as a justice issue, not a construction problem.

Oguntolu, in his new research, says housing insecurity in Indianapolis is being worsened by what he calls “design blind spots”, the failure to create built environments that reflect the lived realities, safety needs and social barriers of the city’s most vulnerable residents.

Oguntolu said: “Design is policy. Every layout, every doorway, every shared space either reinforces dignity or reinforces exclusion.”

Rather than focusing solely on definitions of homelessness, Oguntolu’s thesis reframes the crisis as a consequence of structures, physical and social, that were never built with marginalised people in mind.

His multi-stage study, involving interviews with service providers, policymakers and people experiencing housing insecurity, shows how architectural choices influence safety, access to services and long-term stability.

He noted that poorly designed shelters often intensify trauma, discourage utilization, or fail to accommodate people with disabilities, families, or those navigating mental health challenges. “A shelter can meet code and still fail people,” he said. “If a space triggers anxiety or strips privacy, individuals won’t return and policymakers end up misreading that as resistance rather than a design failure.”

Oguntolu’s structural critique expands beyond buildings, linking Indianapolis’s housing crisis to stagnant wages, the shrinking affordable housing supply, and deep-rooted inequality.

He said: “The conversation has been too focused on personal responsibility. We need to talk about the responsibility of systems including the built environment.”

To demonstrate what design justice looks like in practice, he proposes a sustainable Ecovillage along the White River, an alternative to traditional shelters that integrates modular housing, healthcare, mental health services, job training, and community green spaces. With solar energy, rainwater systems, and trauma-informed layouts, the Ecovillage centers stability, privacy, and dignity.

Oguntolu said: “This is architecture as healing. Housing solutions must be places where people can rebuild, not just places where they can sleep.”

Oguntolu’s credibility is anchored not only in research but also in practice. A decorated designer and adjunct professor, he contributed to the U.S. Department of Energy’s award-winning Alley House and volunteers with Habitat for Humanity. Internationally recognised for his work, he recently presented his housing research at a global conference in Berlin.

The architect’s latest design is taking shape just a short distance from the award-winning Alley House, but this new project has a distinct mission.