As 2016 comes to a close, the landscape of the Syrian city of Aleppo has been all but completely devastated. 

The near-constant bombardment of the city by the Syrian and Russian military, along with counter-attacks by rebel forces still holed up in an increasingly-small quarter of the city, have left buildings in ruins. Drone footage from October showed apartment buildings blown apart; what were once living rooms are now exposed to the outside world, with clothes left dangling on hangers. Streets are covered by layers of dust and rubble.

The present is bleak, and the future of Aleppo is uncertain. Can the city be rebuilt from the rubble? If so, who will rebuild it? When? And how? 

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One boy, a 14-year-old Syrian refugee named Mohammed Qutaish, might have an idea of where to start. Qutaish spent several years working on a model of “Future Aleppo” that currently sits in New York City’s Mmuseumm and will soon be transferred to London’s Victoria and Albert Museum. 

Qutaish’s model is colorful, peppered with signs of life — sailboats on the river, verdant parks, towering skyscrapers, red-roofed villas. It is clear that he has paid great attention to detail. There is a stoplight at an intersection, a soccer pitch, cars on the highway, two ferris wheels. His Aleppo is a booming metropolis, tall buildings reaching for the sky, rather than crumbling back to earth. 

More than a year ago, filmmaker Waad Alkateab spoke with Qutaish in a video released by the British Channel 4 News. 

Qutaish is a lanky teenage boy, with a thoughtful expression and a soft-spoken manner. He told Alkateab about why he chose to redesign the future of Aleppo using nothing more than paper, paint, and sponges. 

“When I grow up I want to be an architect,” he said. “I want these paper buildings to become real buildings.” 

At various points in the video, he points to parts of the construction and explains the thinking behind it. “This part of the city is for tourists,” he says, pointing to a small section of his paper city removed slightly from the center. “I created this lake and then added this restaurant, so there would be a lovely view.” 

Read more: World Leaders Plead for Ceasefire in Aleppo as Syrian Rebels Lose Grip

Later he indicates an airport and train tracks. “This is the airport, and I made a restaurant and here are the airplanes. I made a train line that goes across the city so that it is a modern city,” he says. 

Qutaish’s family is now living in Turkey, where his dad — who works for an NGO — was able to get a visa, VICE’s Annie Julia Wyman reports. But the young man still envisions a future in which his generation plays a role in rebuilding his country. His message to the public was simple, yet powerful.  

"If your child has a gift, please help him to develop his skills. Help us rebuild our country and society," Qutaish told VICE. 

His is an ambitious dream, but all the more necessary in a time when hope is running low and dreams are hard to come by.