With Earth Day 2024 and an increasing number of environmental campaigners calling for an end to plastics, is time finally up for the 20th century's miracle material? Rima Sabina Aouf finds out if we can – and should – abolish plastic.

Earth Day 2024 has the theme of "Planet vs Plastics", campaigning for "the end" of the material starting with a 60 per cent reduction in plastic production by 2040 and ultimately building to a "plastic-free future".

"Better to incinerate plastic than recycle it"

The proposal is indicative of a broader escalation in the rhetoric around plastic.

In the face of mounting evidence of dangers to the health of people and planet, and with lobbying efforts ramping up as United Nations member states work towards a draft of a global plastics treaty by the end of this year, more abolitionist voices are emerging, and even clashing with campaigners for circularity.

Sian Sutherland, co-founder of advocacy group A Plastic Planet and alternative materials database PlasticFree, is among those who believe we should put an end to plastics – recycling and all.

"It is better to incinerate the plastic – safely – than it is to perpetuate its toxic existence by recycling it," Sutherland told Dezeen.

"We need to take plastic out of our system wherever possible. And if we burn it, despite the fact we are simply burning fossil fuels that were momentarily a bottle or plastic bag, we are taking it out of the system."

She points out that at the current rate, global plastic production is forecast to increase threefold by 2060, and that the reality is that little of it is recycled – around 5 per cent in the US and less than 10 per cent in the UK.

She also backs a recent report from the Center for Climate Integrity, which claimed that the plastics industry has spread disinformation about the efficacy of recycling as a sales tactic in the same way that oil companies have more famously obscured the climate impacts of fossil fuel.

"Recycling is the fig leaf of consumption," added Sutherland. "Makes us feel better but never actually fixes the problem. It simply prolongs it."

"We have mostly stopped material innovation"

Plastic-abolitionists like Sutherland argue that only binding phase-out commitments will channel investment into developing viable alternative materials.

"The answer to the 'is it possible' is this: for the last 50 years we have mostly stopped material innovation, because we had this miracle called plastic," said Sutherland. "It has become the default for almost everything – products, packaging, building materials, textiles."

Labelling plastic a "toxic, indestructible material", she adds that a ban would create "a vacuum that innovation will quickly fill with better, safer, nature-compatible materials".

"The odds are against all innovation whilst we still swallow the myth that recycling plastic is (a) happening and (b) the answer," said Sutherland.

Relevant technologies are beginning to emerge. Bio-based and biodegradable solutions made from crop waste, vegetables, mushroom mycelium, bacteria-forged cellulose and algae seek to emulate the light and pliable qualities that make plastic so integral to modern life.

Some designers are making do with what's already available. Richard Hutten, who at the 2019 Dezeen Day conference described plastic as "the cancer of our planet" and recycling as "bullshit", has managed to design almost entirely without plastic for years.

"Almost", because plastics – polymer-based materials usually derived from petroleum or natural gas – are so ubiquitous they're in products we don't even think about.

"The only plastic I've been using is paint on steel," Hutten told Dezeen. "It is almost impossible to avoid plastic completely."

In recent years he has made a barstool for British manufacturer Modus from cork and redesigned mid-century classics by Wim Rietveld with a mix of biodegradable latex and coconut hair in place of plastic foam.

"Plastic is not bad, it's just completely overused"

But for other environmental advocates, the idea of eliminating plastic misses the real problem: that most of the world today does not value the recovery of materials, of any type.

We may be able to replace every variety of plastic in time, but as long as we live with overconsumption and disposability we will continue to deplete the planet's resources, they argue.

"Plastic is not bad," Thomas Matthews partner and sustainability expert Sophie Thomas told Dezeen. "It's just completely overused, and we don't have the proper infrastructure to get it back in the system."

She points out that from its beginnings in the 1950s, plastic has been sold to consumers as a throw-away luxury that represented progress after the sacrifices of the second world war, when countries including the UK had strict salvage campaigns to collect household waste for reuse to make weaponry and counter slowdowns in imports.

"Every material had to be given back – bones, paper, string – everything had to go into the war effort," Thomas said. "So now this plastic comes along and it's like, don't worry about it. Use it once, throw it away."

"This is the kind of positive, clean, quick, cheap, colourful future that we wanted to bring in after the war."

Instead of changing those patterns of use, Thomas sees brands and manufacturers rushing to replace plastics in the name of sustainability, sometimes with alternatives that have a worse environmental impact.

One example is substituting plastic takeaway containers with paper, usually with a plastic lining that can't be separated, making both materials unrecyclable.

By contrast, PET and especially HDPE – two commonly used packaging plastics – are the easiest to recycle, when not fused to other materials.

"Complexity is the worst thing for recycling," said Thomas. "Monomaterial is the way we should go – bio-monomaterials especially."

Not all plastics are the same, and Thomas does advocate for banning some of them, such as PVC – widely used in construction – and polyurethane foam.

Both, she says, are difficult to recycle and full of "nasty" volatile organic compounds.

Design studio Layer recently developed the Mazzu Open mattress, which swaps out polyurethane foam for less toxic and more recyclable polyester-wrapped springs.

"Polyester is incredibly durable and has a long life – and it's this quality that makes it a useful material in design, as designing for longevity is one of the most powerful tools we have in terms of sustainability," Layer founder Benjamin Hubert told Dezeen.

"Foam has a much shorter lifespan before it loses its functionality, and – unlike polyester – is not recyclable. The trade-off for us here is really clear."

"All recycled plastic ends up as waste"

Much of the debate around abolishing plastics comes down to recycling.

While glass or aluminium can be recycled infinitely without degrading, the molecular structure of plastics gets weakened every time they go through the extrusion process until they can't feasibly be used any further. For single-use plastics, in particular, that means a very short lifespan.

For abolitionists, the compromised quality of recycled plastic makes it misleading to label the process "recycling" at all – hence Hutten's "bullshit" claim.

"In the most optimistic view, you could call recycling of plastic down-cycling," he said. "Eventually, all recycled plastic ends up as waste."

"It will never be a financially and materially viable solution," added Sutherland. "There is no economic model that makes sense – or to be honest Coca-Cola would have built the system years ago to recycle their 120 billion bottles every year."

Those who think there is still a place for plastic advocate for longer-life products within a system where collection and recycling can be guaranteed.

Recycled-plastic design brands such as Circuform and Smile Plastics call their furniture and sheet material circular as they can be recycled repeatedly – four times at a minimum, according to Circuform.

PearsonLloyd co-founder Luke Pearson, who focuses on circularity, agrees that plastic can be "mostly circular" if designed "intelligently".

By avoiding additives such as glass fibre, limiting colour, and adding a small amount of virgin plastic when needed for strength, existing material can be kept in the system for a very long time, he says.

As for chemical recycling – the expensive, hazardous and energy-intensive new technology that breaks down plastic to its basic building blocks so it can be remade with its original strength – Thomas believes it could one day serve as a final step to close the loop on plastic, after mechanical recycling options have been exhausted.

"We have to develop the infrastructure for plastic where you actually get that closed loop, otherwise you will have to go for a complete ban of the material," said Thomas.

"And then what? We'd have to plant huge amounts of trees if we're going to substitute with paper or any crop-based biomaterials."

"There really is no time"

Plastic-abolitionists and circularity advocates agree on a number of points: we need legal restrictions on single-use and toxic plastics, we need funding for biomaterials, and we need to change habits.

The upcoming UN plastics treaty provides an opportunity to realise these proposals. But while some sense momentum towards positive change, longtime plastic abstainer Hutten admits that he has lost some of his optimism.

Recently, he created his first plastic piece in years: a one-off cupboard called Atlas, named after the Titan in Greek mythology who carried the world on his shoulders.

In his "reversed Atlas", a comment on the futility of design in tackling the pollution crisis, the Earth is depicted as collapsing under the weight of humankind.

Sutherland, meanwhile, is in high gear trying to get provisions such as cuts to production volumes of plastics, bans on single-use items and mandated chemical testing into the UN treaty.

"We need to leapfrog the 'less bad' to 'regeneratively good' in all materials and systems now," said Sutherland. "There really is no time for any other approach."

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From a standing start, Taiwan has embarked on one of the world's most ambitious social-housing programmes. Dezeen finds out more as part of our Social Housing Revival series.

Having only become government policy in 2016, Taiwan expects to have amassed a social-housing stock of 200,000 units by the end of 2024 – and has already set an ambition to hit one million units by 2032.

"I always say it's a miracle," said Yi-Ling Chen, an associate professor at the University of Wyoming's School of Politics, Public Affairs & International Studies who researches Taiwanese housing policy.

"Every time I go back to Taiwan, there's always a new housing project completing," she continued. "You talk about this and you always felt it was impossible – and now you see it's real."

Focus on home ownership

With average house prices 22 times greater than annual incomes, Taiwan has some of the world's least affordable housing.

Since becoming a democracy in the late 1980s, the south-east Asian island has pursued a low-tax economy, with little in the way of a welfare state.

For two decades, housing policy here was almost exclusively focused on home ownership.

"Prior to 2010, Taiwan's housing policies primarily focused on providing loans to encourage home ownership, neglecting the importance of the rental market and lacking the construction of social housing," said Yang-Kae Peng, an architect and secretary general of Taiwan's Social Housing Advocacy Consortium.

A pre-2000 programme saw the government build some 165,000 homes – around two per cent of Taiwan's total housing stock – but these were all for sale.

Meanwhile, a US-style housing voucher system intended to help the poorest households rent privately is beset by discrimination from loosely regulated landlords.

Fed up of being ignored by politicians, in 2010 organisations representing Taiwan's disadvantaged groups formed the Social Housing Advocacy Consortium to campaign for change.

"They became the major ones calling for social housing," said Chen. "And it was popular also with middle-class people because housing is so expensive."

Publicly owned, low-cost rented homes were an entirely new concept in Taiwan but the movement quickly gained traction, and within two years social housing had become a major issue in mayoral and presidential elections.

Dutch influence

Looking for inspiration as to how to shape its social-housing programme, Taiwan turned to the Netherlands, where nearly a third of the population lives in social housing.

Policy advisors began a lengthy dialogue with organisations such as the Amsterdam Federation of Social Housing Associations.

"Most academics in Taiwan studied in the United States, so when social housing was proposed in the beginning a lot were against this idea – they said public housing is a very bad project," explained Chen.

"The Netherlands people totally changed the argument. They said it's for everyone and very high quality."

Regional rivalry with South Korea, which embarked on a social-housing programme to address affordability issues in Seoul in 2012, was another source of motivation, she added.

Taiwan decided to prioritise mixing communities within social housing from the beginning. As a result, two groups are eligible to apply: those in low-income brackets, and young people whose family do not already own a home.

Young people pay a higher rent and can only stay for six years, while low-income tenants can stay for 12 – though Chen expects these terms may be extended in future.

Homes are allocated through a lottery system – and demand is so high that only seven per cent of people who apply are successful, according to Chen.

In line with need, the capital, Taipei, has the highest concentration of social housing constructed so far, followed by Taiwan's other major cities. Development is mostly funded by city governments, with additional support from central government.

A difficult beginning

Despite strong public support for social housing in principle, the first projects announced were met with protest from neighbouring communities.

"This was a difficult beginning," said Chen. "People had an image about public housing coming from America. So that's why the government decided they wanted to make social housing, especially the first group, the best."

Contracting private architecture studios, city governments focused on maximising quality. Some projects, said Chen, even feature luxuries like automatic toilets imported from Japan.

Virtually all housing in Taiwan is apartments. While social homes tend to be smaller than in private blocks, they are accompanied by much more generous community facilities and public spaces than even the upmarket developments for ownership.

Bio-architecture Formosana (BaF) has delivered seven social-housing projects so far, with another currently under construction.

"When handling social-housing projects, we approach them differently compared to other residential projects we've worked on," BaF resources executive Tu Yu told Dezeen.

"Social housing requires a greater emphasis on planning open spaces," she added. "Design must consider the connectivity of surrounding communities and the shared usage needs of residents, including landscape greenery and playground facilities."

Another key difference is that a proportion of homes must be accessible, unlike in the private sector.

"I think the quality of the social housing is quite amazing, especially the first few ones that have been built," said Chen.

"Usually in the private, luxury housing you won't see that much communal space available, but in general all the social housing has a lot of meeting space, playgrounds, much bigger open and green space – a lot of consideration is [given] to trying to intensify the interactions of the people within the housing."

As well as BaF, fellow Taipei-based architecture studios JH Day Building Workshop, Grace & Partners and JA Chen Architects & Associates have been particularly active, while Dutch firm Mecanoo is among the foreign practices to design high-profile projects.

"A lot of architects were super excited about the possibility for them to participate," claimed Chen. "They really think this is a once-in-a-lifetime where they can present their ideas about how housing can be."

Other measures needed

Taiwan's housing crisis is far from over, however. Despite government confidence about meeting its 2024 target, as of February only 23,000 social-housing units had been completed.

And while local opposition may no longer be a major issue, there are now questions over how Taiwan can continue to fund its ambitious social-housing programme in the long term.

"Financing social housing requires substantial and prolonged subsidies," Peng told Dezeen. "Taiwan, devoid of a welfare state tradition and being a low-tax nation, faces mounting difficulties in sustaining financial support with increasing unit numbers."

New delivery mechanisms may be required in future, Peng believes, especially as supplies of publicly owned land start to dwindle.

Meanwhile, he argued that other important measures necessary to make Taiwan's housing more affordable for all – such as reform of property taxes and the private rental market – are at risk of being overlooked amid political boasting about social-housing successes.

"To address these issues, social housing is necessary but not the sole solution," said Peng.

"However, due to opposition from vested interests, social housing has become the government's priority choice among these solutions, aiming to demonstrate achievements and garner support from discontented voters facing high housing prices."

Social Housing Revival

This article is part of Dezeen's Social Housing Revival series exploring the new wave of quality social housing being built around the world, and asking whether a return to social house-building at scale can help solve affordability issues and homelessness in our major cities.

The post The "miracle" of Taiwan's luxury social housing appeared first on Dezeen.

As part of Dezeen's Social Housing Revival series, we look at how one county in Maryland is leading the way in the US after devising a novel public-development strategy to help combat its housing crisis.

Montgomery is a growing county on the outskirts of the Washington DC metropolitan area that has come up with a method for addressing the diminished role of social housing in America.

Like much of the rest of the country, it is in dire need of more affordable housing.

While an absence of central government funding means public-sector-led house-building to meet that need is a rarity in the US, Montgomery's county government has conceived a way to deliver high-quality homes on its own.

Its Housing Opportunities Commission (HOC), an agency founded in the 1970s to deliver federally funded public housing, has recently developed a strategy that it calls the public developer model.

In 2021, it established the Housing Production Fund (HPF) to fund mixed-income social housing.

Its first completed project using the model is The Laureate, a 268-home scheme designed by US architecture studio KTGY that features thousands of square feet of amenities and even has an outdoor heated pool and spa.

"We believe this should be the standard"

"HOC is proud that when you walk into The Laureate you experience a high-quality, high-calibre, and beautifully designed community that offers a resort-like living experience," HOC executive director Chelsea Andrews told Dezeen.

"We are equally proud that if you're standing in an affordable home or one that rents at market rate, the two are completely indistinguishable."

"We believe this should be the standard for all new affordable housing development."

In most parts of the US, cities use tax breaks to encourage developers to deliver mixed-income housing.

The HOC takes a more direct approach, using federal subsidies to accommodate the poorest groups while taking out loans to fund other HOC projects.

Building federally subsidised housing often requires the involvement of private investors to fund the full cost of construction – which can mean build quality is compromised to protect profit margins.

By acting as a public developer and delivering housing for people on a range of incomes, the Montgomery County hopes HOC can build better housing and break down stigmas attached to social housing.

The model also allows the county to create housing for people in need of affordable housing but who do not qualify for Section 8 housing vouchers.

The buildings are managed by the HOC, which closely monitors the residents' incomes. Rents from people in higher income brackets help to contribute to poorer tenants' costs.

"Mixed-income housing plays a critical role in adequately addressing the housing crisis that we face in this country, as that strategy can bridge the gap in construction financing while creating a more holistic and diverse community," KTGY principal Ben Kasdan told Dezeen.

Montgomery County has two population centres – Silver Spring and Bethesda. Both are growing rapidly thanks to strong rail links to Washington DC.

The HOC is now targeting areas close to the train lines with further similar, high-density developments.

While architecturally speaking the projects tend to be unexciting, Center for Public Enterprise director Paul Williams believes that rapid delivery is the priority given the county's fast-growing housing need.

"Extremely ugly five-over-one public housing is orders of magnitude better than beautiful public housing that doesn't get built," said Williams, who advised Montgomery County on its programme.

While the structures seem run-of-the-mill, they may represent an inventive way to begin to dig the US out of its deep housing crisis.

The traditional US public housing model runs on a system that was put in place nearly a hundred years ago. Housing authorities were created to manage the flow of federal funds from Congress-approved budgets and HUD to local governments.

However, after legislation in the 1990s limited social housing construction and its allocation to only the poorest in the country, many of the authorities have stagnated.

Activating stagnant agencies

"The model gives public housing authorities who at this point are largely just kind of stagnant entities something to do," said Williams.

"The constraint on how much affordable housing gets built in America is how many dollars Congress appropriates to low-income housing tax credit in each year's budget. People wish it was something else, but that's it."

By using this model, federal subsidies can go directly to the most in need, while the authority, running on a private-style investment model without the profit motive of private equity, can provide housing for people in the still-stressed but less desperate range.

However, stagnant housing authorities don't change overnight.

Montgomery County has a long history of innovation in public housing. Being so close to the nation's capital, it has often been a hotbed of policy experimentation.

"The social justice movement that swept across the US in the 1970s had a tremendous impact on Montgomery County's approach to development of affordable housing," Andrews said.

"Dispersing new affordable housing developments throughout our county has served us well over the years and helped us shape the diverse neighbourhoods that make our county so vibrant."

Williams said that his organisation is helping other cities adopt similar models, using the levers of the finance system to create immediate solutions to the problems of the housing crisis – as a complete overhaul of the American property system is unlikely to come any time soon.

"This is how we shift these housing authorities back to being active agents of inclusive economic development, as opposed to just being tubes through which Congress sends small amounts of money out to people," he said.

The photography is by Whitney Cox.

Social Housing Revival

This article is part of Dezeen's Social Housing Revival series exploring the new wave of quality social housing being built around the world, and asking whether a return to social house-building at scale can help solve affordability issues and homelessness in our major cities.

The post Montgomery County has found a way to reinvigorate public housing in America appeared first on Dezeen.

For our Social Housing Revival series, we look at how the fate of UK social-housing estates has become an urgent topic as councils grapple with the housing crisis and challenges of preservation.

Regeneration of social housing estates – which typically involves demolishing post-war estates and replacing them with new housing that increases the overall number of units but reduces the proportion of social-rent homes – has become a highly contentious issue in Britain.

Nearly 60,000 social-rented homes have been bulldozed in England over the last 10 years, while in London alone 101 estates are reportedly still under threat.

Social housing "has been decimated"

Politicians, councils and housing associations undertaking regeneration projects argue that they are an effective way of increasing overall housing supply while improving living conditions for tenants.

But regeneration schemes are often highly controversial, with some opponents claiming they can amount to social cleansing as long-standing residents are moved elsewhere.

Anti-demolition campaigns have frequently drawn the attention of the architecture community – most notably the unsuccessful attempts to save Robin Hood Gardens in east London, razed in 2017.

Now, as concerns about the UK's housing-affordability crisis continue to grow, author and journalist Anna Minton believes changing public sentiment about social housing may be turning the tide against further estate regeneration.

"The stock has been decimated and people would love to live in it," said Minton, a vocal critic of estate regeneration. "I think it's lost its bad reputation – people think, 'if only houses were available on council estates in the way they used to be'."

"There is a renewed interest because affordable housing and the housing crisis is right at the top of the political agenda in a way that it wasn't before," she told Dezeen. "This big push on estate regeneration – I think it has kind of peaked."

Eamon McGoldrick, the managing director of trade body National Federation of ALMOs – council-housing management companies – added that local authorities may be less inclined to demolish social housing as they spend increasingly large portions of their budgets responding to rising homelessness.

"Lots of councils have got long homelessness queues, they've all got waiting lists," he told Dezeen.

"If we knock [an estate] down, we lose those 200 units or 500 units while we replace them, and that could mean a lot of people in temporary accommodation while the new homes are built," he added. "That could be five or 10 years apart."

"Mixed bag of feelings" over council estates

Among those fighting to preserve council estates is architectural charity the Twentieth Century Society, whose list of at-risk buildings includes the Alton Estate in southwest London and Central Hill in Lambeth, London.

Like Minton, the charity's director, Catherine Croft, believes that people are increasingly seeing the value in existing council estates.

"I think people often have a real mixed bag of feelings about this," she told Dezeen.

"In a lot of cases, they're very aware that [the buildings] haven't been invested in, that they haven't had the maintenance that they deserve, and they can feel incredibly frustrated about that, and forgotten and neglected."

"But I think they're often really appreciative of the space standards – particularly of the post-1960s, '70s and '80s housing, which have large living areas, plenty of storage and often balconies," she added.

"And often the public areas of those estates were designed incredibly carefully to provide pleasant settings for the building and fun places for recreation."

"Lots of design faults" in post-war housing

However, that's not the case for every estate. There have been particular concerns over estates constructed using large-panel systems (LPS).

LPS construction, which has been likened to a concrete house of cards, first came under the spotlight after the 1968 Ronan Point disaster in east London, where the partial collapse of the recently built tower block killed four people.

"The main problem for local authorities is there was massive council house-building in the 1960s and '70s and a lot of it was high density – quite a lot of it was concrete, large-panel system construction," McGoldrick said.

"I think, to be honest, there were a lot of design faults in them – I think that is accepted, especially with the large-panel system."

In many cases, the construction of LPS buildings led to damp and mould problems inside flats. In cash-strapped councils, these problems got worse over time due to a lack of maintenance.

"Some of the workmanship wasn't very good, sometimes the bolts weren't connected – also, inherently, they were great big lumps of concrete, and they get cold," McGoldrick added.

Grenfell put spotlight on council estate maintenance

And while the argument for renovation over demolition has been made more strongly in recent years, the retention of council housing hasn't always been without issues.

A recent example is the Balfron Tower in Poplar, east London, designed by architect Ernö Goldfinger and built in 1967.

Housing association Poplar Harca formed a joint venture with developers Telford Homes and Londonewcastle to renovate the tower in a project that involved council tenants being moved out of the building and not allowed to return. Flats in the building were put on the market in 2019 but as of August of last year, none had been sold.

Meanwhile, at Grenfell Tower in North Kensington, the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea decided to invest in refurbishing the existing building and keep it as council housing to disastrous effect.

In June 2017, a fire at the block killed 72 people after spreading rapidly across cladding that had been installed as part of upgrades intended to improve the building's thermal efficiency.

"The Grenfell tragedy was born through, 'this is a cold tower block, heating bills are high, so let's clad it in insulation," McGoldrick said. "The idea was fantastic, the execution of the works and the products obviously wasn't."

However, Minton argues that the Grenfell disaster has since had an impact on changing people's views of council estates.

"When the tower burnt down, for the first few weeks or so, the media was saying this was a ghetto, a terrible council block – and there was just a complete backlash; people were saying 'it wasn't like that at all, it was a genuinely mixed community that people loved living in'," she said.

"It shone a light on what it was really like, rather than the narrative that is so often painted by the media."

Regeneration "shouldn't be a dirty word'

The picture also varies considerably across the country. Kevin Garvey, South West regional lead at housing-association trade body the National Housing Federation, argues that there are areas where regeneration can be a valuable tool in boosting local economies.

"Regeneration has a really important role to play in different parts of the country and it shouldn't necessarily be a dirty word," he told Dezeen.

"There's absolutely an argument there for the sector to be looking at regeneration as a particular avenue, particularly where the cost of dealing with those homes – hard-to-retrofit homes, hard-to-treat homes – where the cost of doing that actually exceeds the value of a particular home as an asset."

The key, he says, is ensuring that the interests of the people living in the affected homes are properly taken into account.

"Acting in the interest of the business and acting in the interests of the people that live in these homes, that needs to be weighed up and considered as part of the process around regeneration," Garvey said.

Changing financial picture

Social landlords often claim that tearing down and rebuilding ageing estates is cheaper than the cost of renovation. Funding for social housing is in perennially short supply, something that Croft says has to be taken into account when considering whether to demolish or retain.

"It is hard to find the money, not just for renovation and restoration projects, but perhaps even more critically for ongoing maintenance," Croft said. "That's so unglamorous but absolutely critical."

But here too, the situation may be changing. One major cost of regeneration is purchasing homes set to be demolished from home-owners on the estate.

There have been infamous examples of people being forced to sell their homes for paltry sums and consequently having to move far out of the area – most notably at the Heygate Estate in Southwark.

Following a landmark ruling affecting the nearby Aylesbury Estate, social landlords are now required to pay more.

"There have been some very high-profile public inquiries," said Minton. "When it becomes clear that residents homeowners will fight councils and will have to get a lot more in compulsory purchase, it stops making so much financial sense for councils."

Then there is the debate over sustainability. As the building industry increasingly focuses on issues around embodied carbon, retaining existing buildings has become a priority.

Under updated planning guidance published by London mayor Sadiq Khan, large projects in the city will have to meet embodied carbon benchmarks and prioritise retaining existing buildings over demolition.

"It's absolutely something that housing associations factor into their thinking – we can't talk about a net zero economy and net zero on decarbonizing the home, without thinking about that embodied carbon aspect to any regeneration that takes place," Garvey said.

Advances in building technology can also make upgrading existing buildings more effective. The Twentieth Century Society, for example, has been working with a new window solution for the Golden Lane Estate in the City of London, putting in vacuum glazing rather than double glazing to help insulation.

"It's a much narrower sandwich and that means it's much easier to fit into existing window frames," Croft said.

Regardless of politics, practical considerations like these could mean under-threat estates are safe for some time yet.

The main photo is by Dezeen.

Social Housing Revival

This article is part of Dezeen's Social Housing Revival series exploring the new wave of quality social housing being built around the world, and asking whether a return to social house-building at scale can help solve affordability issues and homelessness in our major cities.

The post Demolition of council estates "has peaked" appeared first on Dezeen.

As part of our Social Housing Revival series, we spotlight the city of Barcelona, which is shrugging off the legacy of fascism by rapidly ramping up its supply of social housing.

In June 2015, veteran housing activist Ada Colau became the first female mayor of Barcelona. She had risen to prominence clashing with police as she protested a rise in evictions following the 2008 financial crisis.

Colau was elected on an ambitious manifesto that focused heavily on re-establishing housing as a basic right for citizens, rather than as an investment asset, in the Catalan city.

At the time, Barcelona had just 7,500 public-housing units – a hangover from four decades of Francisco Franco's fascist rule in Spain during the 20th century when private housing was prioritised.

Colau's 10-year Right to Housing Plan put forward stringent measures to double that to 15,000 by 2025. As of December 2023, there were over 12,300 social homes in the city.

"There may be people who disagree with our city model," Colau said in an interview with Spanish newspaper elDiario.es last year, shortly before her unsuccessful re-election bid.

"What no one disputes with us is that we did not come to warm the chair, but to implement a different, fairer, democratic and feminist city model," she said. "[In Spain] we are leaders in social investment and public housing."

Among Colau's measures were buying up private residential blocks and converting them to council homes, seizing vacant apartments and requiring developers to set aside 30 per cent of new apartment blocks over 600 square metres for social housing.

Despite being ousted as mayor last year by socialist Jaume Collboni, her time in the post helped kickstart serious efforts to finally upgrade the city's social housing sector.

In January 2024, Collboni signed an agreement requiring the Catalan Land Institute (INCASOL) to construct at least 1,700 social homes in five years on 27 plots of government-owned land.

Barcelona overlooked social housing "until the last decade"

The shift has been supported first-hand by Lacol – a local co-operative of architects prioritising social and environmental justice in its work.

"The problem of the lack of public housing in Barcelona is very serious," Lacol told Dezeen.

"Until the last decade, the problem has not been tackled with any ambition," a spokesperson for the collective said. "During the legislatures of Ada Colau, brave steps were taken and a lot of energy has been put into improving the public housing situation."

Lacol believes that much of the city's best architecture is now emerging from within this sector.

"Very exciting projects have been done in recent years," Lacol added.

"The architecture done in Catalonia has a very good standard. It is designed from the concern of offering a good experience to the user, and we think that precisely the best projects are being done in the field of social housing."

Among the most recent social housing projects in the city are 85 Social Dwellings in Cornellà by Peris +Toral Arquitectes (pictured top) and Social Housing 1737 by H Arquitectes.

Elsewhere, MIAS and Coll-Leclerc Architects have completed 72 Social Housing Units at The Marina Del Prat Vermell and Emiliano López Mónica Rivera Arquitectos created 0304SAN Social Housing for Young People.

Co-operative housing "has shown immense potential"

However, for Lacol, one of the most exciting forms of sub-market housing to become more prevalent is co-housing – otherwise known as housing co-operatives.

In Barcelona, co-housing typically occupies publicly owned land or abandoned sites, which the city council hands over to community land trusts.

The trusts then rent and sell the housing to tenants at discounted prices for long periods, running the building the building alongside them.

Lacol's members are among those helping to deliver this type of housing in Barcelona, with the group's most notable example being La Borda.

Completed in 2018, La Borda is one of the tallest cross-laminated timber buildings in Spain. It consists of 28 homes with shared living spaces arranged around a central courtyard, developed in collaboration with residents – a typical approach for the city's co-housing.

Following its success, Lacol developed the La Balma co-housing block, which contains 20 homes as well as a rooftop garden and ground-floor community spaces.

"These buildings have made it visible that it is possible to build more sustainably and that it is necessary to introduce more of a social angle in public housing," Lacol said.

Another studio currently exploring the Barcelona co-operative housing model is Peris+Toral Arquitectes, which is developing a project for senior citizens in the city.

"Barcelona's approach to social housing strikes me as particularly compelling," studio co-founder José Toral told Dezeen.

"The co-operative model, for example, has shown immense potential by fostering direct engagement with end-users, thus extending the reach and impact of projects," he continued.

"We are in the process of developing a co-operative housing project for seniors. The participatory process has enabled us to create a housing model that would otherwise have been impossible."

Before this scheme, Peris+Toral Arquitectes created the 85 Social Dwellings in Cornellà project on the site of a former cinema.

While providing important social housing for the city, the project also made waves by becoming Spain's largest timber-framed residential building.

Rise in environmentally conscious social homes

The use of timber is a common feature of several recent social housing projects in Barcelona, reflecting a desire to be environmentally responsible as well as socially responsible.

"For us, social housing must be exemplary," said Toral. "It should not only address a social emergency but also pave the way for new living and construction practices," he continued.

This approach has also seen several social housing developments in the city feature terraces and prioritise passive building design strategies to help connect residents to the outdoors while creating comfortable living environments within Spain's hot summers.

For example, Social Housing 1737 by H Arquitectes features rooms around a cloister-like central atrium, ensuring every habitable room has exposure to natural light and ventilation.

"This kind of experience is not only better in terms of environmental responsibility, it is also more extraordinary because it connects us with nature," said H Arquitectes co-founder Xavier Ros Majó.

Elsewhere, the project 72 Social Housing Units at The Marina Del Prat Vermell is designed so that "all homes have at least one exterior terrace" according to MIAS founder Josep Miàs.

"The goal was to create homes with optimal living conditions, including ample direct light and sunlight, outdoor spaces as an extension of the living space," he said.

At La Borda and La Balma, Lacol used passive design measures as a way to minimise energy demand and, in turn, residents' energy bills.

"We wanted to create spaces that are energy-poverty shelters, which go beyond the energy savings set by the regulations and achieve comfort with the minimum possible consumption, which in the end translates into very important savings for the residents," the group explained.

"The solution lies in not considering only Barcelona city"

However, there is still a long way to go. Social homes now account for two per cent of Catalonia's total housing stock – well below the EU average of 15 per cent.

Meanwhile, debate continues over the best measures to alleviate housing-affordability issues.

For Lacol, the solution is for the local government to continue to prioritise the construction of new public housing and co-operative housing.

At the same time, the group is demanding measures in the private market such as more stringent rent control.

Yet for MIAS, the approach should be for the government to turn its focus on building more homes in the suburbs of Barcelona while establishing better transport links.

"The solution lies in not considering only Barcelona city but the metropolitan area, so it's not about only housing but good public transport," he explained.

"Then there will be no excuses for a lack of land, as people will be able to live in the metropolitan area within a reasonable distance and time."

The main image, of 85 Social Dwellings in Cornellà by Peris +Toral Arquitectes, is by José Hevia.

Social Housing Revival

This article is part of Dezeen's Social Housing Revival series exploring the new wave of quality social housing being built around the world, and asking whether a return to social house-building at scale can help solve affordability issues and homelessness in our major cities.

The post Barcelona's "best projects are being done in the field of social housing" appeared first on Dezeen.

Dezeen speaks to residents of new council housing in London about what their homes mean to them as part of our Social Housing Revival series.

"When I got here, I was just really in shock because it is absolutely beautiful," said Amanda Bennett*, a mother-of-three who recently moved into a new council house near south London's Old Kent Road, in a development designed by Pollard Thomas Edwards and Concertus for Southwark Council.

"I've never been as happy," Bennett told Dezeen.

"It's such a weird feeling"

Bennett and her children previously spent 12 years in a one-bedroom flat, bidding unsuccessfully for social housing where they would have more space.

"Our old flat had condensation because it was overcrowded and my back was breaking from having to move things around constantly," she recalled.

"It was such a tight area, so there was hardly any space for the children to play and my son couldn't get homework done – he went backwards at school quite quickly."

"Really and truly, he just needed some space and a good night's sleep, but it's impossible when the baby's crying, it was just chaotic."

Named Wouldham Court, the 21-home scheme on a former garage site is aesthetically functional, but for Bennett and her family it has been life-changing.

"It's such a weird feeling – I feel like I can breathe again," she said.

In the decades following world war two, local councils were the UK's primary builders of new housing. In 1953, they completed 245,000 homes – 75 per cent of all homes built in the country.

This era came to an end in the late 1970s when Margaret Thatcher's government cut funding for new council housing and introduced Right to Buy, which saw millions of homes sold off to tenants at a discount.

By 2000, the supply of new council housing had dwindled to a tiny trickle. Between 2005 and 2010, London's 33 local government bodies built just 90 homes between them.

However, in recent years, following a series of reforms to financing and borrowing rules plus targeted funding from London mayor Sadiq Khan, councils in the UK capital have launched a mini-renaissance in house-building.

In 2022/2023, they started a combined 11,000 homes.

As well as helping to meet London's enormous affordable-housing need, some of the city's new council housing is among its most significant contemporary architecture.

Henley Halebrown's intervention to deliver 45 homes on the Frampton Park Estate in Hackney, including 16 council homes for social rent, won a RIBA National Award in 2023.

Arranged over three blocks ranging from five to seven storeys that are connected by bridges, the project used small bricks to reduce material weight and timber-aluminium hybrid windows and solar shading to reduce overheating.

"When I saw the property, I was shocked"

Taxi driver Abbey Alebiosu was the first tenant to move into the scheme three years ago. He rents a two-bedroom maisonette, which he shares with his wife and adult son.

"When I saw the property, I was shocked because I was expecting it to be one of those little boxes, but what they built was really, really surprising," said Alebisou.

"I was really impressed with them to have built something of such a good standard. My son would not be able to stay in London if we did not have this place."

Their total rent and service charge bill is currently £641 a month – significantly less than it costs to rent a private room in most of the borough.

Across town just off Edgware Road, Daventry House is a 10-storey block of homes designed by Stirling Prize-winning studio Mae Architects for Westminster Council, which completed last year.

It is an area of the city better known for ultra-prime residential development than social housing, but nearly all 60 flats are let to tenants at social rents.

Many of the residents are former council tenants who have moved from Penn House, an ageing block nearby that had started to suffer from serious disrepair.

One such resident is Charles Curtis, who now lives on the 10th storey of Daventry House. He said that Penn House was a difficult place to live, and that his life has greatly improved in the new building.

"I wanted the flat on the top floor because you get such great light," Curtis told Dezeen. "I see the sunrise and the sunset from here."

The view from his window is a panorama of London, from Wembley Stadium to the London Eye.

"You think about how much this place would cost if it was private," he said. "I am very fortunate that I have what I have here."

London has been the epicentre of council housing's re-emergence in the UK, but it is not the only place where high-quality, low-rent municipal homes have had a transformational impact on residents' lives.

One notable example is Goldsmith Street, a street-based Passivhaus project owned by Norwich City Council that won the Stirling Prize in 2019.

Architect Mikhail Riches received a letter from a resident of the development describing how her new council home has meant she no longer relies on food handouts to eat, and has been able to entertain friends for the first time in as long as she can remember.

Mikhail Riches told Dezeen it has also heard stories of residents who have been able to pay off long-standing debts after moving into Goldsmith Street.

Post-occupancy analysis by the studio found that a third of residents had experienced improvements to their health, citing reduced requirement for medication, better sleep, less anxiety and improved respiratory illnesses.

Not everyone is satisfied though. Dezeen also spoke to a wheelchair-using resident of Daventry House who said his storage is out of reach, the bathroom is difficult to use and that a lip on his front door means he cannot leave the flat unaided.

Westminster Council said it will investigate the issues and fix any defects where necessary, and Dezeen saw emails shortly after our visit showing that works had been approved to his flat.

The case does, however, reflect dissatisfaction experienced by many social housing residents in the UK, with decades of restricted investment meaning that a significant minority of existing homes – particularly older ones – are beset with issues.

Councils and housing associations are also often criticised for poor management practices.

Dezeen asked Newham Council about speaking to residents at its Neave Brown Award-winning McGrath Road scheme, designed by Peter Barber Architects and completed in 2019.

But the authority declined, saying it is working through "ongoing issues" at the estate.

Meanwhile, economic headwinds mean councils' progress on new housing has slowed, as major cities including London struggle more than ever to retain key workers and families are increasingly priced out.

Bennett is hopeful that the social-housing revival continues, however.

"Everyone needs the chance to at least live a nice life, and an opportunity to do the best they can," she said.

*This name has been changed.

Social Housing Revival

This article is part of Dezeen's Social Housing Revival series exploring the new wave of quality social housing being built around the world, and asking whether a return to social house-building at scale can help solve affordability issues and homelessness in our major cities.

The post Social housing means "I can breathe again" say residents appeared first on Dezeen.

Two years into Russia's full-scale invasion, architecture and design studios in Ukraine are adapting to support the war effort while also ensuring they stay in business.

Casualties in the war now number around 500,000, including more than 10,000 civilian deaths.

With Saturday marking two years since Russia's troops crossed the Ukraine border, Dezeen spoke to architecture and design studios in the country about how they are coping amid the ongoing conflict.

"Our work is what keeps us going"

"Our studio is continuing to operate, but of course, not at the same pace as before the war and not at such volumes," said Svetlana Pashenko, co-founder of A Pashenko Architects.

"For us, work became not only a way to make ends meet and support our staff financially but a kind of therapy – an opportunity to escape from the realities of war."

In some cases, necessity has proven the mother of invention.

"Today, we are just doing what we can do – and sometimes what we can't do, too," said Anna Dobrova, founder of architecture and urbanism non-profit Metalab.

"We don't like this phrase, but now is indeed a time of great challenges and great opportunities. We are searching for ways to realise them."

Like many studios in Ukraine, Metalab is now primarily focused on war-related projects.

Through Co-Haty (pictured top), an initiative to renovate and furnish vacant Soviet-era municipal buildings as housing for those whose homes have been destroyed during the war, it has now rehoused some 1,300 people.

Meanwhile, its product-design centre, Pole, has developed a modular wooden bed that can be used in Co-Haty homes and a lamp designed for use in blackouts.

"During the last two years, we have developed a work culture that allows us to adapt constantly to new circumstances and be prepared for several development scenarios," Dobrova told Dezeen.

"Always being flexible and empathetic has become a core principle of our work," she added. "It is a common approach in Ukraine, we'd say."

Being able to quickly change tack like this has become the norm for studios in Ukraine.

"We always find a way and adapt to new circumstances – and our work is what keeps us going," said Balbek Bureau founder Slava Balbek.

"Massive missile attacks and news from the frontline affect our work, but not to a point where it disrupts our projects' concept development or implementation."

"After hitting rock bottom, our team managed to pull through"

Balbek Bureau is continuing to expand its RE: Ukraine Villages project, a digital design tool that supports the restoration of damaged buildings in rural areas, as well as other social initiatives.

In 2023 it also completed MOT, a transportable cultural space constructed from 27 cargo containers that also includes steel elements taken from the destroyed Azovstal works in the south-eastern city of Mariupol.

"After hitting rock bottom in 2022, our team managed to pull through and end 2023 on a promising note," said Balbek.

The studio has also recently started several new projects, split evenly between domestic and international clients in Switzerland, Mexico and Canada.

"It's admirable that Ukrainians keep growing, opening new spaces and starting businesses while also supporting our army," added Balbek. "We are proud to be a part of that and help bring their vision to life."

"We are also very appreciative of our foreign clients, who entrust us with their projects no matter the challenges the war brings to our work," he added.

YOD Group, a design studio that specialises in hospitality interiors, has also turned to war-related projects and found opportunities overseas – mostly in the UAE – after reduced investment in new restaurants and hotels in Ukraine.

It turned spent casings from anti-aircraft missiles used by Ukrainian forces into table lamps, donating the proceeds to support soldiers on the frontline.

"Apart from our architectural and interior projects, we pay a lot of attention to volunteering initiatives," explained studio founders Volodymyr Nepiyvoda and Dmytro Bonesco. "Such projects are crucial for us now."

Kyiv-based Bogdanova Bureau, which had to repair its studio after it was damaged in a Russian missile attack in 2022, has similarly adapted its business strategy in response to the war.

At home, it focuses on social projects like the rebuilding of a hospital in Makariv, while abroad it targets commercial residential projects.

"The current situation with the war in Ukraine made us change our strategy," studio founder and chief architect Olga Bogdanova told Dezeen.

The studio has now opened an office in Geneva to coordinate its international projects, which are mostly in Switzerland and France.

Bomb shelters required in every project

Despite their resilience, studios in Ukraine continue to face significant challenges. For instance, budgets for projects within the country are greatly constrained.

"Clients are rationalising and scrutinising budgets much more, going for cheaper design solutions – the economy is not in a great state, and there are much fewer sales than before the war," explained Pashenko.

At the same time, new buildings must also accommodate updated regulations to include defensive capabilities.

"A distinct feature of all the projects we are working on today is the need to integrate a bomb shelter in every project," Pashenko said.

"A lot of work is related to the design of these facilities, adjusting existing projects to the new regulations."

Then there is the impact that ongoing violence, particularly in eastern Ukraine, is having on some projects.

A Pashenko was undertaking design work for the restoration of a destroyed village in the Kharkov region not far from the Russian border.

"But then the work had to be suspended," said Pashenko. "Because the village is still constantly being bombed."

Another challenge is the loss of personnel as people flee the war or are drafted into the army.

"With friends and colleagues serving in the military, we are constantly seeking ways to prepare for changes in team composition," said Dobrova.

"It became more difficult to find qualified staff," echoed Pashenko. "Those guys who stayed with us during the war became almost a family now."

Nevertheless, Bogdanova Bureau, Balbek Bureau and YOD Group all reported that they have been able to remain the same size or grow.

"The core of our team stays with us," said YOD Group's Nepiyvoda and Bonesco. "Some people fled away at the beginning of the war, and a few of them have already come back to Ukraine and joined our team again."

Most of Ukraine's architecture and design studios are reportedly managing to survive and turn out projects – though Balbek Bureau suggested that smaller, residential-focused architecture firms are likely to have struggled.

The real difficulty for architects and designers in Ukraine, however, is dealing with the emotional toll of enduring two years of a bloody war that still has no end in sight.

"As Ukrainians, we feel as distressed as two years ago," said Balbek.

"With Russia continuing its terror, military aid being delayed and global attention shifting to other news pegs, our hopes, plans, and, most importantly, lives, can still be shattered at any given moment."

Dezeen In Depth
If you enjoy reading Dezeen's interviews, opinions and features, subscribe to Dezeen In Depth. Sent on the last Friday of each month, this newsletter provides a single place to read about the design and architecture stories behind the headlines.

The post Ukrainian studios "doing what we can, and sometimes what we can't" after two years of war appeared first on Dezeen.

Stone has the potential to become a go-to, low-carbon structural material, but barriers around quarrying and a lack of awareness must be overcome to make this a reality, experts tell Dezeen in this Stone Age 2.0 feature.

Arup geologist Paola Blasi, who advises architects on how to use stone, said the material is finally reappearing in the structural lexicon thanks to its low-carbon footprint.

"The structural use of stone is not new," said Blasi. "People are talking about the embodied carbon of materials and stone is entering into this conversation because, really, the embodied carbon of this material is zero – you cut it and it's done."

Architect Amin Taha, who designed the structural stone 15 Clerkenwell Close building, agreed, adding that it's gaining popularity because when compared to steel and concrete, the material offers extensive carbon savings.

"Concrete and steel suppliers and engineers are talking up 'green' versions of both, yet at their best they save 40 per cent if all energy and material savings are aligned, and stone remains 98 per cent lower in its embodied carbon even when diesel-powered cutting equipment is used," Taha told Dezeen.

"Using renewable energy, as the French government has asked its quarries to do, the stone has next to zero embodied carbon," he continued.

Yet, despite the potential carbon savings, the material is not being commonly used as a modern construction material.

According to experts, one of the main reasons for this is the debate over the stone's availability and the process of quarrying the material.

"There is a popular belief that there is no more stone"

While architect Elisabeth Polzella argued there is an abundance of stone to be explored by opening up more quarries, researcher Natalia Petkova believes the sites of these must be carefully assessed and planned.

"There is a popular belief that there is no more stone, but there is a lot of stone to build with," said Polzella

"It's very expensive and difficult to open a quarry, and it takes a long time, [but] policies should be that it's more permissive to open stone quarries."

Yet for Petkova, claims that stone is a "limitless material" are misleading.

"In an absolute sense, that's true, but in reality, there are many limitations," she said in an interview with Dezeen.

She explained that the proximity of a quarry to the construction site is important if the material is to be used sustainably.

"Research carried out at ETH Zurich suggests that if stone is transported by truck beyond 200 kilometres, it might no longer make sense to employ it structurally in terms of carbon reduction," Petkova said.

"There are also political and anthropogenic limitations with people for instance not wanting to have new quarries popping up in residential areas. These attitudes can of course evolve but it's not a given."

"Stone must be properly selected and sourced"

Experts were also concerned with the amount of waste produced in quarries, and the variation in the colour and veining of stone, which is hard to predict before extraction.

"If the quarries are not properly equipped, you can have a lot of waste and destroy a lot of material, which can affect the embodied carbon of stone," said Blasi.

"It's not enough to say let's use a stone, the stone must be properly selected and sourced."

While variation in stone samples can be an aesthetic issue, it also raises concerns about variation in structural performance.

Blasi explained that proper identification and testing of stone will make it more accessible in the construction industry. Through this, she claims it will "increase trust" in the building material.

Although it's a requirement for stone construction products from Europe to be CE marked – which declares the material has been tested in porosity, absorption, flexural and compressive strength, among other things – and British products to be UKCA marked, Blasi claims not all quarries in Europe are properly testing their products.

"In the past, there was hesitation because, as stone is a natural material, it can vary between different samples," she explained. "For me, the big jump is to convince quarries and manufacturers to carefully characterise their product."

Stonemason Pierre Bidaud agreed that as the aesthetics of stone is often considered important, then any variation makes it extremely expensive. However, he doesn't believe this should limit its use.

"In France for the past 10 or 15 years, stone has been used as a load-bearing facade system because they are using the full range of stone," he said. "They do as little possible work to finish the stone to avoid high costs and energy."

"We need to reassure engineers because they see stone as a material that is really hard to be sure that there is no failure or crack in the natural material," he continued.

"The next highest hurdle will be procurement"

Taha believes that direct communication with stone suppliers and a better understanding of the material will improve its popularity as a structural building material and lead to "lower costs, negative embodied carbon and better architecture."

"Apart from educating consultants, the next highest hurdle will be procurement," he said.

"We have a rightly risk-averse industry, with the triumvirate of project manager-quantity surveyor-contractor setting another circular argument of 'what was right yesterday is right tomorrow' and somewhat worse still 'let the main contractor set the cost and by turn the market'."

"This limits room for innovation to save our clients' construction cost and inevitably sets a business-as-usual course when we're all fighting to lower carbon emissions," Taha added.

"We believe this will be the new CLT for the stone industry"

Bidaud believes that prefabricating structural stone will make the material become a popular choice among architects.

He has been putting this into practice as creative director of building firm The Stonemasonry Company, aiming to exemplify that stone can be assembled on construction sites quickly.

"We cannot build traditionally like we did 70 years ago on site, with wet trades, mortars and so on," said Bidaud.

"We are 20 years behind cross-laminated timber [CLT] and the wood revolution," he added. "It's only now that we are starting to see architects questioning the use of stone, not anymore as a veneer, but as a load-bearing material – proposing what CLT has been doing in the last 20 years as a prefabricated and perfected system."

"At The Stone Masonry Company, what we're trying to do with our reinforced and prefab natural stone system is speed up the programme on site."

The Stonemasonry Company takes waste stone from quarries, which have been discarded because of variations in colour and veining, and reuses them by creating prefabricated components.

The discarded blocks are cut into smaller pieces to make it easier for engineers to check their suitability. Holes are drilled through them and cables or metal rebars are fed through to connect them into prefabricated construction elements.

According to Bidaud, prefabricated elements can be created as walls in sizes up to five square metres, 500-millimetre columns up to six metres tall, or they can be made into floor slabs.

"We believe this will be the new CLT for the stone industry," he said.

Harkening back to historic ways of sourcing stone, experts say spolia – a Latin term describing the dismantling of stone structures to be reused in new construction – is seeing a resurgence.

"A building becomes a quarry for another building"

Used in ancient times due to the effort of cutting and carving new stone, today its appeal is driven by the carbon cost benefit of reusing stone rather than having to quarry more raw material.

"The Roman Gothic and Renaissance builders dismantled buildings made of stone to reuse and rebuild other stone buildings – it's a sort of virtuous cycle," Bidaud explained.

"A building becomes a quarry for another building," Polzella added.

Robert Greer, director at stone and restoration contractor Paye Stonework, described that there has been a "significant increase" in the last five years in dismantling stone buildings for reuse.

This is sometimes driven by inaccessibility to new stone, whether through legislation restrictions or limited resources in quarries.

Greer described that London in particular has seen an increase in spolia in the last five years, largely prompted by planning policy changes that encourage a circular economy and the reuse of materials in their best form.

"A majority of the proposed schemes are within central London and satisfy the requirements of the London Planning Policy, but as technology to survey existing stone now allows us to scan the depth of individual stones, we are able to calculate the volume of stone for repurposing as structural stone or as cladding," said Greer.

"It's really gone on an exponential rise, whether that's a Trojan horse to satisfy the planning requirements and get a development through the system, or if it's a real conscientious recognition that there is a material there which is of good value and can be repurposed and reused and his best form."

"Knowledge has improved, production costs have come down and at the same time, people have recognised that stone is a resilient, solid material that can actually be reused – it's not there in permanence in the same way that concrete is," Greer said.

"Nowadays there's a lot of talk about deconstruction"

Petkova argued that disassembling stone buildings is not without carbon cost. To her, the longevity and permanence of stone is what makes it a more sustainable material.

"Nowadays there's a lot of talk about deconstruction and the reuse of individual building components, a process which nonetheless requires energy," she said.

"Solid stone construction speaks more to permanence and the idea of reusing buildings as a whole," Petkova continued. "This means designing buildings that are not only materially durable but that are also likely to remain culturally relevant for a very long time."

The top photo is by Paola Blasi.

Stone Age 2.0

This article is part of Dezeen's Stone Age 2.0 series, which explores the potential of stone to be a viable, low-carbon, modern structural material.

The post Why aren't more architects using stone as a building material? appeared first on Dezeen.

The Sims has been allowing players to act out their architecture and interior design fantasies for more than two decades. Jane Englefield finds out how the makers of the iconic life-simulation video game keep up with shifting trends.

"People laugh when I mention playing The Sims, but it was hugely significant in terms of spatial planning and was a key part of how and why I have ended up in the line of interior design work that I have," interiors stylist and editor Rory Robertson told Dezeen.

"The Sims offered people the opportunity to get a feel for design," he reflected. "You could be as extravagant and outrageous, or as briefed and restricted as you liked."

Created in 2000 by American game designer Will Wright, The Sims is a video game where players make human characters – or "sims" – and build their virtual houses and lives from scratch, catering to their needs and desires.

With four iterations of the main game and dozens of themed expansion packs focussing on topics such as university, parenthood and cottage living, The Sims is one of the best-selling video-game franchises of all time.

"It's really accessible"

Architecture and interior design has been a major part of The Sims experience from the very beginning.

Having previously created the city-building game SimCity in 1989 – which itself has been credited with inspiring a generation of urban planners – Wright was originally motivated to develop The Sims after losing his home in the Oakland firestorm of 1991 in California.

In fact, early designs were for an architecture game, with the shift to focus on people a relatively late addition to the concept, according to one of the game's first art directors, Charles London.

Design remained a core part of the offering, however, and the interface features tools that allow players to instantly build structures and decorate and furnish them from an extensive inventory of items.

"It's really accessible, so I think a lot of people get into it without even realising that they're playing with architecture and playing with space," said video-games expert and historian Holly Nielsen.

"While it was like catnip for design budding minds, it was also just a wonderful opportunity for procrastination and frivolity for people who aren't particularly confident or tuned in to interiors or architecture," echoed Robertson.

Since the original The Sims, a broad set of options has been available for players to suit their tastes and imaginations.

Possibilities have ranged from minimalist bungalows filled with neutral furniture to more outlandish dwellings, such as castles defined by Dalmatian-print wallpaper or hot tubs parked in the middle of multiple living rooms.

"We'll take any source"

The team behind these possibilities described how they ensure that the architecture and interior design options stay feeling fresh and contemporary with each new game in the series.

"Since we're a game about real life, anytime we step outside our door we have inspiration by just looking at what's in our immediate environment," game designer Jessica Croft told Dezeen.

Art director Mike O'Connor added that he and his team scour the real world and the web for up-to-date references.

"We'll take any source," he said. "We're looking for patterns. If we start to see round furniture, or bouclé, or whatever the trend is, [we ask] has it already gone?"

"The internet doesn't scrub old ideas. So you know, it's seeing if there's a trend, is it sticking, does it apply to what we're doing now?"

Furniture and appliances within the game are regularly revised over time to reflect cultural and technological progression in the real world, Croft explained.

"In Sims 2 [released in 2004] I would not be surprised if there was a landline phone – and there definitely isn't a landline phone in my own house, or Sims 4," she said.

"Even things like VR [virtual reality] didn't really exist back in The Sims 2 days, so things like VR consoles, computers – we just added dual-monitor computers, and LEDs are now in most households," she continued.

That in turn sees the team take a surprisingly deep dive into how interiors are changing, O'Connor acknowledged.

"Over the life of this game, you see an evolution," he said. "Electronics are probably the biggest category [of change]. Even just how people use TVs, how they place them, has changed."

The idea, says Croft, is to ensure that The Sims players feel a close connection to the world they are building for their sims.

"The most fun thing for me is being able to allow players to craft stories that are relatable to them," she said. "So, looking for opportunities to make players feel seen."

"An element of freedom and fantasy-building"

But, as Nielsen points out, there is an additional aspect to the game's architecture and design possibilities that is central to its appeal.

"In one sense, it's reflective of society, but in another way, it's aspirational," she said.

"There's an element of freedom and fantasy-building to playing The Sims," she continued. "Homeownership is a thing that a lot of us will not get to do."

As in real life, everything you build or buy in The Sims has a cost.

However, unlike in real life, punching "motherlode" into The Sims cheat-code bar will immediately add a healthy 50,000 simoleons to your sim's bank account, putting that luxury sofa easily within reach.

That possibility remains central to Robertson's nostalgia for playing The Sims as a young would-be interior designer.

"Once you double-clicked The Sims graphic on your Microsoft desktop, a multi-roomed mansion cost nothing to design," he said.

This aspirational element has become an increasingly large part of The Sims' commercial model over the years.

The Sims 4, as an example, is accompanied by 19 purchasable "Stuff Packs" that expand the options of items available to buy, including "Perfect Patio", "Cool Kitchen" and one based on the products of Milan fashion label Moschino.

And the latest of the more extensive expansion packs is For Rent, which allows players to build rental houses where some sims are landlords and others are tenants.

Within the game, landlords encounter various true-to-life issues, including the potential for toxic mould build-up in their properties – although, unlike in the real world, the mould feature can be toggled on and off.

Inclusivity has also become an increasing focus of The Sims, with integral features now including options to choose sims' sexual orientation, for instance.

For Nielsen, that traces back to a significant foundational element of the game's widespread appeal – as well as being one of the reasons it has had such strong interior-design influence.

"It didn't feel like it was aiming for anyone," she explained. "One of the things that people bring up a lot is that it has a very female player base."

"For me, it was a big turning point – it was getting to create the spaces but also play around with the people inside them. It felt like a socially acceptable way to play dollhouses."

The images are courtesy of Electronic Arts.

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Interior design in 2024 will have a focus on individualism and see a backlash to the rise in AI design while colours will be informed by global warming, interior designers across the globe told Dezeen.

While the trend for locally sourced materials and sustainable biomaterials looks set to become more pronounced, designers also believe that interiors will move away from the earthy hues and soft shapes seen during the pandemic years.

However, the maximalist trend predicted by many to take off in 2023 appears to have given way to a more individualist take on interiors, with a focus on simplicity recalling the designs of US fashion pioneer Halston.

"I'm seeing a growing interest in post-industrial aesthetic and quiet refinement," said Becky Carter, founder of the eponymous US studio.

"Maximalism now seems out of touch," she added. "Even the womb-like softness of the 1970s inspiration we've seen so much of is starting to feel heavy and overdone."

"There's a refreshing air to Halston-esque modernity: simple, unfussy materials, elegantly arranged, detailed, but without excess."

"We foresee a shift in direction"

Yohei Terui and Hiromu Yuyama from Japanese studio I IN also believe we will see a move away from earthy hues in interiors.

"Over the past couple of years, the theme has revolved around earthy colour and simplicity through the use of natural materials," the duo told Dezeen.

"However, we foresee a shift in direction, trending towards a more 'decorative' approach, in contrast to the previous style," they added.

"We believe that this shift is driven by the prevailing desire of self-expression and individuality in today's culture."

New Delhi-based interior designer Iram Sultan echoed the preference for more individual designs, saying we will see: "Emotional design, personalized spaces, a fresh approach towards materials, finishes and textures, and interiors that are easy, warm, comfortable and sustainable."

Interiors to focus on "real places" rather than AI-generated designs

The rise in artificial intelligence (AI) in 2022 and 2023 was also on people's minds, with several designers mentioning a backlash against digital designs.

"Memorable and customised spaces that are not Pinterest- and AI-generated will be preferable, as the race against interior design and AI technology grows," said UK-based designer Tola Ojuolape.

In 2024, interior design will be more about creating tangible spaces, according to London-based Oskar Kohnen Studio.

"We want to see less digital dream houses of pandemic years, and go back to real places," studio founder Oskar Kohnen said. "Forward-thinking conceptual interiors that create long-term value rather than effects."

Julien Sebban of French studio Uchronia agreed, saying: "The biggest trend will be very textured materials, cosy and comforting such as shearling or thick wool. As people need an antidote to digital they need to feel the physical world."

2024 may see "resurgence of the arts and crafts style"

When it comes to material trends for 2024, designers are choosing to work with natural and local materials.

"For me, natural materials with a strong connection to their placement have a profound bond with today's design," said Pedro Ramírez de Aguilar, co-founder of Mexican studio RA!

"I believe materials such as wood and natural plasters play a crucial role in creating a sense of grounding."

Danish studio Spacon & X partner Malene Hvidt argued that the materials used also affect the colours chosen for interiors, saying: "We also try to use colours that emphasise the natural appearance of the material itself, such as treating wood with tinted linseed to preserve the pattern of the grain."

This sentiment was echoed by Tim Greer, director at Australian studio TZG. "I'm hoping that we will see more natural materials with fewer complex and unsustainable finishes," he said.

"I think the drive towards sustainability will see the use of more natural materials and a resurgence of the arts and crafts style," Sultan added.

"There is a genuine return to solid bold colours"

The colours of our interiors next year will range from pale fresh hues, such as pistachio, to stronger shades.

"Palette-wise, I feel there is a genuine return to solid bold colours – be it a punch of emerald green, mustard yellow or Yves Klein-blue to provoke the visual energy. The expression of materiality and tactility is also a key focus for my studio this coming year," said Hong Kong designer André Fu.

"Customers are thriving for experiences to express their own personality and values – this has led to a greater awareness for the role design plays in the realms of hospitality."

"I'm loving seeing light, lemon-lime yellow being utilized. I also think pistachio has yet to peak," said Carter, while Ojuolape believes in "rich, pigmented and plaster colours".

"The colour and material trends will be very warm colours and more specifically orange as we need joy and to warm things up," said Sebban. "With global warming more important than ever, that will be the colour we get used to."

"Embrace a bold departure from the ordinary as the world adopts warm, earthy tones inspired by landscapes and eclectic hues drawn from various cultural expressions, all crafted with sustainably sourced materials," added Nigeria-based designer Titi Ogufere.

Biophilia will continue to "be a staple"

The designers Dezeen spoke to all said they were taking the subject of sustainability seriously. There is a need to create "lasting design," said US-based designer Giancarlo Valle.

"Sustainability cannot be separated from the world of building," he argued. "The most sustainable thing one can do as a designer is to create something that someone will not want to take down after a short period of time."

Spacon & X's Hvidt added that customers are also increasingly demanding when it comes to sustainability.

"Sustainability is fast becoming a key consideration when it comes to interior design," she said.

"Studios such as ours are always looking for new ways to become increasingly responsible – this is also what clients are expecting as we collectively become more aware of our impact on the planet, especially for future generations."

This focus is seen in the use of plants and trees indoors as well as outdoors to create biophilic designs – interiors that are more connected to the natural environment.

"Biophilia will continue to be a staple in the design aesthetic as well as beautiful, natural and healthy surface finishes," said Ojuolape.

"The biophilic movement will remain strong," agreed Sultan.

"In the future, 'high-end' may mean local artisan work" 

Ogufere added that sustainable design will draw on local communities.

"Sustainability takes a global stage, with collaborative projects empowering local communities and embracing circular design principles, reflecting a collective commitment to environmentally conscious practices worldwide," she said.

"Personally, I believe that sustainability is about building with a local hand, using local materials to create a profound sense of community and reduce carbon emissions," agreed RA!'s Ramírez de Aguilar.

"Architects are becoming more aware of their immediate context and are losing the fear of only using 'high-end materials.' In the near future, 'high-end' may mean local artisan work."

Finally, designers were also planning to include technology in their interiors next year.

"Technology will be used to enhance the quality of living," said Sultan.

Terui and Yayama from I IN, who see textiles as a strong trend next year, said: "Collaboration between the interior design and fashion industries can contribute to the development of new technology which in turn allows innovative spaces to be created."

Fu believes this can also help make projects more sustainable, saying: "I think considerations for sustainability is an integral aspect of my design approach, it's all an organic and subconscious act – from the selection of materials to the integration of technology into the design without undermining the overall experience in mind."

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Architects from studios including Counterspace and OMA are among those expecting less extravagant and more community-centric designs to dominate the global architecture scene in 2024.

Dezeen spoke to architects from leading and emerging studios around the world to get their predictions for the trends that could define the industry this year.

For most, world affairs are expected to have the biggest impact on architecture in 2024 and beyond, as countries begin "looking inward" and become more protectionist.

"The era of abundance seems to be coming to an end"

"The honeymoon period of globalisation is over," said MVRDV Asia studio director Wenchian Shi.

"Each country and each continent is looking more inward and trying to be more defensive," she told Dezeen.

OMA's managing partner David Gianotten agreed, suggesting that "the era of abundance seems to be coming to an end".

"We are facing a shortage of resources," he said.

Gianotten added that the Covid-19 pandemic and, more recently, two major wars, have "caused a sense of insecurity among many of us".

This will lead to "new design approaches" that prioritise local communities and the creation of safe spaces, he said.

"People worry about their communities, and they want to know how they can be in positions to help," Gianotten explained.

"I think the built-environment industry will focus more on creating safe places where different agents in the community can have an increased sense of belonging, and act for the common good."

This echoes the hopes of Counterspace founder Sumayya Vally for 2024, which are to give voices to local communities that may have previously been overlooked.

"I would love to see architecture made in the image of diverse experiences and perspectives, architecture that listens deeply to its contexts," said Vally, who was named emerging architect of the year at Dezeen Awards 2023.

World affairs will cause "less experimentation"

Meanwhile, Snøhetta co-founder Kjetil Trædal Thorsen believes that current world events will lead to more restrained architecture in 2024 and beyond.

"Right now, there should be no doubt that the ongoing conflicts, polarisation, and social inequality will continue to destabilise societies around the globe," he said.

"This is already influencing the economy, politics and thus also our clients, going for safer choices, known solutions and less experimentation."

MVRDV partner Stefan de Koning echoed this sentiment.

"Given the continuing crises in the economy, the environment, and everything else, I expect to see a decline in the luxury sector," he said.

"This includes even places like the UAE, which has previously been very luxury-oriented, but where we are starting to see more interest in the idea of a less ostentatious style of architecture."

However, Heatherwick Studio partner Mat Cash said the full effects of current world affairs will only be known later in 2024 when the world faces what The Economist has called the biggest election year in history.

"Over four billion people – more than half the global population – will be urged to vote," said Cash. "Each of these moments will help define a movement either towards greater polarisation and isolationism or towards more global co-operation," he explained.

These elections could have "far-reaching impacts" on architecture, he said, as they will determine the world's responses to the challenges it currently faces.

"We will focus our creativity on making the most of what we have"

Another trend expected to dominate in 2024 is a greater focus on sustainability.

"We might finally once again see the creation of our physical surroundings as a positive contribution to humanity rather than being a burden," said Thorsen.

This was also a trend prediction for architects in 2023. However, architects told Dezeen measures will become more targeted and, therefore, more effective this year.

"As more and more people feel the urgency of the issue, I think we will become more focused on managing specific risks that climate change brings to the built environment, rather than generic design approaches for environmental wellbeing," said Gianotten.

Co-founder of Dutch studio Overtreders W Hester van Dijk expects an increase in architects prioritising biobased materials – those made from biodegradable living matter.

"The Dutch government, for example, has just reserved €200 million to upgrade the percentage of biobased materials, by weight, in new buildings in the Netherlands from three per cent to 30 per cent," she explained.

"The money is intended for farmers and builders to work together to put biobased building materials on the market."

Meanwhile, Stuart Latham at Foster + Partners said more accurate carbon calculations for projects will emerge.

"With carbon calculations becoming more sophisticated, there will now be more certainty about predictions for the performance of buildings. Approximations will increasingly be left behind," he explained.

Latham is also confident retrofit will become a top priority.

"Foster + Partners believe the idea of retrofit and the revitalisation and reinterpretation of existing buildings will continue to gain strength as awareness about embodied carbon grows throughout the industry," he said.

Alexandra Hagen, CEO of Dezeen Awards 2023 architecture studio of the year White Arkitekter, agreed.

"We will focus our creativity on making the most of what we have already built," she said.

"As architects, we will use design as a tool to reinvent and revitalise the existing building stock in creative ways. It will have an impact from interior design to masterplanning."

Public engagement will become key

Heatherwick Studio partner Cash said the dedication to retrofit will also be visible in the way architects design new buildings in 2024, with a rise in studios designing for longevity.

"I think the conversations around sustainability will slowly shift from being purely concerned with a building's life cycle to its actual life expectancy," he said.

He said this will see a shift from "fast architecture" – buildings designed with a lifespan of 20 to 30 years – and more engagement with the public.

"We must have an aspirational mindset that looks to build for 1,000 years," Cash argued.

"[The public] are the judges of a building’s longevity and ultimately their success," he added. "2024 will be much more about how the public actively engages in this conversation and their voices will begin to be heard."

This will also be catered for through the design of more mixed-use buildings, a typology that Zaha Hadid Architects associate director Melodie Leung expects more of in 2024.

"There is no longer an assumption that buildings will always be inhabited in the same way," she explained.

"Clients and design teams are incorporating a more nuanced understanding of how the spaces in which people live, work and socialise may be shared and used differently across various times of day and how they can be adapted in future decades."

Direction of AI in architecture disputed

However, architects disagreed about the direction that technologies such as AI will take in 2024, after the topic attracted significant hype in 2023.

For Hagen and Leung, continuing to upskill in this area will become increasingly important.

"Continuous upskilling in design, sustainability and tech is crucial in 2024," said Hagen. "Shortly, I believe we will be aided by new AI tools to analyse and design our projects."

Leung said the fields of architecture and engineering will become "inseparable from the digital realm" in 2024.

"Advances in AI augment the ability of design teams to integrate complex layers of information and analysis in the design process with the goal of achieving more sustainable and longer-lasting buildings," she explained.

Yet, at the other end of the spectrum, MAD founder Ma Yansong said architecture will shift away from technology next year.

"While engineering and technology quickly develop, architecture can respond and sync with human emotion," Ma explained.

"Architecture is not a product or the pure outcome of technology, but also rooted deeply with art, culture and civilization," he continued. "We will leave behind pure digital architecture that has no expression or no soul."

Meanwhile, Counterspace's founder suggested the integration of AI with architecture is unavoidable, and encouraged architects to turn their focus to what they can control.

"Architects have been working with AI for a number of years," Vally said.

"I think the question is not whether we will or won’t be affected by the shifts we know are coming, but how we can build platforms that amplify voices from multiple contexts, include different bodies of knowledge; and build models that are resonant with different perspectives."

Specifically, Vally hopes more architects will look beyond mainstream trends in 2024 and pay more attention to the contexts in which they are designing.

"Rather than look to trends, we should really study our past and present conditions to uncover the stories and histories that lie waiting in place," she concluded.

Thorsen agreed, asking: "Maybe trends are a bit out altogether?"

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After an unsteady 2023, Dezeen's editorial director Max Fraser considers what 2024 might hold for design.

His predictions for what we will see when it comes to design next year range from the rise of material intelligence to the rush for sustainable accreditation.

Collective material intelligence

The pace of development in material innovation continues, in particular those made from supposedly sustainable resources as well as those salvaged from waste streams, such as fabrics made from bacterial fermentation and handcrafted biotextiles.

The appetite to use such creations in projects will increase in 2024 as designers strive to create products with greater material sensitivity. This goes hand-in-hand with a drive to lower the impact of our consumption on planetary systems as we continue to sharpen our focus on the climate crisis.

Increasingly informed clients and customers, together with (hopefully) heightened regulations, will demand ever-more transparency around the origin of the materials, seeking justification for their implementation, as well as assurances around traceability and a low full-life impact.

An increasing number of designers will respond by shortening supply chains, opting for regionally-appropriate materials, harvested or mined closer to the place of production.

This will likely become more of a prevalent expectation in 2024, buoyed by an already enterprising surge in new biomaterials and fabrication technologies. The challenge is scaling this from narrow experimental work into more mainstream channels.

Greater appreciation of aesthetic imperfection

Product uniformity works well for items such as TVs, phones and washing machines. But when it comes to the use of natural materials in mass-production systems, the mindset of uniformity and perfection also prevails. This means that the inconsistent nuances in colour, texture or grain that are inherent in the likes of wood, wool, leather or stone become a hurdle to overcome.

There is a growing concern that stripping out the quirks of a tree, the striations of a rock or the blemishes on an animal hide just creates unnecessary waste. This was highlighted by Formafantasma's Cambio research project when the design studio investigated the global impact of the extraction, production and distribution of wood.

Working with Finnish furniture brand Artek, one of the outcomes of the study was for the manufacturer to reassess its strict timber selection criteria. Previously only using regularly grained local birchwood without any natural marks, the brand has loosened its criteria to embrace imperfections. In 2023, characteristics such as insect borelines, knots and even bark first appeared on the iconic Stool 60 by Alvar Aalto as part of an evolving Artek collection.

This approach from a reputable brand sends a signal to the rest of the furniture industry that an 'imperfect' aesthetic sensibility needs to be embraced if we're to reduce processing and production waste. This is something that I suspect will become more evident in 2024, helped by the economic case that customers will want to buy into the unique characteristics of these items.

Raw and mono-material products

Designers will further endeavour to reduce the complex interplay between different kinds of materials used in production. The motivation is to create products where the component parts can be dissembled and separated more easily for repair or recyclability.

Such intentions will need to be communicated to users and the inevitable aesthetic change celebrated.

As circularity becomes expected, a 'circular aesthetic' will also emerge whereby products will be lauded for their efficient and singular use of materials, exposed fixings and true-to-material 'raw' finishes.

This was recently exemplified by the aluminium Knuckle light by David Taylor for Hem, an embodiment of raw, folded, uncoated aluminium and the winner of the lighting design of the year in the Dezeen Awards 2023.

Fifty shades of sustainable

For several years now, overuse of the word 'sustainable' across all areas of society has reached the point where its very meaning has become opaque. Take a trip to any trade fair or design week and you'll leave with sustainability fatigue, so much is the word oversaid, overheard and overprinted.

Many smart brands recognise this and are eager to communicate the great lengths they go to to reduce their planetary burden, ensure reputable supply chains, create healthy work environments for all and deliver economic returns that benefit their communities as well as their shareholders. To that end, the B Corp rush is on.

B Corp Certification is one of the most rigorous and reputable certification schemes for any aspiring business, thoroughly assessing all of the aforementioned criteria and more. As one manufacturer joked to me, "It's a tough process. Everything is opened, assessed and scored. It's like letting a stranger look through your underwear."

Manufacturers like Modus in the UK, Fredericia and Astep in Denmark and Andreu World in Spain all crossed the line in 2023 and I predict many more will pass the test in 2024: credibility from accreditation.

Trade fairs – a make-or-break year

It's been another bumpy year for trade fairs, which have struggled to rebound to pre-pandemic glory. The considerable cost and enormous effort of exhibiting has brands questioning how often they can commit. The returns that fairs are expected to deliver for these exhibitors – namely via marketing, footfall and ultimately orders – is an increasing pressure when attendees have also become more discerning about which shows they choose to visit.

The excessive waste generated by stand construction continues to be a challenge to overcome. I've become so distracted by the endless use of virgin materials to construct brand-ego-sized displays that I barely notice the product anymore. I call for greater brand humility and am hoping the previously-mentioned circular aesthetic will find its place on stand design as fairs continue to evolve.

It remains a struggle to make rather grim exhibition centres pleasurable, while reducing the environmental burden. Smaller, more nimble shows like Alcova and Material Matters will likely gather pace, able to better attain the sweet spot between quality content and distinct experience. Those that succeed will need to marry timely inspiration with responsible aspiration.

AI – will it deliver on the hype?

While hype, speculation and doom-mongering around the impact of generative artificial intelligence continues across multiple industries and at government-level, I expect the dust will settle somewhat in 2024.

For all of the wonders that AI promises, including analyzing data to inform design decisions, automating repetitive tasks, and simulating and testing designs, maybe there will be more skepticism as to whether or not it will live up to the fanfare we've witnessed this year.

One of the leading voices in AI, Gary Marcus, believes there are "many serious, unsolved problems" with the technology that could limit its usefulness. However, Airbnb co-founder Brian Chesky reckons designers should embrace AI otherwise the world "will be designed without them" as he stated in an interview with Dezeen in November. He added, "But, I am also wary of fetishization of technology" and, sharing this sentiment, I would caution the hype.

In off-the-record chats, I encounter plenty of individuals who are nonchalant about AI, so I would question the assumption that we must all want and need to use it. Within design, I wonder if we'll see a revolution from artificial intelligence in 2024 – or perhaps its offerings will just become casually subsumed into the designer's toolbox.

Polarising approaches to production will broaden

When it comes to fully scrutinising every action and proceeding with self-initiated care and integrity, many brands will find their mojo in 2024, particularly more nimble family-owned businesses with a clear eye on their legacy.

But I fear most won't, as the pressures of increasing costs, stubborn inflation, volatile supply chains, debt repayments, shareholder expectations and hesitant citizen consumption trigger an urgent scramble to carve out new market segments. All of these touchpoints are and will continue to be directly or indirectly exacerbated by the desperate human conflicts and environmental disasters that we've witnessed globally in 2023.

Changing business models to circumnavigate these disruptions requires long-term vision and stability, two things seemingly in short supply right now. Those willing to evolve their enterprises deserve to succeed, however, I suspect many businesses will choose not to rock the boat.

Add to this the ongoing lacklustre governmental approaches to the climate crisis and it's hard to envisage a world that can muster much excitement at the release of another new yet non-essential product. The time for the design industry to broaden its collaboration with other industries is now. The opportunities to work on game-changing solutions to some of our existential challenges are ripe for the picking.

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New planning legislation that aims to boost biodiversity in development projects will come into effect in England in January. Here, Dezeen explains what architects need to know.

What is biodiversity and why does it matter?

In this context, biodiversity usually refers to the variety of all species living within a certain area or ecosystem, including plants, animals, insects, bacteria and fungi.

Each species in an ecosystem has its own impact on the environment, affecting the availability of clean water and air, soil condition, pollination and other food sources and resources. Variety is necessary to keep all these elements in balance, maintaining a stable and resilient world for humans to survive in.

Many parts of the world are experiencing rapid biodiversity loss as a result of phenomena caused by human activities, such as pollution, climate change and habitat destruction. A Queen's University Belfast study published earlier this year found that 48 per cent of the world's animal species are experiencing population decline. The Worldwide Fund for Nature claims we are witnessing the sixth mass extinction event in the Earth's history.

"We live in a time of mass extinction, where an alarming number of species are disappearing and where the impoverished ecology of the planet is having a detrimental effect, not only on our climate emergency, but also on pollination and in the production of food," Adam Architecture director Hugh Petter told Dezeen. "It is a powder keg."

Adam Architecture's work includes Nansledan, an extension to the British city of Newquay that is being designed for the Duchy of Cornwall. The studio says it will surpass the new biodiversity net gain rules by adding "habitat 'units' of around 24 per cent and an increase in hedgerow 'units' of around 48 per cent".

What are the new rules?

Construction can be a major cause of direct biodiversity loss, and the new planning rules for England aim to address that. They mandate that new developments deliver a "biodiversity net gain" – that is, a measurably positive impact on biodiversity compared to what existed before.

Specifically, the legislation requires developers to deliver a biodiversity net gain of 10 per cent. To calculate this, the UK government has produced a formula called the "statutory biodiversity metric" for counting what it terms "biodiversity units", which are gained through work to create or improve natural habitats and lost through building.

As they strive to meet the 10 per cent requirement, developers must prioritise enhancing biodiversity on-site. If they cannot meet the threshold on the site being developed, they will be allowed also to make biodiversity gains on other plots of land, including by purchasing biodiversity units from other landowners.

As a last resort, they must buy "statutory biodiversity credits" from the government, which will use the money to invest in habitat creation. Biodiversity gains delivered must be maintained for a minimum of 30 years by whoever owns the land, bound by legal agreements.

Once planning permission is granted for a project, the developer must submit an evidenced biodiversity gain plan to the local planning authority (usually the council), which will approve it or refuse it. Development can only start once the biodiversity gain plan is approved. If the developer then fails to act in line with their biodiversity gain plan, the planning authority may take enforcement action.

Guidance on the new legislation, including a step-by-step guide to compliance, is available on the UK government's website.

When do they come into effect?

The legislation was initially intended to come into effect for large developments of more than 10 dwellings in November, but that was pushed back to January 2024.

Smaller sites will also be subject to the new rules from April 2024, while major infrastructure projects will have to comply from late November 2025.

Some sites, such as small custom-built housing developments, will continue to be exempt.

What do architects and landscape architects need to know?

Architects and landscape architects will likely play a leadership role in ensuring that projects deliver on biodiversity requirements, working with ecologists and the authorities.

The most important thing, says Petter, is to understand the importance of biodiversity loss as an issue.

"The more architects can take a proper interest in the subject, the better placed they will be to work with the spirit of the new legislation and to think of imaginative ways that the minimum standards can be exceeded," he said.

"It is crucial to engage with an ecologist as soon as possible," added RSHP sustainability lead Michelle Sanchez. "It is also beneficial to evaluate the site as soon as you gain access."

"This enables you to develop your designs based on the existing level of biodiversity, tailoring your strategy to local flora and fauna you particularly would like to support," she said.

One thing to bear in mind is that the new rules aim to prioritise avoiding biodiversity loss in the first place.

"Avoiding biodiversity loss is the most effective way of reducing potential impacts, and it requires biodiversity to be considered at early design stages," the guidance states.

To gain planning permission for a project that does cause biodiversity loss but proposes strategies to replace it, developers will need to explain, with evidence, why avoidance and minimisation is not possible.

Will this actually help to boost biodiversity?

The rules will mark the first time biodiversity enhancement has been a planning condition in England. According to University of Oxford researcher Sophus zu Ermgassen, it represents "one of the world's most ambitious biodiversity policies", but the exact impact is not yet certain.

But Sanchez is broadly optimistic. "Developers were not inclined to consider biodiversity enhancement in the past," she told Dezeen.

"Only on projects attaining sustainability certificates such as BREEAM would biodiversity targets be discussed. Even then, it would sometimes more regarded as a tick-box exercise rather than an opportunity to make the building better and more appealing and to reduce the environmental impact that architectural projects have on the planet."

However, she has warned in an opinion piece for Dezeen that a 10 per cent net gain on its own "is not enough to be able to reduce the negative impact that our way of life has had on biodiversity".

The photo is by Free Steph via Unsplash.

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Following recent controversy over proposals for an MSG Sphere in London similar to Las Vegas's new light-up venue, Dezeen examines the arguments on both sides of the debate.

Should London build a Sphere? The colossal Las Vegas venue – not spherical, more like a ball sliced in half with an exoskeleton of light-emitting diode (LED) screens – has captivated audiences since it opened in October, with mind-bending immersive shows and animated exterior displays.

The $2.3bn Sphere sits just off the Strip on Sands Avenue, where it transmutes into illuminated moving-image novelties: a blinking eyeball surveying the city, perhaps, or a beguiling emoji.

London Sphere planned since 2018

Madison Square Garden Entertainment (MSG), the organisation behind the venue, wanted to build a Sphere on a former coach park at Stratford in east London, starting the planning process in 2018 – long before the Vegas building was completed.

Supporters saw a London Sphere as a game-changer for the city's status, a vote of confidence in the UK capital and a chance to revive a battered live music industry post-pandemic.

But critics – including Stop MSG Sphere, a residents' campaign – were alarmed by the potential impact on neighbouring homes, and feared a detrimental effect on the aesthetics of the wider city. One campaigner described the proposal as "a supersized fever dream".

Relevant planning authority the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) was minded to approve proposals. But last month, residents and some rival venues were relieved when London mayor Sadiq Khan directed the LLDC to reject MSG's plans, citing "unacceptable harm to hundreds of residents" through light intrusion.

Khan also cited undue dominance in scale, massing and design on the east London skyline (the proposed structure is 90 metres high), excessive energy consumption and harm to local heritage assets.

In November, UK government housing secretary Michael Gove intervened by using his power to "call in" that rejection, and could potentially overturn it.

Planning permission for the Sphere, and a separate application for advertisement consent, will now be decided by ministers in the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.

The off-again, on-again London Sphere has presented an entirely new architecture and planning conundrum. The structure, designed by global architecture firm Populous, is part-building, part-animated billboard.

If it goes ahead, it would be like nothing else in Europe, with the main venue's capacity 10 times that of the Outernet in London's West End at 21,500 people, and many times more imposing.

When exterior screens are turned off, the biggest illuminated billboard in Europe would be a piece of blank geometry. An absence of facade detail means few of the usual debates about style and expression apply.

Instead, the discussion, and the mayor's objections, are mostly concerned with the imposition of technology and quality of life.

Given its height, the Sphere would be visible over a much greater distance than digital advertising screens at Piccadilly Circus or Hammersmith flyover – though unlike its sibling in Vegas, the exterior would not have been illuminated 24 hours a day.

"Interesting and futuristic"

"The Sphere wouldn't work on the River Thames, in Westminster, or in Kensington," said Ike Ijeh, an architect, critic and author who grew up in east London and describes himself as "pro-Sphere – with reservations".

"But Stratford is essentially a new city in its current incarnation, with the V&A, the Queen Elizabeth Park and Westfield," he added. "It is big enough to accommodate distinctive shapes."

Having hosted the Olympic Games in 2012, Stratford has been here before when it comes to arguments about flagship new buildings, Ijeh points out.

"The [neighbouring] Aquatics Centre [designed by Zaha Hadid Architects] was highly controversial when it was first built in 2011, in what now seems like a different world. It is sculptural and elegant now. So why not the Sphere?"

"The principle of a visually striking, constantly changing backdrop is interesting and futuristic and works with the context."

Entertainment groups, too, are broadly in favour of a London Sphere to reinvigorate nightlife in the post-pandemic era.

"It's a huge opportunity for London," said Night-Time Industries Association CEO Michael Kill. "It would start to build back credibility, it would draw long-term investment, tourism, jobs and a plethora of other things."

But such optimism is misplaced, argues Richard Sennett, a professor of sociology at the London School of Economics and a writer on urban planning and development.

Sennett predicts the Sphere will "work like a negative magnet, repelling any building or other activity around it, save parking".

"It looks to tear a hole in the urban fabric, which is fragile in this part of London," he said. "The Olympic Park needs more connections to its surroundings, not further isolation."

Campaigning residents deny their objections amount to Nimbyism and say they will fight on. "We are angry at a return to anxiety and stress about the possibility that this might still happen," a spokeswoman for Stop MSG Sphere told Dezeen.

She is unmoved by MSG's offer to supply black-out blinds to residents whose homes might be affected.

"Our two options are either to be lit up or to be plunged into darkness, which is laughable," she said. "People need light, and it will be particularly egregious before sunrise and after sunset. People shouldn't have to plunge their properties into darkness in order to escape it."

She points, too, to the Las Vegas Sphere's dominance, with reports of distracted drivers, some of whom are slowing down and even abandoning their cars to take pictures.

"A supersized fever dream"

The Sphere taps into wider debates than the usual planning arguments. Veronica Wignall of pressure group Adfree Cities says the proposed structure feeds into a concern that "the spread of digital advertising infrastructure is running largely unchecked".

Her organisation's Living Next to Digital Billboards report, published in 2021, found light pollution and intrusion from digital screens had a detrimental effect on social cohesion, mental health and ecology. Such screens disproportionately affect lower-income households, she claims.

"The MSG proposal is a supersized fever dream of the problems faced by people living near digital advertising billboards," she said. "They want a peaceful neighbourhood, good quality sleep, to feel cared for and a sense of place. That does not include a commercial presence that is irrelevant to you and your needs."

Nevertheless, London's appetite for so-called immersive shows and technically enhanced spectacles is growing – as the success of Lightroom in Kings Cross, Abba Voyage in Stratford and Yayoi Kusama's Infinity Mirror installation at Tate Modern have shown.

As US-based immersive-entertainment designer Mikhael Tara Garver puts it: "We are in a loneliness epidemic, and we're craving experiences. The leap and the risk taken with the Sphere is absolutely the direction we have to go."

But Gove's intervention looks likely to be too late. In an ill-tempered statement last week, MSG said it was abandoning its London project, saying Khan had "hijacked" the planning process with a "politically motivated" decision.

MSG chief executive James Dolan elaborated in an interview with the Evening Standard, claiming Khan wanted to "embarrass the prime minister" before an economic investment forum that Dolan had been expected to attend.

The Sphere Entertainment Company, a sister company to MSG, says it intends to sell the site and will focus instead on building Spheres in "the many forward-thinking cities" around the world.

Which cities it did not specify, though MSG is in talks to build a Sphere in Hanam City in South Korea.

That will leave an empty site in Stratford. For Wignall, MSG's departure will also mean peace of mind for residents of more than 230 homes in four blocks close enough to the proposed London Sphere to be directly affected had it been built.

The Las Vegas Strip, by contrast, is largely made up of hotels and hospitality venues. "Stratford is not Vegas," she said.

The main photo is by Shutterstock.

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For years, sportswear brands Adidas and Nike have been competing to design record-beating running trainers. As Nike officially launches the Alphafly 3, Dezeen plots a brief timeline of the so-called battle of the super shoes.

Marathon records have tumbled in the last 20 years, with most experts agreeing that advancements in running-shoe technology have played a significant role.

Spurred on by the proximity of the first officially recognised sub-two-hour marathon, Adidas and Nike have invested heavily in developing the trainer that they hope will see their sponsored athletes break the elusive barrier in open competition.

The phenomenon gained particular attention recently after landmark records were broken in quick succession – first by a runner wearing Adidas and then by a Nike athlete just a fortnight later.

At times it has proved controversial, with claims that the focus on footwear amounts to "technological doping", but the trend shows little sign of slowing down.

Here are eight major moments in the super-shoe wars:

Adidas Adizero Adios, 2008

Exactly when the super-shoe era began depends on who you ask. Adidas would argue it dates back to around 2004, when the brand tasked Japanese shoe designer Toshiaki Omori with creating the perfect running trainer. Eschewing the contemporary preference for digital design, Omori prioritised using moulds of real feet to produce a shoe with the closest possible fit.

The result was the Adidas Adizero series. According to Adidas, Ethiopian long-distance runner Haile Gebrselassie decided to wear the first prototype in the collection – the Adidas Adizero Adios – after trying them on in his hotel room the night before the Berlin Marathon in September 2008.

He would go on to break his own world record the next day by a significant margin of 29 seconds, becoming the first person to run a marathon in under two hours and four minutes. The two-hour barrier was suddenly much closer.

Adidas Adizero Boost 2, 2014 

Adidas's Adizero line came to dominate the marathon-running world for several years.

Kenyan Patrick Makau broke Gebrselassie's record in 2011 wearing the new-and-improved Adidas Adizero Adios 2, and two years later, his countryman Wilson Kipsang broke the record again with the help of the Adidas Adizero Boost. This shoe featured a newly developed cushioning system using thermoplastic polyurethane foam – a significant departure from the ethylene-vinyl acetate that had previously been favoured in running-shoe design.

Then, at the 2014 Berlin Marathon, Dennis Kimetto broke the record once again, this time in the Adidas Adizero Boost 2, which combined the traction and cushioning technology of the Boost with the more breathable mesh upper of the Adios 2. Kimetto became the first person to run the distance in under two hours and three minutes. The same shoes were on the feet of the second-placed men's finisher and the top two finishers in the women's race.

The next year, Adidas began developing the first shoe explicitly designed to shatter the two-hour marathon barrier – the Adidas Adizero Sub2. Released in 2017, it focused on incorporating the springy support of the Boost technology into a much lighter overall product.

However, the Adidas Adizero Sub2 was not able to achieve its goal. Instead, it was overshadowed by a rival release from Nike that would lead to a revolution in elite running-shoe design.

Nike ZoomX Vaporfly Elite, 2017 

Nike had been quietly working on a project of its own since 2014. Its research had led to two innovations: the extremely lightweight ZoomX foam, which allowed for an extra-thick sole, and the insertion of a curved carbon-fibre plate within the midsole that acted like a springboard.

Nike chose to distribute prototypes of the resulting shoes among its elite athletes in 2016 before the model had been released, and all three podium finishers in the men's marathon at the Olympics that year were wearing the prototypes.

It was not until March 2017 that Nike officially unveiled the Vaporfly Elite – declaring that it had been developed to breach the two-hour marathon mark at the specially organised Breaking2 race in the coming May. Olympic gold medallist Eliud Kipchoge finished the race in two hours and 25 seconds – narrowly missing the sub-two-hour dream but setting an unofficial world record.

The brand released a consumer version later in the year, named the Vaporfly 4% after research findings that the shoe improved running efficiency by four per cent compared to alternatives on the market. The chunky-soled Vaporflys were a significant design departure from the classic flat marathon trainer, and for many their emergence marks the start of the super-shoe era.

In September 2018, Kipchoge officially beat Kimetto's 2014 marathon time by a margin of 78 seconds wearing a prototype of the Vaporfly Elite's successor, the Vaporfly Next%, with a lighter "Vaporweave" upper. In 2019, Brigid Kosgei broke the long-standing women's marathon world record by 81 seconds wearing the Vaporfly Next%.

By now, the Nike Vaporfly and its transformational impact on running as a sport was becoming controversial, with some arguing that the shoes conferred an unfair advantage on the wearer. Analysis of 500,000 marathon and half-marathon times by The New York Times found that people wearing Vaporflys ran between three and four per cent faster than those of similar abilities in other shoes. Sports scientist Ross Tucker declared that the shoes "broke running".

Nike Air Zoom Alphafly Next%, 2019

While the athletics world scrambled to adjust to the impact of the Vaporfly, Nike was already developing something even more advanced.

A day before Kosgei clocked her world record in October 2019, Kipchoge attempted to break the two-hour mark once again. This time he was successful, crossing the finish line in one hour, 59 minutes and 40 seconds – though as with his 2017 effort, the record remained unofficial because his run involved the use of rotating pacemakers. On Kipchoge's feet were a prototype of the Nike Air Zoom Alphafly Next%.

The shoes featured the addition of Nike Air Zoom pods under the ball of the foot, intended to provide additional cushioning and energy return, as well as even more ZoomX foam. Rumours that Kipchoge's prototypes had included not one but three carbon-fibre plates were widely reported, but later denied by Nike.

In January 2020, governing body World Athletics took action over concerns about the impact of Nike's super shoes on the sporting integrity of long-distance running. It published new regulations requiring athletes to only race in shoes that had been available to purchase for at least four months – effectively forbidding the use of prototypes. Sole thickness was also limited to 40 millimetres and shoes with more than a single rigid plate were banned.

In February 2020, Nike launched the Alphafly Next% officially, confirming that it complied with the new rules.

Adidas Adizero Adios Pro 1, 2020 

Following the success of the Vaporfly, Adidas joined Nike in dropping the low-profile conventional marathon shoe in favour of a thicker foam sole.

However, unlike most other competing brands Adidas did not adopt full-length carbon plates. Instead, it developed "energy rods" – five carbon-infused rods placed and curved to mirror the bones of the foot. The brand claimed this system allowed for a "more natural gait" than a large carbon plate.

The Adizero Adios Pro 1 was launched in May 2020 and in September of that year, Kenyan runner Peres Jepchirchir wore them as she broke the women's half-marathon world record in Prague with a time of one hour, five minutes and 34 seconds – a 37-second improvement on the previous record.

After the race, Jepchirchir was pictured holding up her shoe in triumph. "I was exhausted for the last five kilometres," she said, "But the new shoes have helped me set a record." She went on to knock another 18 seconds off her own record a month later.

In another significant turn of events, World Athletics introduced a loophole to its rules restricting the use of prototypes following industry lobbying. The December 2020 amendment allowed "development shoes" to be worn in races once their specifications are approved by the regulator.

Nike Air Zoom Alphafly Next% 2, 2022 

Nike continued to innovate, and in June 2022 it launched the second iteration of the Alphafly.

This retained many of the features of its predecessor, but with additional foam under the air pods to assist with the transition of the runner's stride from heel to forefoot. The heel was also widened to improve stability, while the Atomknit upper was tweaked to improve breathability, comfort and snugness.

At the Berlin Marathon in September 2022, the Alphafly Next% 2 helped Kipchoge beat the world record he had set four years earlier wearing the Vaporfly Next% by 30 seconds, this time crossing the finish line in two hours, one minute and nine seconds.

Adidas Adizero Adios Evo Pro 1, 2023 

The battle of the super-shoes was ratcheted up a notch in September this year when Tigst Assefa shattered Kosgei's 2019 women's marathon world record by more than two minutes at the Berlin Marathon.

Assefa wore the newly launched Adidas Adizero Adios Evo Pro 1. Before the race, Assefa had described running in the shoe as "an incredible experience". Afterwards, she was pictured kissing it on the finish line.

The Adizero Adios Evo Pro 1 was designed to pack super-shoe technology into a lighter trainer. Weighing just 138 grams, it is 40 per cent lighter than any other racing super-shoe Adidas has ever created.

Part of the weight savings was achieved through new, lighter versions of Adidas's Lightstrike Pro foam, the outsole and the mesh upper, as well as the removal of the sock-liner. The brand also pointed to a "first-of-its-kind forefoot rocker" placed at 60 per cent the length of the shoe, which it said improves running economy and facilitates forward momentum.

The shoe was named by Time magazine as one of the 200 best inventions of 2023, but also attracted criticism over the fact that despite costing £400 ($500), it is only designed to be worn once.

Nike Alphafly 3, 2023 

Just two weeks after Assefa set her record, super shoes hit the headlines again when Kipchoge's 2022 world record was bested by his fellow Kenyan, Kelvin Kiptum, who completed the Chicago Marathon in two hours and 35 seconds – tantalisingly close to the two-hour threshold.

Kiptum was wearing the Nike Dev 163, a prototype version of the Nike Alphafly 3 officially launched this week and on sale in January 2024. Second-placed runner Benson Kipruto, wearing the Adidas, finished over three minutes behind Kiptum, while women's race-winner Sifan Hasan was also in Nike Dev 163s.

Nike describes the Alphafly 3 as the lightest in the series and its most extensively tested racing shoe ever, with more than 32,000 kilometres covered by runners in development. It stuck with the Air Zoom pods, ZoomX foam and carbon-fibre plate formula of the previous iterations but aimed to improve the shoe's stability, comfort and propulsion.

The most obvious visible change from its predecessor, the Alphafly Next% 2, is the shoe's continuous bottom, which Nike said aids a smoother heel-to-toe transition. Foam was also removed from the midsole towards the back of the shoe to save grams and concentrate the runner's weight on the Air Zoom units. In addition, the carbon plate was widened to improve running stability, while other tweaks were made to assist arch support and reduce rubbing.

In an apparent reference to the single-use Adidas Adizero Adios Evo Pro 1, Nike has also emphasised the Alphafly 3's durability, claiming that it was tested over a minimum distance of 200 miles (322 kilometres).

For now, the coveted official sub-two-hour marathon remains slightly beyond reach. Both Nike and Adidas will keep competing to ensure that the first foot to cross the finish line inside that time will be bearing their logo.

Main image, showing Eliud Kipchoge winning the 2023 Berlin Marathon wearing the Nike Alphafly 3, is by Nike.

The post The race to create the ultimate running super shoe appeared first on Dezeen.

A new design trend prioritises the needs of bugs and animals above human beings. Rima Sabina Aouf finds out if "interspecies design" is the next step in creating more sustainable spaces and objects.

An exhibition designed to invite in animals, a garden optimised for the senses of pollinators rather than humans and architecture designed with nooks in which birds and insects can nestle form part of the novel approach.

"This is a subject that we have been more and more interested in," the co-founder of London design practice Blast Studio Paola Garnousset told Dezeen.

Blast Studio started out by making 3D-printed structures from waste coffee cups where mycelium – the filamentous part of fungus that has applications as an architectural and design material – could grow.

But as the designers gradually optimised their designs with more folds and interstices that would meet the organism's preference for darkness and humidity, they found themselves thinking about other species as well.

The studio is now working on an outdoor pavilion whose intricately structured columns will accommodate ladybirds, bees and birds.

"The 3D printing techniques that we use give us the possibility to create artefacts that are designed both at the micro scale of fungi and insects and the macro scale of human beings," said Garnousset.

Interspecies design about "changing our level of respect" for other creatures

London's Serpentine Gallery has hosted two projects that centred interspecies approaches in the last two years.

Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg's Pollinator Pathmaker is an artificial-intelligence-powered tool that designs gardens to be as appealing as possible for bees and other pollinators, while Tomas Saraceno's Web(s) of Life exhibition involved making several changes to the building so it would be welcoming for the animals and insects of the surrounding park.

Ginsberg considers the interspecies approach to be an attempt to create with empathy for other lifeforms. She came to it after spending several years researching the idea of what it means to make life "better".

"Exploring how other species experience the world and – in the case of Pollinator Pathmaker – how they experience the things that humans create, opens up a world filled with empathy," said Ginsberg.

"We need to think beyond sustainability towards prioritising the natural world."

MoMA's senior curator of architecture and design Paola Antonelli has also developed an interest in interspecies design. She suspects the approach has a "very long history" but that it is reemerging in the West in line with the recuperation of indigenous knowledge and the rise of the rights of nature movement, which involves granting legal personhood to entities like rivers and mountains.

"I think that we get closest to real interspecies design when we think like that," Antonelli told Dezeen. "When we change our level of respect and communication and really try to position ourselves in a different way, not as colonisers but rather as partners."

A "process" towards the impossible

True interspecies design, as Antonelli sees it, may be impossible since human designers have a fundamentally human-centric view of the world.

But Antonelli considers the term a useful umbrella for a range of works that call for an "unlearning and learning process", dismantling the hierarchy that humans uphold between ourselves and other species.

Her version of the canon includes earlier works that attempt to find "a common language" with animals, like Sputniko!'s Crowbot Jenny, for which the designer, scientist and polymath created an instrument in order to communicate with crows.

Then there is Thomas Thwaites' GoatMan project, for which the designer spent three days living as a goat.

While Thwaites told Dezeen he doesn't consider GoatMan to be a true work of interspecies design – "the impetus of GoatMan was my desire to have a holiday from being a human, so pretty selfish" – he does see the connection.

"Goatman was definitely intended to contribute to a shift in how we think of non-human creatures," he said. "Goats are just as highly evolved as humans – there's no hierarchy."

"I feel that interspecies design is a process," said Antonelli. "That it goes from designing for animals to designing with animals to – what's the next step? Enabling animals to design for themselves?

"That would be the real gesture, right? If we were able to actually let go of the tools of production. That's what I would like to see at some point."

The thorny status of biodesign

A practice of creating together with organisms as they conduct their natural processes, known as biodesign, is emerging. It includes making mycelium bricks or bacteria-produced textiles.

These objects are created by human and non-human actors together, but different projects treat their creature-collaborators in varying ways.

Antontelli considers Neri Oxman's Silk Pavilions, a biodesign project created in collaboration with silkworms, as one of the closest examples yet to a true work of interspecies design.

Oxman studied silkworm behaviour in detail for the work and ended up finding a way to encourage the caterpillars to lay down their silk in sheets rather than cocoons, creating unusual structures.

In contrast to traditional silk harvesting, the silkworms are not killed during this process but instead caught safely as they metamorphose and left to carry on living.

This level of care and symbiosis make the Silk Pavilions stand out as works of interspecies design, even if, in fact, we can't know for sure that the silkworms are happy with this arrangement.

Curator Lucia Pietroiusti, who is head of ecologies at the Serpentine Gallery where Saraceno and Ginsberg's works were presented, thinks the area of biodesign distils a key tension in the budding practice of interspecies design.

"Many completely legitimate, genuine and compassionate attempts to design with more-than-humans at heart also exist within capitalist consumerism, within a chain of production," she said.

"No matter how you slice it, making more of something new is always going to be making more of something."

And what is ultimately good for other species is probably that we make as little as possible.

A new look for sustainability

While it can be tempting to conclude that the best design for other species is no design at all, that downplays the role that projects like these can play in changing the way we think about production.

Pietroiusti sees interspecies design as part of an evolution of the idea of sustainability towards something more like "thrivability", where we design for the planet to thrive, not just survive.

"Sustainability as a notion has been in too close a contact with zero-sum principles – this is sustainable because I do it and then I do something else to offset it," she said. "In the maths of the planet, that is very rarely the case."

"Are there situations in which certain projects or initiatives can think more ambitiously than sustainability or than reducing harm, and into 'can we leave things actually better than they were before?'"

Seven years on from GoatMan, Thwaites believes that while the real shifts to recognise and protect non-human creatures need to come at the legislative level, design can contribute commentary and explore how the change might materialise.

"I hope people will one day look back once the cultural shift has happened and wonder at how we didn't have interspecies design," he said. "Like smoking in pubs and all the more important social shifts that have taken place over the decades."

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Designers working in the film industry have spoken to Dezeen about the "huge" financial impact they are suffering as a result of ongoing strikes in Hollywood.

Set, production and costume designers described being unseen casualties in the industrial disputes that have effectively ground the movie and TV business to a halt since the spring.

"People are burning through their savings"

"Every single person who works in film has been drastically affected by the strikes," said production designer Judy Becker, who was Oscar-nominated for the 2013 film American Hustle.

"I and everyone I know have been out of work since the WGA strike began," she told Dezeen. "The financial toll has been huge."

"People are burning through their savings, downsizing, selling equipment – yet there has been almost zero public discussion of the effect the strikes have had on thousands and thousands of workers."

Members of The Writer's Guild of America (WGA) downed tools in early May over concerns about pay and studios' use of AI.

That strike recently came to an end after writers reached a deal with studio bosses, but separate industrial action involving the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), which began in mid-July, continues.

Despite expressing support for the two labour unions, film creatives who belong to other departments relayed feeling both the professional and personal effects of the strikes – which are the longest to hit Hollywood in decades.

"I would imagine that there's a large quantity of the art department sitting at home waiting for the phone to ring," said production designer Grant Major, who won an Academy Award for his work on The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King and conceived the set for the 2021 revisionist Western film The Power of the Dog.

"So I think it's pretty tough actually. Tough for a lot of people because we support the strikes, you know, but it's not as though we've got to gain anything from it."

Most people are likely to be unaware of the strikes' impact on the large numbers of people involved in TV and film projects, he added.

"By nature, we're sort of invisible to the wider viewing public," he said of the many crew members whose task is to create film sets.

"They might not really understand that there are hundreds of people who make a movie. Our job's largely done by the time we get filming."

Bridgerton set decorator Natalie Papageorgiadis agrees. Describing the strikes as a "major crisis" for industry professionals, the UK-based designer noted the impact on not only all film departments but anyone who contributes to the making of a movie.

"Caterers, florists, people that work in security – the knock-on repercussions are massive," she said.

Impact spreading far beyond Hollywood

Papageorgiadis also pointed out that the international nature of the film industry means the effects are being felt far beyond California.

"Many people don't realise how many large-scale American productions are actually shot over here on UK soil, with UK crew members," she said.

Major, a Kiwi, said film-industry designers in New Zealand are also feeling the reverberations.

"In New Zealand there is social welfare income people can apply for but the government is pretty reluctant to pay out unemployment benefits unless you're actively looking for other work," he said.

"I heard that the social welfare department did have a lot of applicants for the benefit when we stopped [working] though."

Costume designer Ane Crabtree, whose credits include dystopian drama The Handmaid's Tale and Apple TV's The Changeling, has been keeping busy growing crops on the farm she set up at her home in rural Pennsylvania during the industry lull.

"There are people close to me in the world of costumes, very close to me, who are hardworking people who work all the time who don't have the savings to have health insurance," she said.

"They're behind on their house payments. I'm very close. All of us are very close because there's no end in sight."

Crabtree highlighted the complexity involved in fully supporting the strikes but feeling underrepresented as a costume department.

"I think the thing I focus on is if we could all just get together again," she considered. "It's one thing to support the writers' strike and SAG-AFTRA but I do feel like I don't know how much they're going to support us if and when that would ever happen again."

"As costume folks we are encouraged to support the writers and the actors, and we do, and I do, but it gets to be hard when we have no stake in the game and we're doing it out of our good graces and our real support of people not just as unions, but as human beings supporting our friends," she added.

The costume designer said that despite some support, she did not hear back from a number of writers, actors and producers when she previously invited them to be part of Naked Without Us – a campaign lobbying for pay equity within the costume department.

"That was like an 'aha' moment – like, we really aren't respected but we're expected to support them," reflected Crabtree.

"We're one-sixth of the frame, no matter how you slice it," she continued. "Along with the writer, director, actor, director of photography and production designer."

"I may need to go back to being a restaurant server"

Becker also acknowledged how – like Crabtree and her farm work – film professionals have turned to alternative industries during the strikes, often reluctantly.

"I haven't been interested in designing in another context except for my own residence since I went into this field because I love film," she said.

"If employment doesn't come back soon, however, I may need to go back to being a restaurant server, the job which sustained me while I was in school, and also working as a personal assistant," she added.

"I have seen businesses offering discounts to members of SAG-AFTRA and WGA, but I have not seen any business offering a discount to those of us in IATSE [a labour union for the entertainment industry's technicians, artisans, and craftspeople] who have been unemployed without having had any part in the decision to strike."

With the writers' dispute resolved, there are hopes that the actors' dispute may also soon come to an end, though some argue that the SAG-AFTRA negotiations are more complex and so could drag on.

Despite this, the designers were broadly largely optimistic about the future of film – as long as industry-wide working conditions improve.

Moving forward, Crabtree believes the ordeal has demonstrated that a reset is needed in the way that designers and other workers are treated by the wider movie industry.

"The one-word answer is respect," she said. "Awareness, manners, respect and empathy. You can't go wrong, and none of them cost anything."

The main image is courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

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Rapidly growing Austin is set to see its skyline transformed by the emergence of several supertall skyscrapers in the coming years, but is this a cause for celebration or concern?

As America's second-fastest growing economy, Austin's population is expected to reach 3.6 million people by 2040, and various city initiatives are addressing growth in the region.

The population growth has spurred an influx of global manufacturing industries and necessitated a rise in construction, according to Emily Risinger, the director of planning and urban design for the Downtown Austin Alliance, an NGO involved in advocacy.

"The construction of supertall towers very much fits within this larger context of growth and of downtown Austin being the biggest nexus of activities in our region," she told Dezeen.

Skyscrapers under construction in the city include Gensler's 875-foot-tall (268 metres) Sixth and Guadalupe mixed-use skyscraper and another by HKS called The Republic, a 710-foot-tall (216 metres) office tower, designed with North Carolina-based Duda Paine Architects that is estimated to open in 2025.

Rising above them all will be Kohn Pedersen Fox's (KPF) 1,022-foot-tall (311 metre) Waterline project, which will be the tallest building in Texas when it is completed.

Supertalls bringing liveliness

Predictably, their presence is controversial among the city's residents, although some see them as exciting symbols of Austin's rise.

"These supertalls are bringing this liveliness and neighborliness back to our downtown because they are really well designed and made for urban living," said Reisinger.

Others are less complimentary, with accusations of elitism levelled at the projects.

Dean Almy, the program director for urban design at the University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture, said that as building heights continue to rise they form "sky cities" far above the public space.

Embedded parking levels on the lower storeys creates a class-dividing dead zone between those who live above the city and the ground-level tenants, he argued.

"They're not really dealing with the problems of Austin," said Almy, who previously served as the chair of the city's Design Commission and the founding chair of the Texas Society of Architects Urban Design Committee.

"You can go a quarter-mile high if you want to. What are the limitations?"

In 2012, the city's Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan pushed for additional housing that was dense in downtown but preserved the landscape as much as possible.

And since 2014, a variety of code changes have made it easier for developers to build skyscrapers in the city as long as they provide funding for the streestscape, utilise sustainable design and contribute to affordable housing.

At the same time, Austin has attempted to introduce guardrails to ensure that constructing large buildings doesn't sacrifice public accessibility, urban friendliness or market affordability in favour of breaking records.

For instance, the city's Great Streets program, an urban initiative to increase pedestrian friendliness and access to public transit infrastructure, has taken on the challenge of keeping up with the rapid development.

Sometimes, the city's embracing of supertalls comes into conflict with these priorities – as in the case of HKS's Wilson Tower.

Originally intended to be Texas's tallest building at 80 storeys when its design was unveiled in January, the tower's height was halved following an unsuccessful review with the City of Austin's Design Commission, though the commission was careful to note that it wasn't its decision that prompted the revision.

A non-binding report by the commission said the tower should make changes to comply with guidelines that benefit the general public.

"Downtown belongs to everyone"

The Design Commission pointed to the tower's failure to acknowledge the neighbouring Brushy Square and fully support pedestrian safety and Austin's public art culture.

"Downtown belongs to everyone, and should be accessible to the general public," Austin Design Commission chair Jen Weaver told Dezeen.

"The project sits on one of four open public squares downtown – and did not acknowledge the square," Weaver continued, noting that the architects and developers on the project were frustrated with the commission's motion.

"Large empty lobbies, monolithic walls, unsafe pedestrian zones, tall parking podiums, service spaces fronting public squares downtown – could not be more elitist."

While the original design of the tower did not exceed Austin's 25:1 floor area ratio density cap, it fell short in addressing the city's guidelines for public space and art, pedestrian safety, approachability and connection to the street, and creating a human scale on the ground floor.

As well as reducing its height, HKS Austin and developer Wilson Capital have since reimagined how the tower interacts with the ground floor and the site's public square in order to comply with guidelines and requirements. The company said that economic factors were the deciding factor in the revision.

Wilson Tower is scheduled to break ground this summer.

"We are making some changes to the ground floor in response to the Design Commission's feedback and changes to the vertical nature of the building in response to current market conditions," Wilson Capital president Taylor Wilson told Dezeen in July.

Looking ahead, economic factors are likely to continue playing a leading role in determining the future of Austin's skyline, says Almy.

"It's driven by the market, and as best that I can tell, it seems to have a kind of economic horizon," he said, explaining that developers are hedging their bets with mixed-use programming, rather than building the office towers of the 1980s.

While he doesn't expect Austin's market to drop, saying that a project in the sweet spot is a "relatively safe" endeavour, he is unconvinced about the viability of a tower measuring over a thousand feet (300 metres), when taking into account current interest rates.

"Six hundred feet tall (180 metres) seems to be the sweet spot right now," he said.

A variety of supertall skyscrapers have been built or proposed for the first time in many North American cities such as Brooklyn, Miami and Toronto. Last year, Dezeen rounded up six North American supertalls currently in the works.

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Chinese architects have told Dezeen they are regularly working through the night while their pay plummets as the country's property industry deals with a severe crisis.

Dezeen has spoken to more than 10 architects based in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen who reported widespread layoffs, pay cuts and wage arrears in the industry in the past year.

"You are having a good day if you leave work before 10pm," said Shuchun Yi (not her real name), a young architect and a former employee of state-owned firm Shenzhen General Institute of Architecture Design & Research (SZAD).

"I know some of my colleagues have worked until 3:00am consecutively for three months," she added.

Yi no longer works at SZAD but was too scared to reveal her identity when speaking with Dezeen for fear of consequences when trying to find another job.

Spiralling developer debt and stalling projects

After a long period of booming urban development, China's property industry is in turmoil, with developers struggling under spiralling debt and construction projects grinding to a halt.

The crisis is having a major impact on architecture firms, with once-reliable clients no longer commissioning projects.

Among 13 publicly listed architecture firms in China, only one saw revenue growth in the 2022 financial year.

The other 12 all had significant revenue dips, with Shanghai HYP-ARCH Architectural Design Consultant the worst performing, its turnover falling by 60.7 per cent.

One US-based architecture firm with a Shanghai office told Dezeen they have reduced the team's headcount from around 100 to 30 due to a lack of projects.

Another overseas firm with an office in Shanghai admitted that falling revenues have caused it to curb recruitment, meaning existing staff are having to work longer hours.

The story of SZAD serves as a useful illustration of the issues facing architecture studios in China.

Founded in 1982, SZAD has offices across the country, including in Shenzhen, Beijing, Chongqing and Wuhan.

Known for designing supertall buildings, it employed almost 3,700 people at its peak five years ago following a strong period of growth driven by China's real-estate boom.

As China impressed the world with its unprecedented speed of urbanisation, developers demanded faster and faster design and construction times so they could quickly move on to the next project.

In 2013, SZAD signed a long-term strategic partnership with giant Chinese developer Evergrande that led to numerous large projects.

"The majority of the projects were residential and formulated, with architects only required to do minor tweaking on each project based on the standard structure that the client supplied," said Xue Wei, another former SZAD employee (also not his real name).

"Normally it takes between 45 days to 60 days to finish a complete project drawing, but SZAD was able to reduce that time to 25 days," he added.

"Sometimes, SZAD was even able to deliver a partial drawing of the project in two or three days to help the client speed up the construction."

Wei claims he and his colleagues were regularly working overnight and rarely had weekend breaks to accommodate the demand for speed.

The obsession with quickly turning around projects resulted in architecture firms fighting to land new projects for lower fees or sometimes even risk not getting paid at all.

Architects' pay based on bonuses

"Sometimes the project had already been delivered but the contract was never signed," said Wei. "It would then be very difficult to get paid."

Chinese magazine LifeWeek has previously reported similar issues at another state-owned architecture firm based in eastern China.

Employees would have to share the risks as well, as most large Chinese architecture firms use an unusual salary structure in which the contracted salary is set at minimum wage with the majority of income paid in project-related bonuses.

That means if the firm does not get paid for the project by the client, no relevant bonus is paid to the employee architects.

Many architects agreed to such payment arrangements without concern, because there was a consensus that the real-estate market would continue to boom and that the projects would keep coming.

Then, in 2021, Evergrande dropped a bombshell. Once China's top property developer, it was found to be struggling with more than $300 billion in liabilities, triggering the industry's debt crisis which now accounts for 40 per cent of defaulted home sales in China.

In July, Evergrande posted a combined loss of $81 billion for 2021 and 2022 that sent the market into further panic. Last month, it filed for bankruptcy protection in a US court.

When the reality hit that debts have spun out of control among top Chinese property developers, architecture firms that had locked in their interests with these companies were plunged into difficulty.

As the former strategic partner of Evergrande, SZAD has suffered heavily as a result of the developer's financial woes.

Having expected to earn a good living at SZAD, Yi claims she ended up taking home pay equivalent to Shenzhen's minimum wage.

"HR promised I'd get paid bonuses quarterly and annually but it never happened," she said.

On 6 July, 44-year-old Hui Jin fell to his death from the window of the 21st floor of Design Tower in Shenzhen, where SZAD's offices are located and where he had previously worked as a senior structural engineer. A police investigation ruled out homicide.

The environment department in which Jin worked has completed landmark projects such as Shenzhen Energy Mansion, in collaboration with Danish architecture firm BIG, and Shenzhen Stock Exchange, in collaboration with Dutch studio OMA.

The number of staff in the department has halved from 600 in 2018 to 300 now. Jin joined in 2018 and left the company in March this year.

Chinese publication The Paper reported that Jin had been repeatedly chasing wages that SZAD owed him since his departure from the company, according to text communications between Jin and SZAD's finance department revealed by Jin's surviving family.

SZAD has denied any financial dispute in a statement. Jin's bank account reportedly received a payment of more than 40,000 yuan the day after his death, accompanied with the description "bonus for 2021".

Firms chasing limited projects

The problems are not unique to SZAD. Chinese website Jiemian News reported that architects at a local firm in Shenzhen have seen their wages half since 2019 as a result of evaporating bonus pay.

And there is currently no end in sight for the industry's troubles, with architecture firms now struggling to compete for a dwindling number of projects at lower fees.

"Previously you normally saw three to five companies in the competition, but now there are over 20 companies in one competition," one architect told Jiemian News.

"But that's common in the industry, because there are too many people and not enough projects."

Dezeen put all the claims in this story to SZAD but did not receive a response.

If you have been affected by any of the details in this story, support hotlines are available here.

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Increasing use of AI could have major copyright implications for designers and architects, warn experts as part of our AItopia series.

In recent months, lawsuits have been filed against leading AI companies such as OpenAI, Google and Stable Diffusion by authors, artists and stock-image suppliers who claim theft of their intellectual property.

Noam Shemtov, a professor of intellectual property and technology law at Queen Mary University's Centre for Commercial Law Studies, told Dezeen that similar concerns could soon start to affect designers and architects.

"Potential infringement risks"

"Most people are not in the business of producing an industrial design for fun, so I don't think we're there yet," he said.

"But as a matter of technology and law, I don't see much of a difference."

Intellectual-property lawyer Erik Rõuk also warned that designers and architects using AI need to be wary about copyright breaches.

"I would say if anyone wanted to take their AI projects further and they wanted to start producing actual products or real-world items, be that either a matchbox or a building, there could be a potential infringement risk there that the user should always be aware of," he told Dezeen.

The emergence since 2021 of powerful generative AI tools like OpenAI's ChatGPT and text-to-image tools including Stable Diffusion and Midjourney promises a potential revolution in creativity.

But their rise in popularity has been accompanied by mounting anger from some creatives about the fact that these systems are trained on vast quantities of human-authored work, often collected without permission.

Ryan Abbott, an academic and lawyer who specialises in intellectual property and the law around AI, expects the disputes to rumble on as industry and governments get to grips with the technology.

"There's going to be a lot of litigation and a lot of uncertainty for businesses that are trying to figure out how to navigate AI for the next few years," he told Dezeen.

"Every week we have a new tool and people are very excited, but I think it's important that we have regulations and clear industry standards," added Angelica Ponzio of the architecture faculty at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul and an organiser of architecture education platform DigitalFutures.

"Generative AI may render output unprotectable"

Some studios, notably Zaha Hadid Architects, are already using AI image generators to help come up with ideas as part of the design process.

But designers and architects need to be aware of potential copyright issues associated with leaning too heavily on AI.

There are questions over whether designs created using these AI models are protectable by copyright – meaning they could be copied with impunity by someone else.

In a case in the US, for example, the Copyright Office revoked a graphic novel's copyright after discovering that its illustrations were produced using Midjourney.

"This depends on specific roles being played by a person and an AI, but the Copyright Office's position right now is that the use of generative AI may render output unprotectable," said Abbott.

"So, an architect using generative AI may not be able to claim they have any intellectual property rights in AI output."

"In order for a design to be validly registerable and protectable it needs to be novel, and it needs to possess some individual character," explained Rõuk, an associate at law firm Marks & Clerk who specialises in industrial designs.

"The AI models are effectively not capable, for the most part, of creating something truly new and substantially different."

There is also a small chance that designs created using AI could infringe on someone else's intellectual property, particularly if the user's inputs reference specific designers by name.

So-called diffusion models like DALL-E 2 and Midjourney draw on a vast database of images to stitch together an image that matches the user's prompt.

But they have also been known to simply copy images. Stable Diffusion, for example, has a tendency to even display the Getty Images watermark in its outputs.

Other cases might not be so obvious. And unlike a human designer, an AI model makes no judgement over how much borrowing from existing work is appropriate.

"A lot of the platforms have specific disclaimers saying that they do not claim copyright in whatever is produced," said Rõuk.

"The message to the user is: you may have the copyright in whatever you produce, but we don't give you any guarantees as to whether or not that might infringe someone else's copyright, or someone else's intellectual property rights."

"The importance of clearing whatever you're doing before you launch becomes even more important than it used to be, because it's so much easier for the user to generate designs for products and for the models to come up with something that's already been done," he added.

In the absence of existing case law, this remains an area of legal uncertainty – and Abbott points out that different countries will take different approaches.

But for Ponzio, who was an early tester of DALL-E 2 and teaches an architecture masters module involving the use of generative AI, the potential legal risks are a reminder about taking a critical approach to designing with the technology.

"It all depends on what you want to do with AI," she said. "If it is just for ideation, I think it's very similar to what we already do "when looking at references in the architectural design process."

"AI can help boost your imagination, but, as with references, I don't believe you should just copy and paste from it."

Lawsuits by designers and architects unlikely

But what about the AI companies themselves – could we see designers and architects suing as artists and authors are already doing? In theory yes, says Rõuk, though it depends on whether the existing claims are ultimately successful.

"There's certainly going to be some interest in trying to find some degree of liability in what these AI companies do," he said.

These cases will likely hinge, explains Shemtov, around one issue in particular that has not yet been clearly established.

"The question is: what happened when I trained my AI with your design? Was a copy made in the process of the training?"

For now any action by designers or architects is unlikely, partly because only a small handful of studios have styles widely recognisable enough for AI copycats to be a concern – and even then, style is not generally protected by law.

But that could change once the technology develops enough that generative AI models capable of producing 3D designs become commonplace – widely considered the point at which architects and designers' work could be affected.

"The issue is if your work is being used for somebody else to earn something out of it without your authorisation, that is when we can have a real problem," said Ponzio.

"Lawsuits are basically about money – it costs money to bring a lawsuit and to run a lawsuit," added Shemtov.

"It's a very expensive business, and you do not do that on principle but usually because you seek to address a financial injury that you believe has taken place," he continued.

"So I think once we get there, you will start seeing that. I don't know how soon that is going to happen – I don't think we are there yet."

Concern over "exploitative" training

How these issues progress will also depend on whether governments begin passing legislation that attempts to restrict the use of human-authored work to train generative AI. The EU is furthest ahead in regulating the technology.

The bloc's AI Act is still being finalised, but is expected to require AI companies to be transparent over training data, with rights holders also having the option to "opt out" of their work being mined.

Some creatives are already arguing that an "opt-in" system would be fairer, while Abbot is doubtful over whether either would make much difference to copyright infringement.

He also predicts discrepancies between how different jurisdictions attempt to tackle the problem.

"The law is evolving in this area, and it will likely be the case that the law allows people to train AI differently in the US versus the EU, and this is going to have some challenging implications," he said.

Industry may also look for a solution. Tools, such as Glaze, are emerging which prevent copyrighted work from being scraped into AI-training data sets.

Meanwhile, Shemtov envisages something similar to existing collecting societies, which enable, for instance, musicians to be paid for their songs being played in public venues.

In this case, an architect could receive a fee from AI companies for drawings used as training data or from the users of resulting generative systems.

But that also feeds into a potentially existential risk for creatives, Shemtov argues: whether AI models trained on their work eventually become capable enough that clients are less likely to bother commissioning human designers.

These fears are the crux of recent strikes by Hollywood writers and actors.

"I personally can completely see why creators are concerned," said Shemtov. "I can see why some people would look at this type of training as exploitative."

"You're using my work, in a way, to make me at a certain point down the line – and maybe not that far – redundant."

The images were produced using DALL-E 2.

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AItopia

This article is part of Dezeen's AItopia series, which explores the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on design, architecture and humanity, both now and in the future.

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The growth of AI will put an increased environmental burden on the planet, say experts who argue it's time to think about the invisible physical infrastructures of our technology.

In the 1930s, Alan Turing came up with an early conceptual model for computing. Later dubbed the Turing Machine, it involved a system with a head that reads and writes data bit by bit onto an infinite roll of tape, and it became a foundational idea in computer science.

Tech-focused artist and environmental engineer Tega Brain argues this idea of an infinite roll of tape is still echoed in the way society thinks about computing.

"The infinite roll of tape stands in for computing power," Brain told Dezeen. "At the very beginning of the field, they produced this imaginary of unlimited computing, and that's something that I think the field still aspires to."

"But also the roll of tape is paper, so it is material and therefore it is limited. An infinite roll is never going to be possible."

A growing community of academics are concerned with the environmental impact of our contemporary tendency to see the digital as divorced from the physical.

Online actions have a considerable material cost. The information and communications technology (ICT) sector has been credibly estimated to account for at least 2 to 4 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions.

Aviation, a much more scrutinised sector, is estimated to account for 2 per cent of GHG emissions.

The chunk of emissions associated with ICT is expected to grow, in large part because of the boom in artificial intelligence (AI) and how much computing power it takes to train models on big data sets.

Increased energy demand a barrier to clean-energy goals

Experts tend to agree that the energy demands and related carbon emissions of AI are unlikely to be as alarming as they are for cryptocurrency and NFTs.

However, the trend for growth in AI, with more complex models becoming common, means this could change.

"AI may hold a promissory, high-tech vision of the future, but wherever that AI will live, it will look very beige, it will look unremarkable, it will have a huge impact on water tables and it will require a lot of electricity," warned Anne Pasek, a technology and climate researcher who recently published a zine called Getting Into Fights with Data Centres.

The technology's carbon footprint comes almost entirely from the energy use of its physical homes — the data centres that house their processing units.

There are at least 8,000 data centres worldwide, ranging in size from small office buildings to the "hyperscale" facilities — mostly owned by Amazon, Microsoft and Google — that power the cloud and span football fields.

Worldwide, estimated global data centre electricity consumption is around 240-340 terrawatt hours, or around 1 to 1.3 per cent of global demand, excluding cryptocurrency mining.

In Ireland, data centres use approximately 18 per cent of the country's total electricity, meaning its 70 data centres consume more energy than all the urban dwellings combined.

Data centres are becoming more efficient. While the number of facilities has doubled since 2015, and their workloads more than tripled, their energy use has gone up less, by somewhere between 20 and 70 per cent.

But Pasek points out that even a new "ultra-efficient, state-of-the-art, ecological angel facility" still represents additional demand on the grid overall.

"It may be cleaner than before, but if all we're doing is making efficiency improvements, we're not really changing the trajectory overall," she said.

"Our best strategy to address climate change is to electrify everything and make electricity clean, but it will be exponentially harder to achieve that goal if we don't also reduce demand at the same time," Pasek continued.

Calculating AI's share of this energy bill is difficult. One study from 2019 suggested training a single deep learning model could use between 27 and 656,347 kilowatt hours of electricity, producing five times the lifetime carbon emissions of a car.

This is widely viewed as an extreme example, but Brain noted that "the resources that would be being used by something like OpenAI, with its unprecedented adoption, will be eye-watering".

"We have to always have that big asterisk there that it's kind of a guess in the dark," said Pasek. "That means that the real question is not 'how bad is our current stuff', but rather, what sort of future plans, deployments and business models are being dreamt up?"

Competition for scarce water supplies

Data centres also use huge amounts of water for the cooling systems that keep their racks of servers from overheating.

In one contentious study, researchers estimated that for every ChatGPT conversation of 20-50 questions, a 500-millilitre bottle of water would be "drunk" at a data centre.

But while the water consumption of a particular process such as using or training an AI is hard to quantify, the figures for the data centres themselves are more concrete.

After years of secrecy, Google has started publishing its usage statistics, reporting that its data centres worldwide used 5.2 billion gallons of water in 2022.

In her zine, Pasek uses Google's data centre in The Dalles, Oregon as a case study, noting that the 350 million gallons of water it uses accounts for almost a third of the water use for the whole city of 16,000 residents.

That number is set to grow with the planned opening of two more data centres there, but some experts have warned this could affect fish and wildlife on source water streams, as well as other water users.

"It's a very significant demand put on local infrastructure," said Pasek. "And it also means that the water table of the region is under stress. If there's a drought, then data centres can be in competition with agriculture and with city usage."

In some areas of the world, droughts have already brought local people into conflict with data centres.

This year in the Uruguayan capital of Montevideo, residents suffering under water shortages so severe that saltwater had been added to the drinking supply protested against plans to build a Google data centre there.

After the 2021 heatwave in the Netherlands, farmers led an opposition movement that even saw the country institute a nine-month ban on the building of new centres.

Tech needs linked to boom in mining

With AI, the drive to build more data centres, hardware and energy infrastructure also has a cost in carbon-intense raw materials ranging from concrete and steel to aluminium, plastic, glass, silicon, copper, gold and rare earth minerals.

Worldwide demand for lithium — a key battery metal — is expected to grow to 1.1 million metric tons by 2040, more than 10 times what is currently produced, and nearly all of that will be used for electric vehicles or energy storage.

A key issue is that the metals and minerals need to be mined, and — particularly given the technology industry's slow embrace of e-waste recycling and circularity — that creates an environmental and social burden that rich Western countries have mostly exported to the Global South.

Architect and researcher Antonio del Giudice , who has worked with indigenous communities in Chile whose lands are being used for mining copper and lithium, said that Europe has written off whole regions as "sacrificed zones" for mining.

There are issues with what happens to these materials at end-of-life, too.

While some leaders in the tech industry, including Google, are making progress, most disused parts from data centres still end up in landfill with electronic waste estimated to account for around 70 per cent of the world's surface-level toxic pollution.

Most of the parts from decommissioned data centres finish up in places like the Agbogbloshie "digital dumping ground" in Ghana, with electronic waste estimated to account for around 70 per cent of the world's surface-level toxic pollution.

By contrast, there is at least one area of ICT infrastructure that is relatively unproblematic: the undersea cables that connect up data centres and send information flying around the globe via fibre optics. They are made mostly of glass fibre, steel and copper.

Researcher Nicole Starosielski — who wrote the book on the subject — told Dezeen that the cables use relatively small amounts of electricity, produce little carbon emissions and have a negligible effect on the marine environment.

She even wants more cables to be laid to give more isolated nations a better back-up against damage and to connect more parts of the world with data centres in the most low-impact locations.

"[The cables] are the size of a garden hose, stay in place for 25 years, and are largely neutral," said Starosielski. "I would advocate for laying more cables, especially to connect to data centres in green energy hubs."

Rethinking technology and material use

Some AI researchers argue that it promises major environmental benefits, from finding efficiencies to making a big breakthrough on nuclear fusion for renewable energy.

But others are calling for sustainability to have more prominence in ethical guidelines for AI. Charlotte Freitag, Mike Berners-Lee and their co-authors on the ICT sector emissions paper note that sustainability is currently one of the least represented issues in these exercises, but that its inclusion could help to change the paradigm.

Brain, meanwhile, identifies a potential role for front-end designers, who could introduce a transparency around material use into interfaces to encourage people to view the digital world as entwined with the planet's resources.

Brain advocates for design within planetary limits, and her own artwork, Solar Protocol, is a provocation to think about what the internet might look like if we accept the intermittency of solar power.

"The way that interfaces are designed is to make their content appear as if by magic," she said. "There's no disclosure around the resources or the context that the system is operating in. Smooth, seamless design is deliberately about making that opaque."

AItopia

This article is part of Dezeen's AItopia series, which explores the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on design, architecture and humanity, both now and in the future.

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As part of our AItopia series exploring how AI will impact architecture and design, Dezeen examines whether the technology will end up taking architects' jobs.

In 2019, New York-based designer Sebastian Errazuriz caused a stir with his claim that 90 per cent of architects could lose their jobs to machines.

Four years on, following the emergence of several generative-AI models such as Midjourney and ChatGPT, Errazuriz is writing a book about AI's impact on society and told Dezeen his opinion has not changed.

"It's an enormous issue that we need to try and deal with," he said. "People always say, 'but isn't AI just another tool?' Right now it looks like a tool, but the tool is getting really good, really fast – and the purpose of this tool is to think for itself."

He claims that well-known architects who mocked his warnings in 2019 have recently conceded privately that he was right.

Architecture at high risk of automation

Investment bank Goldman Sachs made headlines in March with its prediction that AI could replace the equivalent of 300 million jobs globally across all industries. The researchers estimated that 37 per cent of architecture and engineering work tasks "could be automated by AI", placing it among the most-exposed industries.

And this month, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development echoed the warnings about job losses in skilled professions.

A survey conducted by design technology firm RevitGods found that 55 per cent of US architects are "moderately concerned" about being replaced by AI in the future, with a further 20 per cent "very concerned".

But not everyone shares Errazuriz's pessimism. Among them is Phillip Bernstein, associate dean and professor adjunct at the Yale School of Architecture who previously held senior roles at software firm Autodesk and Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects and has authored a book on architecture and AI.

"I have been around long enough to see multiple waves of technological change in the industry and this argument happens every single time," Bernstein told Dezeen.

"It happened during CAD [computer-aided design], it happened during BIM [building information modelling], and now it's happening with AI," he added. "We somehow always seem to survive these things."

Bernstein argues that even the best AIs are still nowhere near the competence of a qualified architect.

"I happen to think that what we do as architects is pretty complicated," he said. "At it's best, it's about managing a complex, multi-variable problem and making a series of ambiguous judgements that require trade-offs, and I don't believe we will get to a model that can do even 10 per cent of that in the foreseeable future."

"If we're not even at the point where a car can drive itself, I think we're a long way from the point where an algorithm can be a professional architect," he continued.

"Our current traditional methodology will radically change"

The possible emergence of artificial general intelligence in the future – a hotly debated topic – would likely upend all intellectual industries and much of our current society.

For now, most people's idea of AI architecture is likely the dreamlike, eerily real-looking visualisations created with text-to-image models such as Midjourney. However, AI tools created specifically for use in architecture and design are beginning to enter the market.

Combined, the most advanced of these can generate massing images, floor plans, cost analyses, material specifications and technical drawings – though none can yet do it all.

In a recent interview with Dezeen, the co-founder and CEO of one of the leading systems, LookX, dismissed the idea that it could replace architects.

Instead, Wanyu He argued, AI "will liberate us from repetition and allow us to concentrate on things with added value to society".

In particular, He claims it will dramatically speed up the feasibility-testing process, freeing up time to spend on the more creatively rewarding aspects of architecture.

Few have spent more time experimenting with AI-architecture tools than Harvard Graduate School of Design research associate and ArchiTAG co-founder George Guida. He agrees that the technology will not replace architects anytime soon.

"Our current traditional methodology will radically change, but not be substituted," said Guida. "I do think that architects still will need to stay at the centre of being the driver within that process."

"So I think productivity will increase – let's say we'll have more time and space to design. I think that the role of the architect will simply have to evolve, but it won't be replaced," he continued.

"It will give smaller firms a stronger edge"

But even if AI is not capable of usurping the human architect outright, could architecture jobs still be lost as the technology is adopted?

"I do think there are large swathes of the work that are potentially automatable by AI," said Bernstein. "So the question is what happens to that additional capacity. Do we use it to do our jobs better, or do we eliminate some of those jobs?"

While both believe that AI could eventually be used by developers to design the simplest, most generic projects in-house, Bernstein and Guida are optimistic that the technology presents an opportunity for architecture studios to command higher fees.

"If I can say to a client that I'm using this tech to do a better job, then maybe I can charge more for my time," said Bernstein.

That could give smaller studios that are quick to adopt AI a chance to compete with bigger firms, argues Guida.

"Increasing productivity gives a great opportunity for emerging practices to bring a competitive edge," he said. "So in the short term it won't remove jobs – if anything, it will give smaller firms a stronger edge."

But Errazuriz remains unconvinced. He thinks the major impact will be at bigger firms, where, he points out, only a small handful of employed architects spend a significant portion of their time on creative work.

He argues the idea that AI will enable all these architects to remain in their jobs and simply spend more time exploring their imaginations is "wishful thinking".

"What will most probably happen is that you just start reducing the size of those architecture studios," he said. "Depending on how really good this software gets, in the worst-case scenario they would continue to decrease enormously over a 10-year period."

His comments appear to chime with remarks made earlier this year by Morphosis founder Thom Mayne that AI will lead to a decrease in the number of architects in individual studios to a "more intimate" level.

Wider factors at play

An alternative outcome is that the productivity gains afforded by AI could lead to studios – and therefore their employees – taking on more projects at once.

Architecture critic Kate Wagner has argued this was the main upshot of CAD, lengthening working hours despite similar hopes in the technology's early days that it could free up time for creativity.

Bernstein hopes that the adoption of AI in architecture won't see history repeat itself.

"It's true that CAD didn't enhance the value proposition of architecture, but it was happening alongside a period of buildings getting much more complex and the design and construction industry getting riskier," said Bernstein.

"So architects were drawing more defensively, and CAD made doing that easier. Now, as we are starting to leverage data about buildings to much greater effect, there is a potential value proposition there."

Saudi-based architect Reem Mosleh, who has made a name for herself as a leading voice on AI design, agrees that other factors will influence how the technology ends up impacting the architecture profession.

For instance, she believes it could reduce overtime in combination with a wider cultural shift away from working long hours.

"After Covid, people's priorities in life have changed drastically," she said. "So I really hope that with AI we could actually have this opportunity to live with better balance."

"You can't run away from it"

Regardless of their opinion on the threat that AI poses to jobs, everyone Dezeen spoke to agreed that architects should be proactively getting to grips with the technology.

"If I were a young practitioner I would be playing with this stuff so I understand it, and if I were a practice I would be giving practitioners time to try it out," said Bernstein.

"You can't run away from it, you need to run towards it," said Errazuriz. "Otherwise you'll be like those people that refuse to have a cell phone. You need to stay up-to-date, checking the latest things that come out and incorporating it into the flow or your team or your own work."

"For now, we're the ones giving the prompts," he added. "And so we need to sort of dig deep into our own creativity, into our storytelling, into why we're doing something."

Mosleh is hopeful that any disruption to architecture jobs will be outweighed by new opportunities opened up by AI.

"Architects who decide not to go beyond their normal practice will definitely be at risk," she said. "If you don't evolve you get replaced, it's nature."

"But at the same time I'm sure that those who are seizing the moment, and taking the opportunity will actually have better jobs and more opportunities."

The main image was created using Dall-E 2.

AItopia

This article is part of Dezeen's AItopia series, which explores the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on design, architecture and humanity, both now and in the future.

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With Pride Month drawing to a close, Dezeen spoke with LGBTQ+ designers and researchers about the evolution of queer spaces and how architects can help protect them.

Designers are calling for the protection of venues used by the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ+) community as safe spaces for people to express their identities.

"There has been an uptick in attacks on queer spaces, through direct violence as well as through zoning laws and economic disenfranchisement that result in physical queer and trans spaces shutting down at a rapid rate," Canadian designer and researcher Lucas LaRochelle told Dezeen.

"Policy, governmental and economic support is needed for keeping physical queer and trans spaces alive and sustained."

Bartlett School of Architecture professor of urbanism and urban history Ben Campkin said that a series of closures made the remaining queer venues more important than ever.

"In London in the 2010s there was a crisis of venue closures, which led to an assertion of what was valuable about those spaces, including how they were linked to the history of LGBT social movements, but also their provision of important resources in the present," he explained.

"Recently, in many cities, there's been a surge of public interest and activism, which has been driven by a sense of threat to certain LGBTQ+-associated neighbourhoods and spaces, including long-standing venues which facilitated earlier liberation movements."

A report co-written by Campkin, who recently wrote the book Queer Premises: LGBTQ+ Venues in London Since the 1980s, found that between 2006 and 2017 the number of LGBTQ+ venues in London had decreased from 125 to 53. And many of the remaining spaces remain under threat.

He believes that heritage recognition initiatives such as Historic England's Pride of Place, which highlights venues in the country that have historically welcomed the queer community, can help protect LGBTQ+ spaces.

Designer Adam Nathaniel Furman agreed that LGBTQ+ spaces have become increasingly important in the UK in recent years.

"For a few years after 2014, when same-sex marriage in the UK came in, it looked like queer spaces might end up becoming obsolete, but very rapidly it's come back to the point where they are absolutely necessary because we're not safe," Furman said.

Police figures obtained by Vice News pointed to dramatic increases in reports of homophobic and transphobic hate crimes between 2016 and 2021.

Furman recently co-edited the book Queer Spaces, which documents 90 LGBTQ+ venues and buildings from around the world.

Types of queer spaces are broadening, trending away from bars and nightclubs to spaces that focus on community connections.

"A lot of people have been talking about queer spaces over the past decade or so as specifically nightclubs and bars," Furman said.

"That's a very historically specific queer space type that was needed at the time, but there are many, many other types of spaces which are suitable and necessary for contemporary society," they continued.

"Nightclubs and bars are on the way out and we're seeing a rise in bookshops and cultural centres."

Furman believes that these LGBTQ+ spaces are also changing to become more inclusive towards non-binary and trans people.

"The fact that we're using the word queer shows that the care and concern within the community have very much broadened to accommodate people who are genuinely queer – there's less of an emphasis on sexuality and more focus on people who are gender non-conforming and trans," explained Furman.

"The traditional spaces didn't necessarily very easily accommodate that. They tended to be focused more on the binary of lesbian and gay, and I think now there is so much more interest in being supportive to everyone who identifies as queer."

What constitutes a queer space is up for debate. LGBTQ+ activists began to reclaim the term "queer" from its derogatory connotations in the 1980s, and some still consider the concept of queer spaces to be inherently political.

But Campkin explained that this is not always the case.

"The term 'queer space' encompasses many things," he said. "It can refer to politically radical spaces – or occupations of space – that are anti-normative, which work against oppressive cis-heteronormative or homonormative, patriarchal and racist structures – which are reproduced through property dynamics and urban development under capitalism."

"Not all LGBT venues are queer in the political sense," he continued. "Some are highly commercial and are not looking to change the status quo."

LaRochelle, who founded the community-generated counter-mapping online platform Queering the Map to archive the experiences of LGBTQ+ people in relation to physical space, also questioned what is considered a queer space.

"I was really interested in the question of what constituted queer space and how we might think about queer space as something that is fluid and moving and itinerant rather than something that's fixed," said LaRochelle.

"The roles of archives that document the way in which queer and trans people experience and build space are really important in terms of imagining and prototyping the kinds of futures that we need and that we want."

As well as providing a safe place where LGBTQ+ people can feel a sense of community, queer spaces can also act as a model for how other public spaces can be more inclusive. An example is the growing number of gender-neutral public bathrooms.

"Attention has grown immensely on gendered spaces such as bathrooms and changing rooms, which underscores the importance of queer and trans spaces as places to prototype the infrastructures we need and want," said LaRochelle.

"Gender-neutral bathrooms – and generally not policing who goes into which bathroom – is something that emerged in queer and trans DIY spaces and has expanded into public spaces."

LaRochelle emphasised that inclusive design in the built environment is just one of the ways that LGBTQ+ people can be made to feel safer.

"Architecture is not enough to solve the problem, but it's a starting point in how spatial design can create new kinds of possibilities for how people move through an access space differently," they added.

"Any experts, whether researchers like myself or city authorities, planners, architects or designers, can listen to and learn from the ways that grassroots community organisations articulate the value, purpose and changing need for LGBT spaces," echoed Campkin.

"In a practical way, this could include inclusive design approaches that are intersectionally aware, attentive in planning processes to the limited spaces and resources of minorities, and which apply architectural skills to upgrade facilities to make them better suited to the present and future needs and to a wider spectrum of people," he said.

For Mary Holmes, co-founder of LGBTQ+ architecture support network Queer Aided Design, inclusive architecture comes from minority groups being included in the design process.

Although queer issues are now being discussed more openly in the architecture profession, she argues this is not always adopted in practice.

"We can show up at the table, but we don't necessarily have the room to move," said Holmes.

"Queer rights right now are under attack from so many directions," she added. "We don't live in a world that's safe for us as a community and to have the space to be together to imagine and practice an alternative reality where we do have freedom, where we can be together, is the most powerful thing – you can't do that in a room full of people who don't understand your identity."

"Practices are not going to be able to design spaces that are more sensitive and understanding to minority groups unless they actually allow those minority groups to bring in their knowledge or taste cultures into the design profession itself," agreed Furman.

Architect Sarah Habershon, who volunteers for the UK organisation Architecture LGBT+, commented that architecture practices need to make their work environments safer and more welcoming for queer people, as the number of LGBTQ+ people who qualify as architects is small.

"We are fighting against something much bigger and more systemic," said Habershon.

"Architects need to start thinking intersectionality within their practice," she continued. "If they're going to go out to clients and they're going to be having these conversations, they also need to make sure that they're supporting their staff in the first place."

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Cars will start to look dramatically different as electric vehicles become the norm but battery technology must first improve, designers tell Dezeen.

Electric vehicles (EVs) are set to dominate our roads in the coming decades, with many countries intending to ban the sale of new internal combustion engine (ICE) cars by 2035 including the UK, China, Japan and most of Europe, as well as several US states.

Already demand for plug-in cars is surging. The International Energy Agency expects 14 million to be sold worldwide this year, representing 18 per cent of the overall car market – up from just 4 per cent in 2020.

"Skateboard" could lead to more variety

This shift has the potential to deliver a sea-change in the way cars look as automakers race to release electrified models. Fossil-fuel-powered cars depend on a host of engineering components that has literally shaped them: the engine, the fuel tank, the radiator, the transmission, the exhaust pipe, etcetera.

With electric cars all that is generally replaced by what is often referred to as the "skateboard" – a unified, flat floor containing the battery pack and motors.

In theory, this skateboard could be topped by any number of forms that go well beyond conventional car design.

"It is different than the last 100 years where you have a motor, whether front, rear or centre, in a drive shaft and steering column and all these things," explained Giovanny Arroba, design director at Nissan's Global Design Center.

"So there's a lot more variability on how we lay out the people and the storage and the motors on this skateboard platform," he told Dezeen.

However, many of the electric cars currently hitting the market look highly familiar. Maserati's first electric car, recently launched at Milan design week, is a near-identical-looking electrified version of its GranTurismo.

MINI took the same approach with the Cooper SE, as did Ford with the F-150 Lightning – the EV version of the most popular vehicle in the US.

Similarly, nothing apart from additional streamlining sets the electric Rolls-Royce Spectre markedly apart from the luxury brand's ICE coupes.

Kirsty Dias, managing director at transport-specialising design agency PriestmanGoode, believes this cautious approach to design is a function of manufacturers attempting to encourage the car-driving public to switch to EVs.

"The car industry is not demanding too much of the customer," she told Dezeen. "They're trying to convince people, 'it's the same, so just make the transition because it's better."

"Once there is greater adoption then the next step, I guess, might be to be more experimental with the form."

"Car company chief executives are very conservative people," added University of Bath professor and car industry expert Andrew Graves. "They're quick to say: 'customers won't buy that.'"

Some brands have sought to embrace a new design language as part of their journey to electrification.

An early example was the Nissan Leaf, which was the world's first mainstream all-electric family car when introduced in 2010.

Its bulbous features were much maligned and the model underwent a complete redesign for the 2017 second generation.

"We clearly wanted to make a statement, so they pushed the envelope quite a bit to do something completely new and different, and definitely it was," said Arroba.

"But looking back, maybe it was trying too hard to be different. When we wanted people to adopt electric, it could have been too polarising."

The more recent Ariya, Arroba explained, "was a time to start clean".

"Our philosophy was to reflect the clean power within," he continued. "So it was to go minimal and pure, with clean, powerful forms reflecting the clean, powerful energy."

Sense of "danger" has disappeared 

Other carmakers have also sought to make their EVs stand out from their ICE models with stylistic hints at their electron-powered drivetrains.

A good example is Hyundai, whose Ioniq series of electric cars bear distinctive pixelated LED headlights. And like the Ariya, Tesla cars and models from Chinese EV makers like Nio and BYD bear sleek designs.

"As we move forward, you do see that there's quite a few automakers that have gone clean and pure and minimal," remarked Arroba.

Polestar head of design Maximilian Missoni has a theory to explain the trend.

"The whole idea of combusting fossil fuel and then exhausting a very hot and very dangerous gas makes the car – I wouldn't say a weapon, but it's close," he told Dezeen.

"So that idea of the driver taming the beast was very much reflected in design in the past, and it became part of car culture. It's something that we as designers used very well in translating it into a design language," he continued.

"But now with electrification, that big component of danger in the powertrain itself has disappeared."

Front grilles resembling bared teeth make way for a smoother face, especially since the battery requires much less cooling than an ICE.

Inside, electric car dashboards often light up like spaceships as part of a bid to communicate intelligence rather than aggression.

Meanwhile, the roar of the engine is replaced by carefully synthesised soundscapes – with BMW even procuring the services of Oscar-winning composer Hans Zimmer for the iX.

Beyond just having design similarities to one another, even the more adventurous EVs on the market do not stray far from the appearance of conventional cars.

Part of that is down to safety regulations, which mandate certain features, but aerodynamics is another major factor.

EV battery technology remains fairly rudimentary, meaning the cars' aesthetics are still heavily at the mercy of the wind tunnel.

"Right now we're trying to squeeze as much range out of those battery packs through efficiency of aerodynamics, so you start to see a lot of the cars have a similar silhouette," said Arroba. "What I predict is that you'll see a lot more diversity as the technology progresses."

"What I do see in the future, and I can't wait, is that when battery technology reaches a point where the ranges are just fine and we can scale them down again I think we will see more variety in body styles again, with less focus on aerodynamics," echoed Missoni.

At present, an increasingly large proportion of electric cars are SUVs or SUV crossovers, including the Nissan Aria and the Tesla Model Y (top). Manufacturers claim that high-riders work well with the thick battery skateboards, though Graves has another explanation.

"It's very difficult to make profit from electric cars so they all get to SUVs because they make a shedload of money off them with much smaller volume," he said.

This tendency towards larger models compounds a major issue for EVs: weight. Many of the most popular models clock in at well over two tonnes.

"The batteries rely a lot on large quantities of heavy metals like lithium and cobalt so are incredibly heavy, which is the last thing we need," said Graves.

"Inherited idea" of car design

Heavy cars are popular but have several significant downsides. They are a threat to pedestrians, particularly since electric cars can often go from standing to 100 kilometres per hour in just three seconds.

Bulkiness is also bad for energy and resource efficiency, with the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) ranking the largest EVs as worse for the environment than smaller gas cars.

And it poses problems for infrastructure, causing more damage to road surfaces, while warnings recently surfaced that ageing car parks could collapse under the weight of EVs.

Against that backdrop, some argue that electrification should trigger a complete rethink of the way cars are designed.

Among them is Håkan Lutz, the chief executive of Swedish company Luvly, which this year will launch a mini electric car weighing less than 400 kilograms.

To achieve such lightness, it replaces the skateboard with a tub wrapped in a thermoplastic shell, propelled by a pair of removable 15-kilogram batteries.

"We've inherited an idea of what a car should be," Lutz told Dezeen. "There is no way that we can continue with such wasteful consumption of transport."

"Nowadays, cars transport 1.2 people 36 kilometres within the city – that's what they do. What we've done is just taken this as a fact and built a vehicle that is optimised for that use case," he continued.

In any case, by the time EVs become the norm, another form of technology – artificial intelligence-powered self-driving – could deliver a fundamental revolution of the car.

"When you start to be in that realm, then you can talk more about changing what is possible in the car," said Dias.

PriestmanGoode is working on a project to deliver an autonomous vehicle for Dromos that would operate as part of a fleet on a dedicated, fixed-loop network.

It believes these kinds of systems are not far off, and the boxy appearance of the Dromos car is notably similar to other visions of autonomous cars from Cruise and Jaguar Land Rover.

Meanwhile, car manufacturers frequently predict that driverless cars will become moving entertainment spaces – with Sony signalling a move into the industry.

"Autonomy is going to change the game," said Arroba.

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Following the death of Rafael Viñoly, Dezeen examines how different studios founded by famous figureheads are approaching the issue of succession.

Many of the world's eminent architecture and design businesses are fronted by individuals with superstar status, but the recent death of Uruguayan architect Viñoly was a sombre reminder that these famous founders will not be around forever.

Viñoly's New York-based studio is now considering how to continue his legacy, with his son, Román Viñoly, describing that process as a "great responsibility" in an interview with Dezeen.

Employee-ownership on the rise

Different architecture and design firms are approaching this question in very different ways. A growing number have opted to become employee-owned. Among the first was US-based Gensler, the world's largest architecture firm, whose founder Art Gensler died in May 2021 aged 85.

The switch was initiated by Art in 1989 – 16 years before he stepped down as CEO and 22 years before his death. Gensler Co-CEO Andy Cohen believes the trend reflects a shift away from focusing on individuals within the architecture profession.

"I think if you look at the traditional architecture firm, it had the reputation of being a star system where you have that great visionary at the top and no one else really matters," Cohen told Dezeen.

"We like to say we are a constellation of stars and we are not a 'starchitect' culture."

Multidisciplinary design studio PriestmanGoode, whose co-founder Paul Priestman announced his departure from the company in January 2022, has long advocated this approach, having become employee-owned in 2016.

"We are much better employers as a result of employee ownership," said PriestmanGoode managing director Kirsty Dias.

"It's about moving away from a patriarchal model of 'you do that for me', to a much more balanced conversation. It's not just about profit share, it's much more than that – it's cultural."

That balanced conversation, she argues, makes people feel more emboldened to share their ideas and more invested in the outcome of projects and the future of the company.

Nevertheless, the UK-based architects' union the Section of Architectural Workers at the United Voices of the World Union has previously questioned how much power really gets transferred to employees given that most decisions are still made by a small number of directors.

Dias acknowledges the difficulties in making employee ownership work. "For it to be successful, it's a dialogue and you are in it together," she said. "It's a collaborative process and I think that transition can be challenging."

The nature of architecture and design businesses mean that ensuring longevity beyond the lifetime of founders can be tricky. Mergers and acquisitions are much less common in architecture than in other industries.

As noted in a Royal Institute of British Architects guide on succession planning, external sales of studios are "highly unlikely" because their project-based incomes mean that cashflow is inconsistent, and therefore unappealing to investors.

Likewise, management buyouts are increasingly rare because even senior architects do not often have the money to club together to buy a business.

Norman Foster's firm Foster + Partners is the exception to the rule, selling a majority stake to Canadian private investment firm HennickCo in October 2021 in a move that the studio said "allows for an orderly succession of existing partners over the long-term".

The studio founded by Richard Rogers, the world-famous high-tech pioneer who passed away in late 2021, has taken yet another approach.

"The profession has changed significantly"

Last June, it unveiled a name change, from Rogers Stirk Harbour and Partners to simply the letters RSHP. Like Gensler, it wants to emphasise collaboration.

"He would have been the first, as a very well-known, charismatic figurehead, to underline the fact that architecture is a collaborative art," RSHP partner Stephen Barrett said of Rogers.

"It's clearly easier, often, to have a narrative where you have an individual who is supposed to inculcate the values but also have the genius quality that we talk about, but the fact is that we all depend on each other, we are a team."

Rogers always intended for his name to be dropped from the firm eventually, arguing that architecture "is a living thing".

He planned his own succession long before his death – in fact laying the foundations some 30 years ago when he drew up a company constitution while the studio was still called the Richard Rogers Partnership.

In what Barrett calls an "extraordinarily prescient" move, Rogers decided that the firm should be parented by a charity in order to separate its ownership from individuals.

This means that to become a partner, individuals do not need to have enough capital to buy a share and – crucially for longevity of the company – it also means that when partners leave they do not take a chunk of value with them.

Profits generated by the studio are shared across staff, with 20 per cent going to charitable causes of employees' choosing, in an initiative that has raised nearly £20 million over the years.

RSHP claims to be the only architecture practice that has taken the charity approach and Barrett suggests Rogers' idea is "a model for others to follow".

Meanwhile, some deliberately choose not to plan for succession. OMA, founded by Rem Koolhaas, is content with having eight equal partners at the helm – including Koolhaas – who are replaced one-by-one by the natural passage of time.

OMA managing partner David Gianotten explained that this is the Dutch studio's own interpretation of shifting away from a starchitect model.

"It's on purpose that we would say we don't want any succession – it's the next generation taking over, it's not about trying to be Rem, or trying to be the next Rem," he told Dezeen.

"The time in which Rem became big or relevant was because the time allowed [it]," he added. "That is very, very different now – the profession has changed significantly; collaboration has become much more important."

"So it would be very naive to say one of us would be able to take a similar position or become the new figurehead. Architecture doesn't operate like that anymore."

Not thinking about the longer term comes with risks, however.

Dixon Jones, for example, a once-influential British architecture firm, was wound up in 2020 under mounting debts after three decades of trading. Its founders, Jeremy Dixon and Edward Jones, told Building Design that their failure to make a successful succession plan was to blame.

"It is hard to think long-term"

Then there is Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA), whose famous founder died suddenly in 2016. The studio became employee-owned in December 2021 but only after a lengthy, public court battle between ZHA's principal, Patrik Schumacher, and the three other executors of Hadid's estate over the control of the business.

Additionally, ZHA still pays millions each year to Hadid's estate for the use of her name – handing over £3.8 million in 2021/22, which was four times its profit for the year.

Hugo Healing, a partner at leadership recruitment agency Odgers Berndtson who has worked with architecture firms, said studios can "absolutely" struggle to plan long-term because of the strong emphasis on their past projects and reputations.

"Architectural practices have their house style, one that is bound to the reputation and experience of its members," he explained. "How do you continue that style, how does that reputational journey continue seamlessly?"

His main piece of advice is that trying to persevere with the past is futile, however tempting it might be after a founder leaves.

"Where the organisation is so intrinsically linked to the identity of the founder, that's where succession planning has to be carefully considered," he told Dezeen. "Where we see firms challenged is when they try and replicate what's gone before."

PriestmanGoode's Dias believes that long-term business planning is key for design and architecture studios.

"It is hard to think long-term, but you have to make time for it," she said. "We need to be constantly thinking about the future, and what's going to happen next, and who will be doing my job in 10-15 years' time."

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More work is needed to improve the sustainability of trade fairs like Salone del Mobile, designers told Dezeen at Milan design week.

British designer Tom Dixon warned it could take a decade for brands to transform their operations at events like Salone in order to reduce emissions and resource consumption.

"It's a lot of people coming from all over the world – it's a lot of carbon footprint just embedded in the flights," he said. "I think we've got to rethink completely how we show [products], where we make them, where we transport them to, and the rest of it, but that's a project which is a 10-year project."

Need "to rethink completely" how products are showcased

Norm Architects' Frederik Werner, in Milan to exhibit a collaboration with Japanese furniture maker Karimoku, suggested that fewer trade fairs should take place during the year to cut the carbon cost.

"I think for the setup of the fair itself there's no hiding from it, it's kind of crazy how much is being produced and built, and that's just the reality right now," he said.

"I think probably the main issue is that there's so many venues around the world doing the same, with things being shipped around. It somehow makes sense to create one hub for it to happen."

Salone del Mobile was held in Milan last week, back in its conventional April slot for the first time in four years following covid disruptions.

It is the world's biggest design fair and forms the trade centrepiece of Milan design week.

The organisers have sought to improve the sustainability of the event in recent years, signing up to the UN Global Compact corporate sustainability pledge for 2023 and updating voluntary guidelines for exhibitors.

In an interview prior to the event, Salone president Maria Porro told Dezeen that the fair has tried to use recycled and recyclable materials and work with organisations committed to caring for the planet.

But with 2,000 brands showing their products at the week-long show and around 400,000 visitors expected, mostly from overseas, some remain concerned about Salone's environmental impact, including Dezeen columnist Katie Treggiden.

"We're all part of it, as we flew to Milan"

"We can't walk around the city, gelato in hand, and pretend that almost 2,000 international brands haven't shipped or air-freighted their wares into the Rho Fiera Milano fairgrounds," Treggiden wrote in a recent piece.

Dutch designer Maarten Baas deliberately referenced the contradiction of promoting more sustainable designs by flying them to Milan in a collaboration with fashion label G-Star RAW.

His More or Less exhibition for the brand features a private jet wrapped in denim.

"Each year in Milan, I enjoy the tragicomic dialogue between green design and mass consumption," he told Dezeen.

"We're all part of it, as we flew to Milan to enjoy our prosecco next to some works of recycled materials."

Nevertheless, designers argued there is still a value to large-scale physical events like Salone.

"Airplanes aren't sustainable but I think people coming to see art and people coming to see new ideas is always a benefit to society," said Santiago Brown of New York-based Forma Rosa Studio.

"The issue is transportation, but it's super important for people to see art and not just on Instagram."

"In this digital era you can see everything online but, especially with materials when it's about the haptic, the touch, the interaction, you come to a better understanding of the research project when you see it with your eyes, when someone talks to you about it," added Crafting Plastics' Vlasta Kubušová.

"So for me, it still makes sense to do this once a year I think, even if we have to travel – and we always will travel."

Studios and brands try to use less materials

Jussi Laine of Nemo Architects, who designed the Habitarematerials installation at Milan design exhibition Alcova, said he is "absolutely" concerned about the environmental impact of Salone.

He said it was important for designers travelling to Milan to use it as an opportunity to learn about how to make their work more sustainable.

"Design shows are a way to pass information and knowledge," he told Dezeen. "It is really up to us how relevant the message is, and also up to us how we receive that information and act upon it."

Brands and designers have attempted to improve the sustainability of their activities in Milan, especially by planning for the re-use of materials.

"For this year's fair we've tried to work with systems and patterns that we can reuse for next year, so all the louvres and lamellas can be stored and put away again," said Werner.

"Half of the furniture collection I think might be taken to our next exhibition instead of being shipped back to Japan."

"Our booth is made out of storage racks that we took from our own storage," Mexico-based David Pompa told Dezeen.

"So we took them, we built them down, we build them up here and we're going to build them up again in our storage after the exhibition. So we're not throwing away anything."

However, Dixon admitted it was still "difficult to claim total sustainability".

"We'll reuse a lot of this stuff," he said. "I'm sure a lot of people are thinking about how they can do that."

"But it's difficult to claim total sustainability in the context of fairs, I'm not going to try and greenwash you on this one."

Milan itself is frequently ranked among Europe's most polluted cities, though it is working on an ambitious project to construct 750 kilometres of bike lanes by 2035 as part of a strategy to become net-zero by 2050.

Additional reporting by Cajsa Carlson and Jennifer Hahn. The photography is courtesy of Salone del Mobile.

Salone del Mobile 2023 took place from 18 to 23 April at the Fiera Milano exhibition centre, Italy. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.

The post "No hiding" from environmental impact of trade fairs say designers at Salone del Mobile appeared first on Dezeen.

Architects are increasingly using mass timber in the hopes of creating net-zero buildings but carbon assessments are missing key sources of potential emissions, researchers tell Dezeen in this Timber Revolution feature.

The standard method for determining a building's overall carbon footprint is a whole-building life-cycle assessment (LCA) that breaks down emissions at every stage – from the sourcing of raw materials to their ultimate disposal.

These calculations tend to indicate significantly lower emissions for timber structures compared to those made entirely out of concrete and steel. But experts warned that LCAs only tell part of the story.

"LCAs do not typically consider anything that happens in the forest," said forester and timberland manager Mark Wishnie.

"And the land management side is, from a climate perspective and a biodiversity perspective, enormously important," added Steph Carlisle of the Carbon Leadership Forum research group. "That's really where all the action is."

End-of-life "very, very important"

Because so few mass-timber buildings have been constructed – let alone demolished – researchers are also unable to reliably forecast what will happen to engineered timbers at end of their life and what emissions this would entail.

"There's not a lot of data available to predict end-of-life and that can be very, very important," Wishnie said.

This leaves both researchers and architects with an incomplete picture of mass timber's climate impacts, which urgently needs to be addressed if the industry is to scale up sustainably without adverse effects on the environment.

"We need better transparency and traceability," Carlisle said. "When architects use tools and they don't necessarily know what's going on behind them, they can really mislead themselves about the real emissions."

"If we get this right, it has such incredible potential," added Robyn van den Heuvel of the Climate Smart Forest Economy Program. "Not just for the built environment but also to ensure forests are sustainably managed."

"But there are incredible risks of getting this wrong. It could result in the exact opposite effects of what we're trying to create."

Badly harvested timber has higher embodied emissions

Timber's climate potential lies in its ability to sequester large amounts of CO2 from the atmosphere during its growth – in contrast to common building materials like concrete and steel, which mostly just produce emissions.

As a result, mass timber has been widely hailed as a way to help architects make their buildings net zero and, by extension, help the built environment mitigate the 13 per cent of global emissions that stem from the construction of buildings and the materials used in the process.

Research indicates that substituting wood for steel and concrete in mid-rise buildings could reduce emissions from manufacturing, transport and construction by between 13 and 26.5 per cent, depending on the building's design, the exact wood products used and where they are shipped from.

But due to a lack of data, the International Institute of Sustainable Development (IISD) has warned that LCAs can gloss over the huge impacts that forest management and end-of-life can have on the overall climate impact of a mass-timber product.

Forest management is an important part of the equation, not just because it can help to prevent deforestation and protect biodiversity but also because it has a huge impact on a forest's ability to act as a carbon sink.

Felling all the trees in a forest at the same time, in a method known as clear-cutting, can generate significant emissions by disturbing the soil and releasing the carbon it stores, which accounts for almost 75 per cent of a forest's total carbon stock.

When this is combined with other harmful practices such as converting old-growth forests into tree plantations, this could actually make a timber building more emissions-intensive than a concrete equivalent, the IISD suggests.

"It's neither true that all wood is good, nor that all wood is bad," said Carlisle. "Architects really need to understand that it matters where your wood comes from."

Forest certifications falling short

However, none of these important land-management impacts – whether good or bad – are reflected in typical life-cycle assessments.

"They don't account for an increase in forest carbon stock or a decrease in forest carbon stock, an increase in forest area or a decrease in the forest area," said Wishnie.

"Often, if you've got that wrong, it doesn't matter what else is happening in the value chain, you already have a bad carbon story," agreed van den Heuvel, who leads the non-profit Climate Smart Forest Economy Program.

To some extent, these concerns are addressed by forest certification schemes – the most comprehensive being FSC, which covers crucial factors such as forest health, biodiversity, water quality, and Indigenous and workers' rights.

But these certifications do not require forestry companies to track and quantify how different management practices impact the carbon stock of a forest, which makes them impossible to represent in the LCAs used by architects and building professionals.

"Right now, I have no way of representing FSC-wood accurately in a life-cycle assessment model," said Carlisle, who is a senior researcher at the Carbon Leadership Forum.

"There's a lot of work happening on the certification side to do that research and publish it so it can come into our models. And we really need it because it's not going to be sufficient in the long run for certification to be a stand-in."

FSC certification is applied to 50,000 companies globally, making it harder for architects to discern which of these companies provides the best forest management and the most sustainable, lowest-carbon product so they can vote with their wallets.

"As the user, I can't really make choices," said Simone Farresin, one-half of design duo Formafantasma. "I can't evaluate if one seller is better in community support or another in sustainable growing. It's certified and that's it. It's not specific."

"When you're looking at materials, you have all these different grades of quality," he continued. "And we need to reach the same in terms of sustainability – we need to be able to detect these different grades."

"No consensus" over end-of-life emissions

Another area that is lacking in reliable information, and therefore hard to represent in LCAs, is what happens when a mass-timber building is demolished.

"There is a lot of debate about how to model end-of-life and it gets really contentious really quickly," said Carlisle. "There is no consensus. The fight is very live."

If a building was designed for deconstruction and its timber components are reused, this could offer substantial carbon and ecosystem benefits – providing continued long-term carbon storage while reducing the need for renewed logging as well as for emissions-intensive steel and concrete.

A small number of architects have begun to deliver demountable mass-timber buildings to facilitate material reuse, such as Waugh Thistleton's 6 Orsman Road in London.

However, most timber demolition waste today ends up in either landfills or incinerators, with both scenarios resulting in some net emissions.

"Depending on what country you're in, that waste looks very different," said van den Heuvel. "But that also has a really massive impact on your total carbon story."

In the case of incineration, all of the carbon stored in the wood would be released into the air, negating any storage benefits but potentially generating renewable electricity in the process if burned for biomass energy.

In a high-quality modern landfill, on the other hand, engineered wood products are estimated to lose only around 1.3 per cent of their carbon, although part of this carbon is released as methane – a powerful greenhouse gas that is 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide over a 20-year period.

"This is counterintuitive to people," Carlisle said. "But you see very small emissions at end-of-life from landfills because that material is largely considered sequestered and stored permanently."

"We can't aim for perfection"

Crucially, estimates about end-of-life emissions are mostly based on products like medium-density fibreboard (MDF), which are less elaborately engineered than structural materials such as cross- and glue-laminated timber and so may respond differently.

"There is more uncertainty around what will actually happen at end-of-life because there are so few mass-timber buildings," Carlisle said.

Researchers and institutions such as the Carbon Leadership Forum and the Climate Smart Forest Economy Program are working hard to fill in these gaps. And ultimately, they argue that governments must set national and international standards to ensure responsible sourcing and disposal if we hope to accurately assess and realise mass timber's climate potential.

But in the meantime, all parts of the timber value chain – from forest managers to manufacturers and architects – should be more transparent about their carbon accounting.

"I would hate to see a world in which we stop everything to make sure all the certification is perfect," said van den Heuvel. "Because buildings are still going to get built. And if we're not using mass timber, we're using a product that's going to be even worse for the environment."

"We're running out of time, so we can't aim for perfection. We should aim for good enough and transparency around it so that others can improve."

The top photo is by Maksim Safaniuk via Shutterstock.

Timber Revolution
This article is part of Dezeen's Timber Revolution series, which explores the potential of mass timber and asks whether going back to wood as our primary construction material can lead the world to a more sustainable future.

Dezeen in Depth
If you enjoy reading Dezeen's interviews, opinions and features, subscribe to Dezeen In Depth. Sent on the last Friday of each month, this newsletter provides a single place to read about the design and architecture stories behind the headlines.

The post The hidden carbon impacts of getting mass timber wrong appeared first on Dezeen.

As part of our Timber Revolution series, Dezeen asked mass-timber experts about the ongoing race to build ever-taller wooden buildings.

"For most buildings, tall timber does not make sense," said Arup fellow Andrew Lawrence. "Timber's natural home is low-rise construction," he told Dezeen.

"The reality that timber is best suited technically to smaller buildings, and that this is where it can have the most impact on reducing embodied carbon, has been lost."

Webb Yates senior structural engineer Florence Browning agreed, explaining that "timber alone has its limitations" when it comes to constructing high-rise buildings.

"If we want to win the race against climate change, the construction industry is going to have to get comfortable with using more mass timber in everyday buildings," said Browning.

"However, timber alone does have its limitations and there are reasons why alternative, more man-made materials were developed."

Tall timber trend "stems from a misunderstanding"

Mass timber is an umbrella term for engineered-wood products, which typically consist of layers of wood bound together to create strong structural components.

It is increasing in popularity in the construction industry due to wood's ability to sequester carbon, which means timber has a significantly lower embodied carbon than concrete and steel.

A global race to build taller timber is now underway, with the world's five tallest timber high rises all completed in just the past four years, including the 87-metre Ascent in the US.

Other engineered wood towers in the works are the Atlassian by SHoP Architects and BVN, and Rocket&Tigerli by Schmidt Hammer Lassen, both of which are expected to reach record-breaking heights.

However, according to Arup fellow Lawrence, the proliferation of tall timber towers is partly the result of widespread misconceptions about the material's properties.

"We believe that the push for widespread use of timber in high-rise architecture stems from a misunderstanding of the real advantages of the material," said Lawrence.

"Wood has many advantages, but we must also remember that it is combustible and brittle. It is also much lighter and weaker than other construction materials," he explained, referring to concrete and steel.

Browning explained that this lower strength makes it less suitable for use in tall buildings, as it requires the design of very large structural components.

"Above certain heights and spans, the size of [timber] elements are so large it becomes uneconomical," she said. "This also limits the amount of useable space."

Mass timber suited to "smaller and more intricate buildings"

Furthermore, structural timber loses some of its low-carbon benefits when used for taller buildings, according to Lawrence.

In high-rise buildings particularly, wood requires extra treatment to help reduce its combustibility and improve its acoustics, but this can add to its carbon footprint.

"It is the smaller buildings, and especially those where the wood can be left fully exposed thanks to the generally lower fire and acoustic requirements, where it can have the most impact in reducing carbon compared with other materials," said Lawrence.

Thornton Tomasetti senior associate Kristina Rogers echoed that timber is best-suited for buildings where the timber can be left untreated and on display.

"I get really excited about a design where we think really creatively about what that timber is going to look like, and how it interacts with the function of the building," she told Dezeen.

"On smaller and more intricate buildings, we get to really think about how the timber is celebrated, and the structural properties of the material and how to display them in the building."

Atelier Ten associate Amy Leedham added that the low-embodied carbon of mass timber is sometimes cancelled out in tall buildings by the need for concrete and steel to prevent excessive swaying.

"The challenge that we've seen in mass-timber high rise [design] is that it's a balance between using mass timber and being able to avoid having to add too much extra material," she said.

"There's still a decent amount of concrete or steel [needed] to help brace typical mass-timber high-rises," Leedham continued.

British architect Andrew Waugh raised a similar point in an interview for the Timber Revolution.

"It's bullshit, because if you're going to build a tall building in timber, you still have to fill it full of concrete to make sure it doesn't wave around," he told Dezeen.

He suggested the industry should start measuring the success of timber buildings in different ways, such as material efficiency or their impact on the wellbeing of occupants.

"We need pioneers to push the limits"

Despite the drawbacks, experts believe the race to build taller with timber will continue due to the appeal of competition and breaking records.

"I agree that lower-rise timber is the appropriate way forward, but I assume we'll keep seeing the occasional timber towers competing for architecture or engineering awards," Arup associate director Hein told Dezeen.

Pioneering timber architect Hermann Kaufmann agreed, explaining that the tall timber trend will not disappear because "everyone wants to be the one to break the record".

"The world record thing is a little childish," he said. "But it's like all things in life, everyone wants to be the one to break the record."

Nevertheless, Kaufmann concedes the tall timber race can drive innovation and help to give mass-timber products "a new value".

"I compare building tall timber towers to Formula 1 driving," explained Kaufmann. "It's somewhat pointless but ultimately it's a driver of innovation."

He argues that testing the structural limits of wood in this way has led to innovations that he once thought would not be possible, in turn making it easier to use wood in lower-rise buildings.

"These tall buildings brought mass timber to new dimensions that I didn't think were possible 15 years ago," he explained.

"If you prove that you can build a 20-storey building from wood, there's no more reason to debate about four or five-storey buildings and their fire safety."

Atelier Ten's Leedham agreed that tall timber buildings are "not always going to make sense" but that they can help the industry to use timber more efficiently.

"We need all of the innovations, and so we need pioneers to push the limits," she continued. "We need those examples to push the industry in that direction."

This is one of the objectives of Japanese architecture studio Nikken Sekkei, which is currently developing a conceptual proposal for the world's first timber supertall skyscraper for a site in Tokyo named the W350 Plan.

"It is not intended for immediate construction at this point in time, but by setting major goals, it aims to create a roadmap for technological development and uncover issues that need to be solved [in mass timber]," project architect Hajime Aoyagi told Dezeen in an interview.

"Timber is not suited to all types of construction"

However, for other engineers including Magne Aanstad Bjertnæs, innovation in timber shouldn't just mean focusing on building taller. Instead, he argues that architects and engineers should be exploring how to utilise wood most effectively in hybrid, or composite, structures.

"I think some pushing of the boundaries is healthy because it gives some progress to the industry and makes it easier to go a bit lower on the next project," said Bjertnæs, a team leader at the engineering firm Sweco.

"But I also believe that you should use the right material for the right purpose and not use timber when it shouldn't have been used," he continued, alluding to its use in high-rise buildings. "I don't think you should be afraid to combine materials."

"If we want to address our impact on climate change, we need a diverse pool of resources so that we have multiple low-carbon options to choose from and apply – timber is not suited to all types of construction," echoed Browning.

"As engineers and designers, we need to interrogate the design and determine the best material or combination of materials for the job."

Tomas Stokke from Haptic Architects is also an advocate of using timber in hybrid formats.

"I'm not in any way opposed to pure-timber buildings, but I just think we need to work with what's best for the given situation," he told Dezeen.

"I think for timber high-rises, you will get more result and value and more opportunities if you take a slightly more pragmatic approach to materials," he said. "Let's use the right materials where they're most useful."

This was his studio's approach when developing its concept for The Regenerative High-Rise – a modular tower designed with the engineering firm Ramboll that Stokke hopes can transform tricky sites in cities worldwide.

The design centres around a timber-composite superstructure, with CLT floorplates and steel-composite glulam and reinforced concrete used for the columns and cores.

"We have to understand what happens at the end of life of timber"

With the tall timber trend expected to continue, Rogers said the industry must prioritise improving its understanding of the whole lifecycle of these tall wooden buildings and design for dismantling.

"Something that's exciting about the future is deconstruction and reuse of timber elements," she explained. "We have to understand what happens at the end of the life of timber."

At the end of a building's useful life, there is a risk of its timber components being lost to landfill, meaning the carbon it stores will be released back into the atmosphere.

She said this is an important consideration when it comes to high-rises as their timber components are so large and are, therefore, bigger stores of carbon.

"Something I think that's interesting about tall wood buildings is how to use these larger elements of something that can be reused in the future," Rogers said.

"If we could demount things and use them again, in the future, I think that's somewhere where the industry has to go. But it's not quite there yet."

Timber Revolution
This article is part of Dezeen's Timber Revolution series, which explores the potential of mass timber and asks whether going back to wood as our primary construction material can lead the world to a more sustainable future.

Dezeen in Depth
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The post Building tall with timber "does not make sense" say experts appeared first on Dezeen.

Architects enthusiastic about mass timber must improve their understanding of fire safety or risk disaster, experts tell Dezeen as part of the Timber Revolution series.

Uncertainty among governments and insurers over whether mid- and high-rise timber buildings are safe in a fire remains a key obstacle to the greater adoption of engineered-wood buildings.

No consensus has been reached across different building code jurisdictions about the safety limitations of building with wood, and the rules vary wildly between countries.

In Finland, the maximum permitted height for a residential building with a load-bearing timber structure and no sprinklers is two storeys. In neighbouring Sweden, there is no limit.

Some countries, including the US, France and Switzerland have recently changed regulations to make building with timber easier, but others – like the UK – have made it tougher.

Fire safety "a problem of competency"

"Timber can be perfectly safe if it's done right," said José Torero, head of the Department of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering at University College London and a world-leading expert on mass-timber fire safety.

"This is not a technological or technical problem," he told Dezeen. "It is fundamentally a problem of competency."

"The problem is whether [building designers] are competent enough to be able to make a proper assessment, and that is a much, much more complicated question."

While the experts that Dezeen spoke to were unanimous that mass-timber buildings are not inherently unsafe, they also emphasised the importance of knowing the risks.

"It's definitely possible to build timber buildings that meet an adequate level of safety, but you cannot build anything you want without constraints," explained OFR Consultants technical director Danny Hopkin. "You have to address the specific hazards that those buildings present."

Unlike in a steel or concrete building, in a timber building the structure itself is a potential source of fuel.

"There's a feedback between the structure and the fire," explained Rory Hadden, Rushbrook lecturer in fire investigation at the University of Edinburgh.

"With steel and concrete, they're just subject to that fire, whatever the fire might be. So the timber problem is arguably more complex because of that – and that needs to be acknowledged."

Factors like how much timber is exposed and the size of windows and rooms can have a major bearing on how a mass-timber building behaves in a fire.

Meanwhile, the external flames emitting from a burning timber building would be much larger than from a concrete structure, increasing the risk that the fire could spread to surrounding buildings and spark an urban conflagration.

"The ultimate consequences in the case of a timber building can be much more significant than in the case of a concrete or steel building," Torero warned.

"We shouldn't play down the fire safety concerns"

UK networks lead at Built By Nature Joe Giddings is a vocal advocate of mass timber. However, he believes it is important to be up-front about the material's potential hazards.

"The more you learn about fire dynamics in timber buildings, the more you realise how nuanced and complex the issue is," he told Dezeen.

"If we breed false confidence without competency becoming widespread, we're playing a dangerous game. We shouldn't play down the fire safety concerns."

But in the face of overzealous resistance from insurers and regulators, proponents of mass timber can sometimes do exactly that.

"One tendency is the typical enthusiast, who says, 'no, timber self-extinguishes, and it's amazing and it's natural, and we should just build with timber'," said fire safety engineer Carmen Gorska, who has a PhD on fires in engineered-timber structures.

"And it's not exactly like that. It is an amazing material, but we have to know how to design with it."

Fire safety "not prioritised at all"

Torero goes further. "It's not prioritised at all," he said of the fire safety aspect. "And nevertheless, we're moving at a speed that is extraordinary. And to me, that is just a reflection of pure ignorance, and we're entering a space where we are taking risks blindly."

Hadden claims that architects in particular are often complicit, unwilling to engage with the technical discussion.

"Fire safety is a barrier," he said. "The way to get around it is to engage with that barrier. And that's where we've seen, I think, quite a lot of disengagement from some architects."

"I think the architects need to move on and say, 'look timber does burn, and that's obviously something that we've addressed in our design of this building.'"

He is concerned about "the over-simplistic portrayal" of timber's behaviour in fire, especially in relation to charring, which he argues "does massive disservice" to the case for wooden architecture.

When timber burns it forms a char layer, protecting the wood behind the char and helping to reduce the ferocity of the fire.

"Every material has its problems"

But Hadden, Torero and Hopkin agree that this phenomenon is more complex than some mass-timber advocates would have you think.

"That knowledge comes from very specific circumstances in very controlled testing regimes, and in a building fire it's tougher to have great certainty about how it's going to perform," said Hopkin.

Then there is the claim that timber performs better than steel in a fire, frequently made by pro-wood organisations.

"That's such a pointless, bullshit comparison," shot Hadden. "They're just different. Steel has its own problems, timber has its own problems. Every material has its problems, you have to just figure out how you manage that."

Architects should be honest about these nuances, as well as aware of their own limitations in understanding, argues Daniel Asp of White Arkitekter, whose Sara Kulturhus Center is one of the tallest mass-timber buildings in the world.

"I think it's important to know what you know, and know what you don't know, and when you don't know you have to ask the right engineers," he said.

Despite the rapidly increasing interest in mass timber, only a small number of architects and engineers possess extensive knowledge and experience of working with the material.

"The investment in competency is zero"

For Torero, that needs to change fast. He notes that the height of the world's tallest building has already more than doubled in the last decade and is soon set to hit 100 metres in Schmidt Hammer Lassen's Rocket&Tigerli.

"The speed with which we're going is extraordinary, and yet the investment in competency is zero," he said.

Giddings agrees. "We are faced with a really complex challenge: we need to switch really quickly to mass timber but we also need a rapid uptake in knowledge to enable this transition, which isn't happening fast enough at the moment," he said.

Given the misconceptions, should we be concerned about the safety of existing mass-timber buildings?

"I know there are some where I would have concerns about them," said Arup principal David Barber, a specialist in the fire safety of mass-timber structures.

"It would be people who haven't understood what they don't know, people who haven't been experienced enough with mass timber to have spent the time and the effort to actually find out the stuff they don't know."

Potential consequences "can be catastrophic"

The patchy nature of expertise in this area leaves Torero particularly uneasy.

"My concern is that there are no proper standards of competency when it comes to the design of mass-timber buildings," he said. "And the potential consequences that you can have from a fire in a poorly designed building can be catastrophic."

"So in that context, yes, I'm extremely concerned about existing buildings, as much as future buildings that are being built."

Building fires are rare and there are relatively few mass-timber buildings, so the number of real-world examples to support understanding of the potential risks is vanishingly small.

In one such example, a RIBA Award-winning CLT and glulam chemistry building at Nottingham University dubbed "the world's first carbon-neutral lab" was completely destroyed in a fire in 2014 while it was still being constructed.

Construction fires are not necessarily representative of what would happen in a blaze at an occupied building, but Giddings remains concerned.

"What if the next big fire is in a timber building?" he said. "I have given it lots of thought. It definitely worries me."

He draws a comparison with Grenfell Tower in London, where flammable cladding products contributed to the rapid spread of a 2017 fire that killed 72 people.

"I've followed the Grenfell inquiry really closely and if you ignore the type of materials they were talking about, what you are left with is a material lobby seeking to get their materials adopted on a large scale, no matter the consequences – and that should be eye-opening for all of us," he said.

One event could "have a very significant impact on future regulation"

If a fire with serious consequences does hit a mass-timber building, it could spell disaster for the material.

"My concern is one day there'll be a reasonable timber building fire, and that will potentially cause a knee-jerk reaction from a codes and standards point of view," said Barber.

This risk alone should be enough to persuade those eager to design mass-timber buildings to be open about fire, Hopkin argues.

"Post-Grenfell in particular it only takes one event, one incident, to have a very significant impact on future regulation," he said.

"If we continue with this message that it's simple, it's predictable, and not addressing the hazards then we increase the probability of something going wrong, and if that happens mass timber could be very severely restricted – and then you basically remove it as a tool in addressing the climate emergency."

The top photo, showing a reenactment of the 1666 Great Fire of London, is by Rowan Freeman.

Timber Revolution

This article is part of Dezeen's Timber Revolution series, which explores the potential of mass timber and asks whether going back to wood as our primary construction material can lead the world to a more sustainable future.

The post Are mass-timber buildings a fire safety risk? appeared first on Dezeen.

Improvements to both architectural education and practice must form part of the recovery plan to prevent history from repeating itself, argue Turkish architects following last month's deadly earthquakes.

Architects in Turkey believe that the scale of destruction caused by the earthquakes on 6 February was exacerbated by poor construction in the country caused, in part, by a disregard for legislation.

"Buildings built with competent architecture, competent engineering, competent construction and competent control mechanisms do not collapse even if they are directly on the fault line," said Altinisik, who is director of Turkish studio Melike Altinisik Architects.

"The buildings that have not been demolished today are proof of this fact," she told Dezeen.

"Earthquake-proof standards were not followed"

Architect Alper Deri̇nboğaz, the founder of the studio Salon Alper Derinboğaz, agreed, explaining that the earthquake's destructiveness was "not attributable to numerical values".

"[The damage] is due to the poor quality of the buildings in the affected region," he told Dezeen. "The fact that some buildings with the same topography remained standing while others collapsed emphasised this issue."

GEO_ID's founding partner Tugce Rizeli Bilgi believes that this is due to "the roles of architects and civil engineers being undermined" in construction in the years leading up to the disaster.

"This earthquake was expected in Turkey and the main reasons for this catastrophic consequences are unplanned urbanisation, negligence and disregarding of experts' opinions," Bilgi told Dezeen.

"Besides the older buildings, some new apartment blocks in the affected areas have also been damaged and destroyed because they were not constructed properly and the earthquake-proof standards were not followed."

Scale of disaster "could have been prevented"

The reason for the failing buildings in Turkey is currently the subject of much dispute, with blame being directed at the government, built environment figures and the public.

Many local architects, including Emre Arolat, believe that the government is at fault. In his view, if it had properly enforced building standards in the country, "the catastrophic situation today could have been prevented".

Turkish building standards have been under scrutiny since the tragic 1999 Izmit Earthquake, which led to stricter construction regulations in the country.

However, it is widely believed that these have not been properly implemented due to so-called "construction amnesties" – legal exemptions for fees for structures that are built without the required safety certificates.

"It was possible for the rulers of this country to learn from this earthquake [in 1999] and rehabilitate the precarious building stock, especially in regions where the fault lines are known to be active," reflected Arolat, who is the founder of Emre Arolat Architects.

"This period could have been used more efficiently and in line with scientific truths," he continued. "The laws passed could have been abided by."

According to Salon Alper Derinboğaz's founder Deri̇nboğaz, in 2018 over seven million buildings were granted construction amnesties. Most of them were residential.

Architect Merih Feza Yıldırım said that this reflects a wider societal view of "houses as an investment tool rather than for meeting the need for shelter", which he believes needs to change.

"Architectural usability and robustness do not determine the value of buildings, therefore, these values are not taken into consideration," said Yıldırım, who is a partner at Not Architects.

To avoid this scale of disaster from happening again, he said "it is imperative for society to lower its expectations of income generation, speed and profitability in this sector".

"Earthquakes do not kill"

Architects Altinisik and Nevzat Sayın echoed this sentiment, blaming "ignorance" in society for this attitude towards construction. They fear it will result in a similar disaster in the future.

"Earthquakes do not kill," Altinisik explained. "But actually unawareness, ignorance, unsystematic urbanisation and uncontrolled construction that has spread to the whole society causes such an extensive destruction."

"In any region, this [scale of destruction] would happen," added Sayın, who directs the studio Nevzat Sayın Mimarlık Hizmetleri. "Worst of all, it will happen again."

While many architects blame the government for the scale of the disaster, governing officials are blaming contractors and has issued numerous arrest warrants in recent weeks.

Some residents of apartment buildings that collapsed have even been criticised for not ensuring their homes were safe, GEO_ID's founding partner Bilgi told Dezeen.

"It's said that the residents should have checked whether their buildings are safe enough or not and if not, they should have moved to a safer building," explained Bilgi.

Yet according to the architects interviewed, this is unfair, as many people occupying unsafe buildings would not have been able to afford a seismic retrofit.

"This was not a rational expectation as many of the people in the region didn't have enough economic welfare to move to another house," Bilgi continued.

Motto Architecture partner Onur Özkoç agreed, adding: "residents may have ruled out any structural reinforcements due to insufficient financial power".

Time to "question education in the building sector"

Some Turkish architects believe they and their colleagues must look inwards at the architecture industry following the quakes, and call for improvements to architectural education.

This includes Geomim's founding partner Ali Çalışkan, who suggested that greater awareness and use of earthquake-proof construction techniques are critical.

"We are frustrated and angry, and we are frightened about the next earthquake because we are not ready for it," said Çalışkan.

"In a country like Turkey where millions of people live on the fault line, my reaction from now on will be to question education in the building sector," he continued.

Çalışkan thinks education must be improved in "all disciplines involved in engineering, from planning to construction" in order for architecture to withstand future disasters.

Melike Altinisik Architects' director agreed, telling fellow architects that "we should also hold the mirror to ourselves, rather than blaming the contractors, who are the last part of the chain".

"In any circumstances, people who are not competent should not be given the right to be a part of this system," Altinisik continued.

Motto Architecture partner Özkoç added that the public must also be educated on the importance of earthquake-proof architecture in order to create more demand for safe buildings.

"I believe it is evident that the real challenge ahead is not the update of building codes or structural system choices, but coming up with mechanisms that ensure proper following of [existing] codes and requirements," he said.

"That of course begins with the governmental organisations, but should also be supported by the public."

Supranational disaster organisation "must be established"

Several architects are calling for organisations that oversee how affected cities are reconstructed to be established quickly following the quakes.

For Derinboğaz, this will prevent hasty reconstruction efforts and ensure that building to withstand earthquakes becomes "a primary design parameter".

"Currently, there is a discussion about initiating rapid reconstruction efforts to provide housing for those affected by the earthquake," he said.

"However, constructing buildings of poor quality will only exacerbate the situation. Instead, the reconstruction area should be carefully planned and designed by a team of professionals."

Arolat agreed, suggesting this could take the form of a team of scientists from various disciplines who are "above politics and away from shallow power grabs".

"A group of people who might have ideas about how a city should be built should include geologists, experts in load-bearing systems, representatives of other engineering fields, sociologists and anthropologists, educators, experts from different walks of the culture industry, doctors, psychiatrists, and psychologists, as well as the previous and potential future users of those cities," he said.

For Altinisik, the earthquake recovery plan must involve the creation of an even larger group – an international organisation dedicated to addressing natural disasters.

She believes the Turkey-Syria earthquake should serve as a reminder of the other natural disasters that could be coming as a result of climate change.

"Although the earthquake is a great disaster reality in front of Turkey today, on the other hand, climatic disasters that involve the whole world such as floods, fires and storms are increasing day by day," Altinisik explained.

"In this context, considering the increasing climatic disasters in an earthquake country like Turkey, a supra-political Ministry of Disaster must be established."

Since the first earthquakes last month, Turkey's president Erdoğan has rejected claims that the scale of the disaster is the government's fault, instead blaming it on fate.

Meanwhile, Turkey's justice ministry has set up crime investigation bureaus in the affected Turkish provinces.

"We will follow this up meticulously until the necessary judicial process is concluded, especially for buildings that suffered heavy damage and buildings that caused deaths and injuries," Turkey's vice-president Fuat Oktay said.

More than 100 people are understood to have received arrest warrants for their ties to buildings destroyed by the disaster, with at least 12 having already been taken into custody.

The main image is by Çağlar Oskay via Unsplash. 

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As the war in Ukraine enters its second year, Dezeen spoke to the architects and designers already working to rebuild their homeland.

In a demonstration of remarkable Ukrainian resilience, several rebuilding initiatives are taking place across the country despite continued Russian attacks on civilian areas.

"Life doesn't wait for anyone, and it will not wait for us," STEM charity founder Elizeveta Korenko told Dezeen. "We have to do this work now."

"We have to do this work now"

"Of course, rebuilding under missiles is a bold move, but we just can't afford to wait for the war to end," added Balbek Bureau founder Slava Balbek.

More than 19 million square metres of residential buildings have been destroyed in Ukraine since Russian troops crossed the border on 24 February 2022.

Some cities in recaptured areas have been largely reduced to rubble. In the commuter town of Bucha near Kyiv, where the Ukrainian government says Russian forces killed 458 people in a civilian massacre, Balbek Bureau is working on a housing project for 15 families.

The project, currently under construction, will act as a pilot for the studio's RE:Ukraine Housing concept, which it hopes can be used in disaster zones around the world.

Like many Ukrainian architecture studios, with most commercial projects on hold, some staff fighting on the front line and the rest spread across several time zones, Balbek Bureau has turned its attention to humanitarian initiatives.

It is also working on RE:Ukraine Villages, a digital design tool to aid the restoration of damaged rural homes, as well as an augmented reality app for visualizing restored streets and buildings.

"It may sound pretentious, but if you choose to stay in Ukraine and want your country to win, you pitch in and do your part," Balbek told Dezeen.

"Fellow foreign architects can, and hopefully will, contribute to these efforts, but it is we, those raised and based here, who know all the ins and outs and have a vision of what our country should look like when rebuilt," he added.

"Though we wish we never had to develop temporary housing for [internally displaced persons] or monument shelters, we are proud to be contributing to the shared effort to address war-inflicted issues."

"Negative emotions can become a moving energy"

"There are unbelievably terrible things on the frontline daily… but at the same time, there are a lot of people who need to work and live in the cities like Kyiv, Odesa, Lviv, where the situation is peaceful thanks to our forces," said Sivak + Partners co-owner Alexey Gulesha.

Sivak + Partners has designed 24 houses, currently under construction, at a former recreation camp in rural western Ukraine that has become a refuge centre for orphans.

"Negative emotions can become a moving energy for great deeds," added Gulesha. "To rebuild everything and create a better future for our country was the first thing to come after the shock we experienced in the first months of the war."

Individual rebuilding projects are currently focused on restoring essential amenities and infrastructure.

Kyiv-based Bogdanova Bureau, which had to repair its studio after it was damaged in a Russian missile attack in October, is rebuilding a hospital in Makariv, a town near Kyiv that suffered heavy civilian losses.

The hospital served 16,000 people until it was destroyed by a direct hit from a Russian missile during the early days of the invasion.

Bogdanova Bureau's reconstruction of the hospital, which is almost complete, will serve partly as a memorial to what happened in Makariv, with an exoskeleton of charred beams referencing the destroyed building.

"We aimed not only to resume the functionality of the building but also to manifest collective memory," explained studio founder and chief architect Olga Bogdanova.

"It is important to us not only to turn the page but to keep the memory of the difficult period of our history to realise the actual value of life," she added.

Similarly, Zikzak Architects has designed a modular school concept called Revival, that can be rapidly built and repurposed.

"It is important to get involved in reconstruction planning as soon as possible," said Zikzak CEO Alesia Karnaukhova. "The war continues, but so does life. We have to work and live, and for this we need schools, kindergartens, and hospitals."

Karnaukhova said Revival has "aroused considerable interest" and that the studio is currently seeking investors to replace the many destroyed schools across Ukraine.

Rejection of Soviet conventions

As well as these urgent responsive projects, Ukrainian architects are working on longer-term plans to rebuild entire cities.

For example, architect Victoria Yakusha is orchestrating a redevelopment plan for Chernihiv, an ancient city that was subjected to a brutal 39-day siege by Russia, leaving many buildings in ruins.

The rebuild will focus on involving the local community based on central themes of resilience and sustainability, rejecting the Soviet urban planning tropes that have shaped many Ukrainian cities.

"This is a unique approach for Ukrainian urban planning, which includes a rethinking of outdated approaches remaining from Soviet practice," Yakusha told Dezeen.

"Ukrainians have their own perception of the world and their own culture, traditions, which are the base," she added. "And it is important for us that our perception of the world and our mentality is reflected in our cities, because this is our identity."

"We don't want to lose it, because that's what we fight for."

Work started almost as soon as troops left the city, and despite Yakusha Studio having halved in size since the war broke out it is now coordinating a team of 60 volunteers on the project.

"It is the exact right time now, for sure, to think about concepts, strategies, development, all those things, which require time to understand and analyze," added Yakusha, whose home is in Bucha.

"We should ask ourselves who we are and what do we want and how to do this, in order that when the possibilities to rebuild arise and realization starts, we have not just answers to the questions above, but the action plan."

"Our hometowns have become cities of trauma"

Then there is Ro3kvit, a coalition of 80 experts in architecture, planning and other disciplines coordinated by Dutch architect Fulco Treffers.

"Our aim is to develop enough capacity in Ukraine to deal with all the huge building, planning and land-use questions that they have and more will come," Treffers told Dezeen.

"Usually countries start thinking about this when the war is over. At that moment, many problems are more complex, because of the lack of time to think, to learn, to discuss."

Ukrainian architect Oleg Drozdov, who is working on Ro3kvit, said rebuilt cities must be well-designed and human-centred if the country is to persuade the nine million Ukrainians currently living abroad to return home after the war.

"The biggest trauma of the war was not the built environment, but the fact that our hometowns have become cities of trauma, that certain destinies have been destroyed," he continued.

"Unfortunately, it will take us a long time to create the conditions to bring life back to the cities, and this is currently Ukraine's main challenge."

Despite these challenges, Korenko argues that rebuilding projects have an important morale-boosting function.

"We perfectly understand that war lasts a long time; it is a marathon," she told Dezeen. "But we need to believe that it will end, that someday it will be better."

"And talking about how people will live here after the war and what the country will be like after the war – it is about mental health and the need to give people hope during these difficult times."

Korenko is the founder and CEO of non-profit organisation STEM is FEM, which is running a programme to teach 50 Ukrainian girls about urbanism.

The teenagers will create their own reconstruction projects under the supervision of experts, with teachers including French architect Odile Decq. The best projects will have a chance to be realised.

Design brands demonstrate resilience

Design brands in Ukraine have also demonstrated extraordinary resilience over the past year.

Home fabrics manufacturer Shtayer saw its factory in the village of Slobozhanske destroyed by shelling and looting by Russian soldiers but rapidly built a new base in Kharkiv where a small sewing workshop had survived the Russian bombardment.

Part of the Shtayer team also left for western Ukraine with a handful of surviving sewing machines, starting a new clothing collection.

Similarly, furniture brand Tivoli has created a system for generating electricity from waste wood scraps – allowing it to keep running despite Russian attacks on Ukrainian power stations.

It is now setting up a second generator to supply energy to surrounding homes.

Asked for their reflections after a year of war, Ukrainian architects expressed profound sorrow but also unanimous optimism.

"This experience will never get out of our minds," said Gulesha. "We've seen a lot of disgusting and terrible things and struggled with obstacles we've never been ready to overcome."

"But through that time we've discovered a lot of good people and found out the better things inside ourselves which helped us to stay strong against aggression and continue to work despite everything," he continued. "We believe that good will conquer evil."

"Though we have accepted the new reality – as much as one can when living amidst a full-scale war – the pain and devastation it brings are still unbearable," echoed Balbek. "One can adapt to power outages, to missile attacks even, but never to losing the best of us."

"Ukraine will prevail – and our cities will be booming and blooming."

The top photo is by Maksym Pozniak-Haraburda.

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Neom is arguably the world's largest and most controversial architecture project. Here, we explain the key details of the development in Saudi Arabia, which includes The Line megacity.

What is Neom?

An initiative of crown prince Mohammed bin Salman – Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler – Neom is a large area of the country that has been earmarked for development.

Although often called a smart city, Neom is more accurately described as a region that will contain numerous cities, resorts and other developments.

The project is being largely bankrolled by the Public Investment Fund, which invests funds on behalf of the government of Saudi Arabia. The Saudi development company established to create Neom, which is led by chief executive officer Nadhmi Al-Nasr, claims the fund is contributing $500 billion to the scheme.

It forms part of the Saudi Vision 2030 plan to diversify the country's economy in order to reduce its dependence on oil.

Where is Neom?

Neom encompasses an area of around 10,200 square miles (26,500 square kilometres) in northwestern Saudi Arabia. This is around the size of Albania.

The area is bounded by the Red Sea to the south and the Gulf of Aqaba to the west.

What will be in Neom?

According to the developer, Neom will consist of 10 projects that they refer to as regions. So far, details of four of the regions have been announced. These are The Line, which is the most well-known, as well as Oxagon, Trojena and Sindalah.

The Line is planned to be a 170-kilometre linear city that will house nine million people. It will run from east to west across the Neom region. According to the developer, the city will consist of two parallel, 500-metre-high, linear skyscrapers standing 200 metres apart. The buildings will be clad with mirrored facades.

Oxagon is planned as an octagon-shaped port city that will be built on the Red Sea at the far south of the Neom region. According to Neom's developer, the port and logistics hub will be the "world's largest floating structure".

Trojena is planned as ski resort in the Sarwat Mountains near the north of the Neom region. The 60-square-kilometre skiing and outdoor-activity resort will offer year-round skiing and is set to host the 2029 Asian Winter Games.

Sindalah is planned as an island resort within the Red Sea. Aimed at the yachting community, the 840,000-square-metre island will have an 86-berth marina and numerous hotels.

What architecture studios are designing Neom?

Only a handful of architecture studios have been officially announced as designers of the Neom project. US studio Aecom is listed as a partner on the Neom website.

The developer of Neom revealed that UK studio Zaha Hadid Architects, Dutch practice UNStudio, US studio Aedas, German studio LAVA and Australian studio Bureau Proberts are working on the design of the Trojena ski resort.

Dutch studio Mecanoo also confirmed to Dezeen that they were working on Trojena.

Italian superyacht and architecture studio Luca Dini Design and Architecture has been announced as the designer of the Sindalah resort.

Numerous other studios have been connected to Neom, with multiple studios named within an exhibition of The Line in Riyadh. However, the exhibition did not make clear the extent of involvement of the studios named and several told Dezeen that they are no longer working on the project.

US studio Morphosis has long been rumoured to be the lead architect of The Line and was included in the exhibition. Its founder Thom Mayne appeared to confirm this at a talk last month, in which he stated he was working on a city that he described as "a big planning thing in Saudi Arabia that I can't talk about".

Other studios believed to be working on The Line and named in the exhibition include: US practices Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, Tom Wiscombe Architecture, Oyler Wu Collaborative and HOK; UK studios Adjaye Associates and Peter Cook's studio CHAP; Austria studios Coop Himmelb(l)au and Delugan Meissl Associated Architects; and Italian practice Studio Fuksas.

Leading the design of the project is former deputy mayor of Barcelona Antoni Vives, who is The Line's chief urban planning officer.

British architect Norman Foster was initially on the Neom advisory board but withdrew following Jamal Khashoggi's murder. A spokesperson for his studio, Foster + Partners, confirmed that the firm is not currently working on the project.

When will Neom be built?

Neom is working to ambitious timelines, with much of the project set to be built by 2030.

Last year, drone footage was revealed showing site preparation for The Line taking place, while Neom recently released a video showing glimpses of progress on the site.

The first element scheduled for completion is the Sindalah luxury island, with the developer of Neom aiming to welcome its first guests in early 2024.

Port city Oxagon will follow shortly after, with the first residents planned to move in by 2024 and the onshore part of the city due to complete by 2030. Ski resort Trojena is set to open in 2026.

According to the developer, the largest element of Neom, The Line, will "be rolled out between now and 2045". The aim is for one million people to be living in The Line by 2030. Some commentators have expressed scepticism about these timelines.

According to the developer, 2,400 staff already live and work at Neom.

Why is Neom controversial?

The Neom project has proved controversial due to three main concerns – sustainability, liveability and human rights.

There are numerous concerns about Saudi Arabia's human rights record – Freedom House gave the country 7/100 in its global freedom scoring, while Amnesty International has published a list of 10 ways the country "violates human rights" on its website.

While there are broad concerns about human rights in Saudi Arabia and for the people who will be building the gigantic project, the direct controversies connected to Neom are related to evictions taking place ahead of construction.

The area that is set to be developed is the historic homeland of the Huwaitat tribe and it is estimated that around 20,000 tribe members will be relocated to accommodate the planned development.

In 2020, Abdul Rahim al-Huwaiti from the tribe posted videos online aiming to draw attention to these evictions. The BBC later reported that Al-Huwaiti was killed by Saudi security services.

Last year human rights organisation ALQST reported that three people connected to Al-Huwaiti, who were forcibly evicted from the Neom site in 2020, had been sentenced to death.

Speaking to Dezeen, Amnesty International's Peter Frankental said that companies working on Neom were facing a "moral dilemma" and should "think twice" about their continuing involvement in the project.

Additionally, the developer of Neom has made many sustainability claims, with the development aiming to be powered by 100 per cent renewable sources.

"We see The Line as a unique opportunity to set a new benchmark for combining prosperity, livability and environmental preservation," Neom's executive director Tarek Qaddumi told Dezeen.

However, Neom – and The Line in particular – have been criticised for the expected embodied carbon associated with building the project. Philip Oldfield, head of the built environment school at the University of New South Wales, has estimated that upwards of 1.8 billion tonnes of embodied carbon dioxide will be produced.

He told Dezeen that this huge embodied carbon cost of construction "will overwhelm any environmental benefits".

Experts talking to Dezeen were also concerned over the mirrored facades' impact on animal and birdlife.

On liveability, Bin Salman stated that The Line "will challenge the traditional flat, horizontal cities and create a model for nature preservation and enhanced human liveability".

However, according to experts, the liveability claims would rest on how the city is maintained.

"These images project a degree of control which is very difficult to retain, especially over a period of time, even in a very autocratic society," said associate professor of architecture at Princeton University Marshall Brown.

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Retrofit, biomaterials and grassroots design are among the trends that architects including Kjetil Thorsen and Samira Rathod predict will define the architecture of 2023 and beyond.

Dezeen spoke to 10 architects from a mix of leading and emerging studios around the world about the trends they expect to characterise architecture this year.

Architects to "get serious about saving the planet"

For most, including Indian architect Rathod and Snøhetta co-founder Thorsen, the belief was that environmental design and sustainability will increasingly dominate the global architecture scene.

Specifically, Rathod predicts this will see architects move away from "superficial trends" and popular styles such as minimalism, adopting "sustainability as the new way forward" instead.

"While superficial trends like postmodernism and minimalism are dominating the intent of architecture today, we need to shift track and get serious about saving the planet," she said.

Thorsen agreed, claiming that the drive towards sustainable architecture will be among the trends to "speed up during 2023".

Norwegian architect Thorsen predicts that more architects will utilise renewable energy and learn to calculate embodied carbon – the emissions from manufacturing, construction, maintenance and demolition, which can account for as much as 75 per cent of a building's lifetime carbon footprint but are often unregulated.

"Renewable energy production will increase, and embodied CO2 will become part of the CO2 emission calculations for buildings," Thorsen said.

"Form could start following environments," he added.

Zaha Hadid Architects associate director Bidisha Sinha is also expecting to see a greater effort made in reducing the net-carbon emissions of buildings in the next few years as fossil-fuel resources dwindle and technical innovations continue to emerge.

"The limitation of resources is forcing stakeholders and designers to create new paths of innovation in response," said Sinha.

"These include new design techniques and operational technologies that contribute to the reduction of net-carbon emissions throughout the life-cycle of each project, together with advances in ecologically sound materials and sustainable construction practices."

"Biobased architecture will break through in 2023"

A more modest style of architecture is coming in 2023, according to architect and co-owner of Dutch studio Overtreders W, Hester van Dijk.

"I think 2023 will be a year of modesty, of re-evaluation, of finding strength to face the future with new optimism again," she explained.

"Let's stop building megastructures without regard for the landscape and the people living around it. Architecture should function as an ecosystem for nature and people."

She hopes that this approach will bring with it more experimentation with biobased materials, or biomaterials, which are materials made from biodegradable living matter.

"I hope biobased architecture will break through in 2023, with beautiful, colourful and tempting buildings," said van Dijk.

According to the architect, "we are only at the beginning of the biobased revolution", and there are a number of sustainable materials ready for architects to explore.

"Biobased architecture is still mainly made of wood, but there are other materials such as hemp, seaweed, mycelium, straw and cattail, each with their own properties and challenges," she explained.

"Architects need to challenge producers of these materials to scale up cultivation and production capacity in a sustainable way by increasing the demand."

Rathod, founder of Samira Rathod Design Atelier, agreed, adding that she expects a shift away from man-made materials in the coming years.

"Tech-produced materials are commonly used in people's homes, and I hope this is a trend that although sprouted recently, becomes a thing of the past," Rathod said.

"We need to think natural and biodegradable and form a new aesthetic out of these ideas," she continued. "In the age of high automation and machine-dominated experiences, we try using sustainable architecture to promote a relationship with nature."

"Changes in the use of existing buildings" expected

For OMA managing partner David Gianotten, the expectation for architecture in 2023 is that more intensive retrofit and adaptive reuse projects will become commonplace.

"We have been seeing more preservation and revitalisation projects in recent years," Gianotten explained.

"I think that in the coming years, we will also see a lot of changes in the use of existing buildings, which will require changeovers and adaptation of buildings to different regulations."

Gianotten added that OMA is planning to explore different methods of building preservation in 2023.

"How we transform old buildings for future environment goals is a challenging and interesting question to tackle," he said.

Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF) principal Forth Bagley and Nomos director Ophélie Herranz Lespagnol both agreed with Gianotten.

Lespagnol said the movement of "adapting existing structures" is already underway, and that it is being embraced by architects as a way to both celebrate heritage and protect the environment.

"Reusing can assist in preserving a location's character and heritage while lowering the environmental impacts of building new constructions," said Lespagnol on behalf of her firm, which won emerging architecture studio of the year at the Dezeen Awards 2022.

Similarly, Bagley believes retrofit will become increasingly popular for the challenges it presents architects, but also because it is a clear way to minimise the industry's carbon footprint.

"As we know, the most sustainable building is the one that already exists, so by reusing an existing structure, one is able to preserve a lot of embodied carbon as opposed to building something new," said Bagley.

"Plus, these types of projects present unique challenges and opportunities for architects."

Retrofit will encourage more "urban mining"

Employees at Rotterdam studio MVRDV and London studio Niall McLaughlin Architects are also expecting to see growth in the number of retrofit projects in the coming years, but believe this will be in tandem with more innovative reuse of existing materials.

"We would like to see more stand-out architecture that incorporates retrofit and the innovative reuse of existing buildings," said Alastair Browning, an associate at Niall McLaughlin.

"We would also expect to see buildings made from materials used or reused in new and inventive ways as architects develop their material practice in response to the climate emergency."

MVRDV editor Rory Stott described this reuse of materials as "urban mining", and claimed it is something that the studio is exploring in its own projects.

"In our own work, for example, we are attempting to work on more transformations and influence our clients and potential clients towards this approach," Stott explained.

"We are also increasingly looking to 'urban mining' as an approach to reuse existing building components, either from existing buildings on our own sites or other buildings nearby."

Collaborative design will replace "starchitecture"

Meanwhile, some architects predict that the trend of commissioning radical buildings by centralised "starchitects" could subside as more localised, grassroots and collaborative designers gain momentum.

"A healthy erosion of the ego star system is taking place," according to Nomos partner Lespagnol.

She believes that "architectural creation will tend to be collective" in 2023.

"Exploiting people and resources in order to build radical architecture is giving way to a more collective and social structure of the architectural practice," Lespagnol explained.

"[Nomos is] convinced that we are shaped by communication with others and that this openness allows more complex and complete proposals of what surrounds us."

KPF principal Bagley and Snøhetta's Thorsen agreed with this sentiment, but believe it is down to "a splintering of globalisation".

"We are currently seeing a splintering of globalisation, which is placing a greater emphasis on regionalism and bringing local issues and concerns to the forefront," said Bagley.

"Soon, the trend of 'starchitecture' will be replaced by collaborative models taking the complexities we are dealing with for real," added Thorsen.

"Regionalism, self-sufficiency, national identity and back-to-the-roots thinking will dominate in many places," he continued. "Hopefully, this will not halt the battle for a better common future."

Covid will continue to impact architecture

The effects of the Covid-19 pandemic will continue to be seen in architecture in 2023 and beyond, according to Zaha Hadid Architects associate director Sinha, most evidently in residential and office design due to the rise of remote working.

"This will necessitate a new understanding of what the spatial requirements are for a typical home where multiple occupants need to do a full day's work, and also a re-imagination of the traditional office environment which will be used intermittently," she said.

KPF's Bagley agreed, predicting a continued rise in the "hybridisation" of building uses.

"We'll continue to see the hybridisation of program, not just within mixed-use buildings, but also at the neighbourhood and district level," said Bagley. "Traditionally commercial districts will see an infusion of residential and entertainment programs and vice versa."

For Heatherwick Studio partner Neil Hubbard, the impact of the pandemic will be more visible in the aesthetic of buildings, as people chase more "joy in architecture".

"The 'covid years' have made people realise that good enough is not enough anymore," Hubbard explained. "We are awakening from our desensitisation of boring buildings, from public spaces that don't really care about people within them."

Instead, architecture in the coming years will prioritise connection and shared experiences between people, he said.

"The necessity of joy in architecture is more important than ever."

The main photo is of The Voice of Urban Nature pavilion by Overtreders W, taken by Jorn van Eck.

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The UK's ageing houses must be insulated against uncontrolled heat loss, but this will require accepting changes to their appearance, according to a series of British architects who have recently carried out their own energy-led retrofits.

"The majority of homes in the UK were built before we understood about climate change," explained Sarah Wigglesworth, an architect who recently retrofitted her own home in London.

"If we do not insulate our homes and offices we are burning fuel just to throw it away into the atmosphere," she told Dezeen.

UK housing oldest and most poorly insulated in Europe

Housing in the UK is among the most poorly insulated in Europe, according to research by German technology company Tado. As Wigglesworth implied, this is largely due to its age.

The Building Research Establishment (BRE) found that the UK has the oldest housing stock in Europe, with 38 per cent of the homes built before 1946, which compares to 29 per cent in France and 20 per cent in Italy. Additionally, 78 per cent of UK residents keep warm using gas central heating, the UK Department for Business Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has found.

This means that most UK homes, which continue to rely heavily on burning fossil fuels for space heating, are losing warmth through their inadequately insulated envelopes.

Architecture for London founder Ben Ridley said that improving the energy inefficiency of the UK's ageing homes is essential if it is to meet its target of net-zero emissions by 2050.

"Historically, fuel has been relatively cheap so insulating homes was seen as a low priority until the second half of the 20th century," said Ridley, who also recently retrofitted his home with his studio Architecture for London.

"The vast majority of our traditional housing stock in the UK was therefore built with uninsulated solid masonry walls and single glazing," he continued.

"Ultimately we are going to have to accept some changes in the appearance of our traditional homes."

Key steps are to "insulate, make airtight and ventilate"

The energy inefficiency of UK housing has been in the spotlight recently not only because of its impact on the environment, which has influenced protests by Insulate Britain, but also due to the spiralling energy costs, exacerbated by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

In response to this, the UK government is capping the cost of energy to support people with paying their bills. However, according to architects, retrofitting at a national scale to cut heat loss from houses is a more effective long-term solution and should be the focus instead.

"In the short term helping people pay for their fuel bills helps, but it does not solve the long-term issue that we can't continue to burn fossil fuels as we once did," said Wigglesworth. "Only insulating our buildings will help this."

Retrofit is the process of upgrading the energy efficiency of buildings. Robert Prewett of Prewett Bizley Architects summarised the main ways to do this as to "insulate, make airtight and ventilate".

"Most homes need insulating and fitting with higher performance windows," said Prewett, who recently carried out a retrofit of a London home that was shortlisted for RIBA House of the Year.

"As we do that we should also reduce air leakage, which can significantly undermine the impact of the insulation," he continued.

"At the same time, we must always ensure that air quality is maintained or improved. This is likely to mean continuous silent extract ventilation possibly with heat recovery."

Typically, insulation is first added to a roof, followed by floors and external walls – the latter of which can result in changes to a building's exterior, particularly when windows are also upgraded.

Preserving heritage obstacle to retrofit of traditional homes

This can be an obstacle when retrofitting homes that are heritage-listed or located in conservation areas, as it threatens to impact the character of a building.

"Everything comes at a cost, and sometimes the external appearance will change, especially windows and walls," said Wigglesworth.

Wigglesworth suggested internal insulation as a way to overcome this, as it allows a more sensitive retrofit that ensures a property retains its character.

"If retaining the external appearance is of paramount importance, then internal wall insulation is the answer," she explained.

"It is costlier because it is much more fiddly to install, needs careful calculation to ensure no condensation occurs and you have to redo all the internal moulding, cornices, architraves and so forth that are part of the heritage feature."

However, in Ridley's opinion, external insulation is the most effective way to retrofit and he believes guidelines for conservation buildings should be made less stringent.

"There are certainly conservation issues with listed buildings and those in conservation areas," Ridley said.

"I believe that these need to be relaxed, particularly in relation to the side and rear facades of heritage buildings which are usually of little architectural interest or importance."

Architect and Passivhaus advocate Paul Testa said that there must sometimes be a "compromise between performance and heritage", and suggested working with a heritage expert when navigating these barriers.

Upgrading windows "the biggest challenge"

He highlighted that this could be particularly useful when upgrading windows of homes in historic or conservation contexts, which he described as "the biggest challenge" of retrofit.

"It's difficult to make high-performance glazing look like an authentic original window," explained Testa, who is director of Sheffield studio Hem Architects.

Testa added that one of the best solutions for this is to introduce a secondary glazing system, which offers an alternative to replacing windows.

"In some sensitive locations it may be necessary to use a high-performance secondary glazing system with the original windows sensitively repaired or replicated," he said.

Another major challenge facing retrofit is "the lack of consistent government strategy", Testa said.

Many of the worst-performing homes are owned by occupants who cannot afford to retrofit and he believes that government backing is key to facilitating vital upgrades.

"This is where the government strategy and funding becomes critical," Testa explained. "Without this, there will always be a huge proportion of the country that will never have the funds to affect the necessary change."

Benefits of retrofit go beyond the environment

Testa said that the benefits of the government supporting retrofit go beyond the environment, as it could also help boost public health over winter months.

"We will see a rise in respiratory issues with under-heated, under-ventilated homes over the next few months as people struggle to cope with rising costs," he explained.

"A building that has been retrofitted will likely have a better build quality, better thermal comfort and air quality, and hugely reduced risks of damp and mould."

He added that "there is an estimated 42p saving to the NHS (National Health Service) for every £1 spent on the retrofit of fuel-poor homes", referring to a study on fuel poverty by the non-governmental organisation Save the Children.

For him, the government's first step should be to rid of value-added tax (VAT), which applies to renovations of existing buildings but not to new builds, meaning many people are priced out of retrofit projects.

"The biggest step that could be made to improve retrofit take-up is to remove VAT from retrofit work," said Testa.

"Currently we have the crazy situation that new-build homes are Vat free, but retrofitting existing stock carries full 20 per cent VAT."

Ridley agreed that a lack of political strategy and will is "a major issue currently" facing retrofit.

In his view, the government should "offer all homeowners and landlords low-interest loans to pay for retrofit works".

"The interest on the loan could be repaid out of the future reduction in energy bills, therefore possibly have no net cost to the owner," he suggested.

"Home insulation alone is not a magic bullet"

The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is also calling on the government for more support in the retrofit of houses in the UK.

In a report named Home for Heroes, the RIBA demands a national programme involving the insulation of 3.3 million houses built in England's interwar suburbs between 1919 and 1939.

It claims that by doing so, England's total carbon emissions could be cut by four per cent per year, which is the "same amount as completely decarbonising [England's] waste and recycling sector".

However, according to a recent study by the University of Cambridge, adding insulation to UK homes does not guarantee long-term energy savings as much as hoped.

After analysing the gas-use patterns of more than 55,000 homes across England and Wales, researchers found that the fall in gas consumption achieved by retrofitting with wall insulation was cancelled out within four years by an increase in energy use.

The causes of this are still unknown, but the study speculates that it could be the result of the simultaneous construction of home extensions or if a home has a conservatory.

"There are very real benefits to households from good insulation, not least in terms of health and comfort," said the report's co-author Laura Diaz Anadon.

"However, home insulation alone is not a magic bullet," she added. "In the long term, simply funding more of the same insulation roll-out to meet the UK's carbon reduction and energy security targets may not move the dial as much as is hoped."

The main photo is by Erik Mclean via Unsplash.

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Nine in 10 UK architecture studios feel Brexit has had a negative impact on them, exclusive Dezeen research has found.

Three years on from the UK's departure from the European Union (EU) on 31 January 2020, Dezeen conducted a survey of 50 architecture studios asking about their experiences of working post-Brexit.

Respondents ranged from small studios with 15 or fewer people to larger practices with a hundred or more employees and mega-firms with a global presence, such as Foster + Partners and BDP.

The responses were overwhelmingly downbeat, pointing to higher construction costs, difficulties attracting European talent and additional administrative burdens.

Given the choice, 84 per cent of studios said they would rejoin the EU if the option was available. Only one studio (two per cent) said it would not, with the remaining 14 per cent indicating they were unsure or do not have a position.

Findings "little surprise"

"It comes as little surprise that the UK's architects find little if nothing to commend Brexit and its aftermath," said Eddie Miles, CEO of large international firm Hyphen of the survey results.

"It may take a generational shift, but we are pretty sure that closer cultural, political and commercial relationships with our European neighbours are inevitable, including hopefully applying for re-admission to the EU."

Overall, 90 per cent of studios surveyed by Dezeen said Brexit has negatively impacted them, with 66 per cent feeling the impact has been "somewhat negative" and 24 per cent saying "very negative".

The remaining 10 per cent felt there has been no discernible impact, meaning none of the respondents believe Brexit has had a positive impact on their practice.

Studios were able to share comments about their experiences of life outside the EU at various points in the survey.

"Brexit has been a catastrophe," said Piers Taylor's Somerset-based firm Invisible Studio. "The barriers are obvious but it it is the cultural loss that is even greater. Architecture depends on cross-cultural exchange of ideas and benefits from free movement. It is staggering how diminished the UK scene has become post-Brexit."

The studio revealed it is now actively planning for a future outside the UK.

"We feel little interest in working in the UK, and feel limited interests in engaging with the UK as an idea or a social and cultural landscape and [this] has led us to refocus on working outside the UK," the studio added. "Post-Brexit, we'd be happy never to work in the UK again."

"Outside any ideological position on Brexit, from a purely business and commercial perspective, Brexit has been negative, making everything harder, adding to the costs and burdens of working in the EU," said major London studio RSHP.

"To date, it appears that there have been no benefits that anyone can list or point to," it added. "We'd be happier if there were."

"We could go on and on about how much of a disaster Brexit is for the UK as a whole, and what's more worrying is that we're yet to see the worst of the ramifications," remarked small London studio Surman Weston.

The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) said Dezeen's findings closely mirror what it has been hearing from the sector.

"The feedback the RIBA receives closely aligns with the results of the Dezeen survey," RIBA head of economic research and analysis Adrian Malleson told Dezeen.

"The EU is a vital market for UK architects and construction industry. RIBA members were clear that our new relationship with Europe needed to ensure low trade friction and high building standards. The former has failed so far, and the latter is under some threat."

Struggles recruiting and keeping EU staff

Losses of EU staff since Brexit and difficulty recruiting from countries in the bloc emerged as clear trends in the data.

More than half of respondents to the survey – 56 per cent – said their studios have experienced a loss of EU staff.

Asked if Brexit has made it harder to recruit people from EU nations, 70 per cent responded "definitely", while a further 10 per cent said "only slightly". Just one studio, a large London-based firm, indicated it had made no difference, and none felt it has become easier.

Several studios highlighted issues with staffing as a key concern.

"Recruitment of architectural staff has been made more difficult as EU staff have vanished and there are not enough UK-trained architects with relevant skills seeking work," said Sarah Wigglesworth Architects. "Salaries have risen. It is even harder for small firms to compete on salaries."

"One thing that is very clear is that our access to Europe's talent pool has shrunk drastically and so recruitment is a significant problem, and that affects resourcing of projects," echoed Hyphen.

The picture regarding recruitment from non-EU countries was less clear, with 22 per cent indicating that attracting talent from the rest of the world has been harder since Brexit but 42 per cent saying there had been no change and 34 per cent unsure.

Only one studio, a London-based firm, felt that recruiting from non-EU countries has become easier.

Rising material and labour costs

Just under half of respondents – 48 per cent – felt that Brexit has had an impact on their ongoing projects. Of the rest, 20 per cent felt it had not and 32 per cent were unsure.

In particular, many studios cited increasing material costs and slower supply chains, with much of the UK's construction materials produced in EU countries.

Another recurring theme was a shortage of skilled construction workers that is reportedly compromising build quality and driving up labour costs.

Combined, these issues are restricting budgets, with a small number of respondents mentioning cases where projects have been cancelled altogether over viability concerns.

"Pretty much every project has been impacted by rising material costs and availability of materials and longer lead times, a direct result of Brexit," said south-coast studio RX Architects. "Our contractors quite often mention that skilled labour is in shorter supply, which leads to less quality on site and higher prices for labour."

Among other problems highlighted were increased difficulty in winning competitions for projects in the EU, with London studio Waugh Thistleton Architects saying clients are "nervous" about hiring UK architecture firms and Michael Pawlyn's firm Exploration Architecture mentioning struggles obtaining professional indemnity insurance at an affordable rate.

However, there was not a clear trend showing that studios working overseas felt Brexit has led to a reduction in projects abroad. Of the 34 relevant respondents, 30 per cent said there had been no change and 44 per cent were unable to say.

Only 18 per cent of these 34 studios said there had been a reduction. Just one felt the number of overseas projects has increased – global firm Atkins, which said it deliberately sought out "more global opportunities" in an attempt to reduce the potential impacts of Brexit on its business.

Positives of Brexit

Respondents were specifically asked to describe any positive impacts of Brexit on their studio. Most that answered this question said there were none, and one Scottish studio simply responded: "Lol."

A handful mentioned that Brexit had encouraged them to expand abroad or that, due to their already-established presence in the EU, they have been able to out-compete smaller UK firms.

Aside from that, few benefits were mentioned, though one studio suggested that Brexit could make it easier to remove VAT on construction projects involving existing buildings as this rule was initially tied to EU legislation.

"One positive I have seen is that there has been renewed talk of equalising VAT on new builds and work to existing buildings," the respondent said. "If that change comes to pass, that would be great (and the right thing in terms of the climate crisis), although I suspect it's not likely while the government has such a big budget deficit."

There is evidence that UK studios are attempting to maintain ties in Europe despite Brexit-related difficulties, with a significant proportion of those surveyed putting resources into having a greater presence in the EU.

Responding to a question about investing in having a greater EU presence post-Brexit, 42 per cent of studios said they are already doing so.

Another 14 per cent said they are considering it and a further 12 per cent said they would if they had the resources.

Some studios shared examples of work they are doing to stay connected to the EU. For example, mid-sized London studio Henley Halebrown mentioned its Dialogues series of talks, which proactively invites architects, writers and curators as speakers.

"We feel that these grassroots cultural exchanges are more important than ever," said the studio.

The UK officially left the EU on 31 January 2020 following the Brexit vote in June 2016, with a one-year transition period meaning no changes kicked in until 1 January 2021.

Leaders across several industries have been increasingly vocal about the alleged negative impacts of Brexit in recent months, with IKEA, Asda, Siemens and the Bank of England among those to speak out.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development expects the UK's economic performance over the next two years to be worse than any other advanced economy, apart from Russia.

"The government continues to take full advantage of the benefits of Brexit, restoring the UK's status as a sovereign, independent country that can determine its own future," a UK government spokesperson told Dezeen.

The full list of respondents to the Dezeen survey is below.

6a Architects

AHMM

AHR

Alison Brooks Architects

Allies and Morrison

Assemble

Atkins

BDP

Brisac Gonzalez

Broadway Malyan

Coffey Architects

CRAB Studio

Crawshaw Architects

De Matos Ryan

Denizen Works

Donald Insall Associates

Dow Jones Architects

DSDHA

Exploration Architecture

Fletcher Priest Architecture

Foster + Partners

Hawkins\Brown

Henley Halebrown

Holloway Li

Hyphen

Invisible Studio

Jonathan Tuckey Design

Konishi Gaffney

Loader Monteith Architects

Make

Mikhail Riches

Mole Architects

New Practice

Niall McLaughlin Architects

PRP

Purcell

RSHP

RX Architects

Sarah Wigglesworth Architects

Scott Brownrigg

Scott Whitby Studio

Sheppard Robson

Stride Treglown

Surman Weston

Technique

TP Bennett

Waugh Thistleton

White Arkitekter

WilkinsonEyre

Will Gamble Architects

The top photo is by John Crozier via Unsplash.

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Architects and designers in China have told Dezeen they expect domestic and international work to ramp up now that tight Covid restrictions are finally easing.

"I believe as a Chinese architect, it's an opportunity for us to take projects from overseas," said Weico founder Wei Sun.

"We will also look into doing more international projects by submitting our work into global competition," echoed FOG Architecture founder Yu Zheng.

"We look forward to welcoming the global collaborations with world's leading structure and landscape consultants back to projects in China, attracting the best international talents to work in our Beijing office," said Qun Dang, principal partner at MAD Architects.

"We are confident that there will be more to develop in rural China including cultural traveling planning, landscape design and boutique hotels," added Jianan Shan of Say Architects.

China has pursued an aggressive zero-Covid policy since the beginning of the pandemic leading to frequent lockdowns, particularly in 2022.

But, following rare mass street protests in November, travel rules have been eased and the requirement for those testing positive to quarantine in centralized facilities has been scrapped.

Design fairs seek rebound

On 27 December, China announced its decision to reopen its borders for international travel from January 8.

The news came just in time for design fairs in China, which rejected all physical events last year due to continuous hard lockdowns throughout the country.

Design Shanghai, the largest design show in Asia, was canceled in 2022. Its sister brand Design Shenzhen, originally due to launch in December 2021 but scuppered by the pandemic, has now finally confirmed that its inaugural edition will take place in March.

Shows are now eager to return bigger than ever before and attract significant involvement from overseas studios and brands.

"Everyone is more dedicated than ever to reviving the design shows in China," Design Shanghai director Zhuo Tan told Dezeen.

"This year will be the 10th anniversary of Design Shanghai," she said. "We plan to host the biggest show in terms of scale with a large number of international brands and designers physically being at the show."

"Our current focus is to invite international brands to join our show this year, increase our promotion overseas and reshape the confidence in the Chinese market."

Guangzhou Design Week, moved from December 2022 to March 2023, is also gearing up for more international partnerships.

"We will increase the exhibition space for international furniture brands to attract more of them to showcase new products at Guangzhou Design Week 2023," said CEO Wenguang He. "We also plan to launch a global design tour this year, to increase collaborations with our key global partners."

Chinese studios eyeing international expansion

Chinese architects and designers are embracing the refound freedom of international travel.

Shanghai-based interior design studio Offhand Practice has already booked an overseas design tour for the team in the first quarter of 2023.

"Travel is the most effective way for a designer to grow and gain more perspectives," said Offhand Practice founding partner Yuan Yuan.

"We also look forward to participating in more international design fairs and exhibitions this year," she added.

Say Architects' Shan is also excited about seeing new projects from around the world now that the travel ban has been lifted.

"We can finally travel internationally more regularly to see the latest projects and learn from them," Shan told Dezeen.

Beijing-based architecture studio MAD Architects has already begun global expansion, with offices in Rome and Los Angeles set up before the pandemic.

"With China's border opening now, we expect to increase the involvement from our head office in Beijing in overseas projects with more staff being able to travel for site visits and workshops more frequently," principal partner Dang told Dezeen.

The firm's China office has been directly impacted due to the pandemic restrictions. "Our global partners, consultants, and design talents were unable to visit us in China," explained Dang.

"We are saddened by the isolation and divisions caused by the pandemic or used as an excuse for it. We have been waiting and anticipating China's re-opening, because it will impact the cross-border and cross-cultural communication and interaction."

"We look forward to welcoming the global collaborations with world's leading structure and landscape consultants back to projects in China, attracting the best international talents to work in our Beijing office."

As well as working on more international projects, MAD will look to increase its investment in publishing and exhibitions as a way to strengthen architectural dialogue between East and West, she added.

Sun, the former partner at Henn who founded his own architecture studio Weico last year, will go to Southeast Asia to explore the potential of expanding the business.

"It's very common for Chinese projects to attract design proposals from international studios, with the border opening now, I don't think there will be a significant influx of international competition because it's already highly competitive," explained Sun.

"However, we rarely see international studios actively engage in other territories. I believe as a Chinese architect, it's an opportunity for us to take projects from overseas."

Unlocking a "boost of confidence"

The unlocking is also a "boost of confidence" for international studios that work in China.

"It finally ended the uncertainty Covid has created, and speeds up the work that's been delayed because of it," said Maggie Wu, principal and marketing director of Perkins&Will, who is based in the global firm's Shanghai office.

"It's definitely a boost of confidence. Of course, the in-person interaction between our Shanghai office and other overseas offices can return to normal as well."

Similarly, Danish textile firm Kvadrat is planning more in-person interaction between its China office and headquarters in Europe, including sending Chinese staff to the head office for training as well as inviting Chinese clients to Europe for tours.

Emerging Chinese studio FOG Architecture has been struggling to manage its team of 20 scattered all over the world from London to Seattle to Shanghai to Melbourne, but now it sees this dispersion as a strength.

"Everyone can leverage their time zone and local knowledge to contribute to projects, " said studio co-founder Zheng.

"We were blessed with a few commercial retail projects in the first two years of Covid. However, in 2022, the sector was hit by regular lockdowns and we realized we have reached our limits."

"We have since tried to participate in much bigger-scale architecture projects and we will continue to do so. We will also look into doing more international projects by submitting our work into global competition."

However, for Chinese travelers, international travel has not yet fully returned to pre-Covid level and is not without immediate challenges.

The US, Canada, UK, France and Italy are among those that require proof of negative Covid tests within 48 hours of departure for all travelers from China. The newly imposed measures are a direct response to China's re-opening, given the concern over rising infections in the country.

South Korea and Japan have stopped issuing tourist visas for those coming from China and require both pre-departure and arrival testing for Chinese visitors. China has since stopped issuing short-term visas to individuals from South Korea and Japan in retaliation.

But these issues have not affected the optimism of Chinese studios, which have learned to be adaptable in the past three years.

"Our studio was founded four years ago, so the majority time of our practice was under Covid restrictions," said Yuan. "We almost feel that uncertainty is the normality, which makes us more resilient to changes and adaptation."

"At Say, we always adjust our business based on the shift of market and consumer behavior," added Shan.

Restaurants to become a focus for Say

Development in rural China and restaurant design will be new focuses for Say Architects this year, according to Shan.

"Urban resources in China are becoming increasingly limited. In addition to the rebound of domestic travel post-Covid, we are confident that there will be more to develop in rural China including cultural traveling planning, landscape design and boutique hotels."

"While in the city, we will expand to restaurant design, which was hit badly by Covid restrictions," he added.

Despite the overall optimism among Chinese studios, some difficulties remain for architects and designers as the country re-opens.

Yuichiro Hori recently returned to China for the first time since moving his base from Shanghai to New York last May.

Stellar Works, the furniture brand Hori founded in Shanghai, has been forced to shift its product launch plans for the whole year following a spike in Covid infections among its Chinese manufacturing staff since restrictions started to ease.

"I've already paid the exhibition deposit for Salone in Milan this year but had to cancel, because we couldn't ship the products in time because of the production delay," Hori told Dezeen. "Usually we have to ship all products for Salone before Chinese New Year."

Stellar Works is planning to open more showrooms in North America, and has set an ambitious target to expand the business in the US. It is currently testing a modular hotel guestroom concept that will be launched in May during New York Design Week.

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Designers including Philippe Starck and Titi Ogufere share their predictions for 2023's major design trends, from the continued rise of AI to how inflation could impact the industry.

To mark the start of 2023, Dezeen asked 10 designers and industry experts to share the materials, technologies and influences that they think are set to dominate design trends this year.

AI will transform creative processes

British designer Tom Dixon and French designer Starck told Dezeen that using artifical intelligence (AI) in the product-creation process will become more commonplace in 2023.

"AI will dominate the aesthetics and the conversation around design – knocking aside the more important and pressing subject of sustainability," said Dixon. "AI is the biggest threat and opportunity that the profession faces this year."

Starck added: "AI is the future of our natural intelligence, which allows dematerializing by going to the bone of things, to the square root, and thus to guarantee the minimum of matter, the minimum of energy by proposing real solutions that come from elsewhere, in a timeless way."

"Together, the human and AI may solve the world's problems and achieve a civilized civilization," Starck continued.

While using AI in the creation of products or buildings is nothing new, last year saw an explosion in software such as the popular Midjourney, which converts text or audio information into computer-generated images.

As a consequence, a range of products were released last year that incorporated AI. These included a fitness device called Tempo Move that uses AI to provide feedback on the user's form and a bionic wearable by startup Cionic and Yves Béhar's design studio Fuseproject that uses electric pulses and AI to correct muscle movements.

Digital experimentation continues to push boundaries

Andrés Reisinger, a 3D artist who created a virtual chair using CGI that later went into production, thinks that wider acceptance of digital technologies, from AI to CGI, will "create a new hybrid and co-existence" between virtual and physical worlds.

"I also think we will continue to see attempts to use the digital realm to widen perspectives and expand offerings in a way that hasn't been explored before," Reisinger continued.

"More and more design will be looked at and used as an additional art form, in the creation of also less realistic environments and objects, becoming the field for experimentation that blends functionality with creative expression."

Other technology that some designers believe will play a role in the future of design in 2023 includes smart devices.

According to interior and product designer Kelly Wearstler, items that use sensors to detect stimuli and adjust automatically to suit the user's needs will become more personalised.

"I expect smart home technology will have a greater presence in our lives, offering more conveniences, but it will be the human touch within that keeps our interiors warm and soulful," Wearstler told Dezeen.

"Design will evolve as technological innovations and handmade craft continue to interact," she said. "Objects and spaces that wed these two tracks are the future."

"The ecological crisis is set to be the agenda for many many years to come"

Another major trend that designers believe shows no sign of abating is the focus on circular design and the role it will play in mitigating design's impact on the climate.

Italian design studio Formafantasma, US-based Russian architect and designer Harry Nuriev and New York gallery The Future Perfect all voiced their desire to see more circular designs this year.

"Upcycling is going to be a mode of production to which an increasing amount of artists and designers will be turning globally," explained The Future Perfect founder David Alhadeff.

"I see it more and more among artists we're working with at The Future Perfect – from the Dutch designer Piet Hein Eek, who transforms scrapyard-sourced materials into meticulously crafted luxurious objects, to the work of emerging designer Jinyeong Yeon, who produced a series of seating made out of deadstock goose down jackets."

Formafantasma called for designs that go beyond end-of-life product solutions and instead consider how design might help regenerate ecosystems, shift consumer opinion and pave the way for sustainable solutions in other industries.

"We believe it is more important to think about long-term commitments," Formafantasma told Dezeen. "The ecological crisis is set to be the agenda for many, many years to come."

"In this sense what we hope will be more and more relevant in 2023 is the application of design not only to shape products but to help a broader strategic ecological thinking," the brand added.

"What will be even more relevant is the selection of materials that are more ecologically sound and attention to processes and where and how these materials are extracted. Due to more strict EU regulation, repair and recycling will have to be on the agenda of many of the biggest product producers."

Circular design refers to the creation of products and services that don't have a linear life cycle with a beginning, middle and end. Instead, they are made to last a long time before being recycled or regenerated at the end of their service life.

Nuriev, founder of New York agency Crosby Studios, thinks that the focus on recycling and circular design in 2023 could result in products that have a DIY look.

"I think DIY aesthetics are coming back in style," Nuriev said. "Objects that appear to be patched together, out of materials someone might easily have to hand, upcycling – things like that."

Recently, many brands and designers have started taking steps to eliminate waste and pollution from the lifecycle of their products. This has included the creation of new bio-based materials as alternatives to synthetic and highly polluting materials.

Several designers that Dezeen spoke to highlighted that biomaterials will become more widely used over the next year.

"In 2023, I will keep working on finding new sustainable solutions and materials, such as responsible bioplastics not derived from edibles by humans or grown on land suitable for growing food," Starck said.

Ethiopian-American designer Jomo Tariku agreed, saying: "I expect more designers to develop new ideas on how to repurpose and practice circular design from used clothing, ocean plastic, industrial and construction lumber and metal."

Designers will respond to global rising inflation

Meanwhile, Nigerian designer Nifemi Marcus-Bello pointed to concerns about rising inflation and its potential impact on supply and production.

"With a worldwide increase in inflation that began in mid-2021, with many countries seeing their highest inflation rates in decades, a good number of designers will continue to look into their maker community around them," Marcus-Bello told Dezeen.

"Making sure to consider production and manufacturing availability within their vicinity before crossing borders, working within these communities to identify materials that can be utilized to create products and enhance their inherent economy and ecosystem," he continued.

Design Week Lagos founder Titi Ogufere suggested that the industry will be well-equipped to face disruptive factors such as inflation given its reaction to the coronavirus pandemic.

"I believe challenging times are the most thriving times for creatives," argued Ogufere. "The global pandemic has forced the world to re-design itself, the interior and product design industry being at the epicentre of that reawakening," she added.

"This disruption has helped us innovate – I believe this season will see some of the best designs we have seen in years."

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Interiors will get weirder in 2023 with bolder colours, mushroom materials and less birch plywood, designers have told Dezeen.

As the new year begins, Dezeen asked 12 interior designers and architects about their predictions for the interior design trends that will dominate in 2023.

Interiors to feature maximalism and weirdness

British interior designers Jordan Cluroe and Russell Whitehead of 2LG Studio believe interior design this year will be wilder and weirder.

"It's a violent time we are living in," the duo told Dezeen. "There is anger in the world and design needs to reflect that dynamism and not shy away from it. The deco period has been important to design for several years and we are now looking to expressionism and cubism for bold inspiration."

"Weirdness has always been there and we've always been here for it. Think Haas Brothers. But now it feels like we are in such a wild historical moment that weird is becoming the norm. See Nicolas Devlin and Charlotte Kingsnorth."

"When the world gets too weird to comprehend, the designs of the moment reflect that. Let's all get weird and express our wonderfulness."

One of the overarching design trends this year looks to be maximalism, as the world gradually moves on from the more pared-back interior designs that have been popular over the past two years.

"Last year saw a shift towards maximalism, experimenting with patterns and rich colour schemes," Sanchit Arora of New Delhi studio Renesa told Dezeen.

"This year will continue this trend with a fresher fervour. There will be bold and forward designs that give increased personality to the space. For both commercial and residential areas, clients are opting for customized patterns and colours rather than going for conformable products that suit just any space but compromise on standing out."

Bolder colours and prints will take centre stage

While interiors last year often bore a discrete, natural colour palette – as evidenced by the homes in our list of top 10 home interiors of 2022 – 2023 looks set to be colour-drenched.

"I think I am seeing, after a few years of mostly conservative approach to colour, a more fresh and daring use of colour," Raúl Sánchez, founder of Barcelona studio Raúl Sánchez Architects, told Dezeen.

"We are leaving the haven of neutrals and stepping into a rainbow!" added interior designer Pallavi Dean of Roar.

"The safe beige, grey and white walls are on their way out and we are experimenting with bold hues and darker tones to add depth to the space," she added.

"Tread with caution when you choose your shade; it can impact your mood and change your perception of the size of your space."

Spatial designer Adi Goodrich thinks the use of colour will be especially prominent in kitchen interiors.

"I think people are finally embracing colour and will choose to redesign their kitchens in a wash of colour," she told Dezeen.

According to interior designer Kelly Hoppen, neutrals will still be going strong but will be increasingly complemented by bold prints.

"The way we use our homes has evolved over the last few years as we appreciate the comfort and warmth of our own spaces, especially as many people are still in part working remotely or hybrid working," she told Dezeen.

"This will continue to reflect our colour choices and so for multifunctional yet homey rooms, calming neutrals will be favoured including cosy greys to classic beiges and taupes," Hoppen added.

"That said, bold prints are making a resurgence and the asymmetrical feel in rooms is going to be huge. Wallpaper, which is also having a comeback, will be used through 2023 decor. For example – textural walls being used as a backdrop for artwork or asymmetrical wallpaper borders being used to add contrast."

Rich and tactile materials to dominate

Tactile, rich materials will be especially popular in the coming year, according to the designers.

"We are craving a 'multi-sensory palette'," said Dean.

"The recent pandemic deprived us of one of our most 'human' senses: touch. In response to that, I feel it will become increasingly important for designers to make use of materials that bring tactility to the interior scheme and to devise spaces that provoke an emotion in its users."

"In the post-pandemic space, the wellbeing of the end user is considered more than ever," agreed interior designer Tola Ojuolape.

"Humble materials and finishes that give rise to a relaxed sophistication will continue to dominate the interiors landscape. Lime plaster walls and finish, brick, natural wool will be visible."

Meanwhile, an increasing appetite for bold designs could lead to some currently popular materials falling out of favour.

"I think the era of birch plywood might be coming to an end," Goodrich said. "I believe richer woods like walnut, cherry and red oak will be seen more in interiors moving forward."

"Bold, colourful marbles balanced with neutrals will be particularly trendy," predicted Hoppen. "People will be eating in a lot more in 2023, so table tops (especially marble) and dining spaces will make a huge comeback–perfect for those looking to entertain."

Studios are also open to working with new materials this year as they strive for more sustainable designs.

"Materiality excites us as a studio," 2LG said. "Mushrooms are going to become more important. Brands like Mylo Unleather are making waves and getting us excited about the possibilities mushrooms offer as an ethical and sustainable alternative to animal skin."

Interior designer Kelly Wearstler agreed, saying: "Sustainability will continue to live at the forefront of all design conversations and innovations. I have been very interested in the rise of mushroom leather."

"This fabric innovation has already been revolutionary for the fashion industry, offering a sustainable alternative," she added. "I expect we will continue to see its presence grow within interiors and design."

Sustainability becoming a "necessity"

Designers are also more focused on sustainability than ever before and wary of greenwashing.

"Sustainability is an evolving subject in the interiors space; this will continue in 2023," Ojuolape predicted.

"Designers will continue to find ways to ensure it is considered and adapted into the life cycle of an interiors project from the onset."

"Intentional and deliberate education will continue to ensure resourceful materials selections, upcycling and reuse of furniture and smart reduction of plastics and waste," she added.

"As we confront ourselves with the ever-increasing issues of energy consumption and global warming, interior design projects will be greatly affected in many aspects," Japanese designer Keiji Ashizawa predicted.

"I believe projects that trace the context of sustainability will become a necessity, and it will no longer be something that is merely spoken about as an idealized concept," he added.

"I think it's safe to say we are all sensitised to greenwashing," Dean said.

"Designers and clients are both better educated about the impact their work will have on the environment and are steering clear from box-ticking certification goals. Instead, the focus is on long-term strategies – waste disposal, efficient MEP systems and better construction methodologies."

Human connection important after pandemic

The importance of working together as a community was also highlighted by many of the designers Dezeen spoke to.

"Due to the pandemic we have all been more or less isolated – so what we see is a longing for truly connecting and interacting with the world around us again," said Norm Architects partner Frederik Werner.

"Translate that into the field of interior design – and we see how we as humans seek tactility, sensibility and natural materials in the constant pursuit of wellbeing."

Australia-based designer Danielle Brustman agreed, saying: "There seems to be a sculptural and more organic design trend growing in interior design. There is a return to the soft curve and using more organic materials. We have all been rocked by the Covid pandemic and I think people are in need of some nurturing."

This theme of community will also play out in the production of design projects, predicts Ashizawa.

"After experiencing the Covid-19 pandemic, I believe that there will be more opportunity to reflect on the community – along with the cost of import and logistics leading to a slower progression of projects," he said.

"This would spur the expansion of community-based projects that focus on cultural values of local production for local consumption."

Similarly, Alex Mok of interior design studio Linehouse believes the difficulty of the past year will enhance the need for collaboration.

"2022 was a difficult year for many countries and cultures so we look towards 2023 with a focus to human connection, authenticity and social interaction," she told Dezeen.

"We're seeing a greater consideration on the use and purpose of spaces beyond form and instead activating communities. We hope to see more projects that revitalise existing buildings or connection to local crafts."

The post Interior design trends for 2023 reflect "anger in the world" and post-covid community focus appeared first on Dezeen.

None of the UK's biggest cities have policies in place to protect birds from deadly strikes with buildings in their boroughs, exclusive Dezeen research has found.

Freedom of Information requests to the 33 local authorities in London and the councils responsible for 10 other major UK cities also revealed that none have ever carried out an assessment of bird-window collisions in their areas.

This is despite the British Trust for Ornithology's (BTO) alarming estimation that up to 100 million birds crash into the windows of buildings in the UK each year, with one-third of these birds dying as a result.

David Noble, a scientist who is investigating the issue of window-strike risks for the BTO, warned that building collisions could be accelerating the decline in bird numbers in the UK.

"UK bird numbers are declining overall and although evidence is lacking, collisions could be a contributing factor for any particularly vulnerable species, whether urban residents or nocturnal migrants or due to some other factor," he told Dezeen.

The lack of council-led assessments reflects a wider shortfall in data on bird collisions, Noble added.

"We know from experience and through ring recoveries that bird-glass collisions occur but the magnitude of mortality and evidence for population-level impact in the UK and in Europe is little-studied and remains largely unknown."

Bird-friendly legislation "would be both helpful and precautionary"

Noble called for legislation to require those working in the built environment to deliver bird-friendly buildings.

"Regarding policies to require architects and builders to implement bird-friendly windows and glass, moving in that direction would be both helpful and precautionary," he said.

Through their planning policies, which are informed by national government guidance, councils are able to control new development in their areas.

Councils in the UK have duties set by the governments of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to consider the protection of biodiversity in their planning policies – but this guidance is focused on ensuring new developments do not affect habitats and not on preventing building strikes.

The Local Government Association, which represents councils in England and Wales, said it was not able to comment on Dezeen's findings.

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, which oversees planning policy in England for the UK government, did not respond to a request for comment.

"Change can and should come from within the industry"

Worldwide, it is estimated that collisions with buildings cause billions of bird deaths a year.

This is because birds can mistake windows for continued space or become disorientated by interior lighting that shines through them at night.

However, research suggests these fatalities can be minimised through simple measures such as opting for fritted or patterned glass on a facade, which is one of the most common ways to make glass on buildings visible to birds.

In response to Dezeen's findings, senior vice president of animal rights organisation PETA Colleen O'Brien said that legislation and assessments could help save the lives of birds, but that architects should not wait for these to design bird-friendly buildings.

"Much-needed legislation requiring assessments of the impact of buildings on wildlife would save millions of animals' lives, but change can and should come from within the industry," she told Dezeen.

"Many architects are already embracing masking films, frits, ultraviolet patterns, and other design elements that prevent birds from crashing into reflective windows, and PETA is calling for bird-friendly glass to become the new industry-wide standard."

London Plan suggests impact assessment of tall buildings

While no council contacted by Dezeen currently has any bird-friendly guidelines in place for new development, the London borough of Waltham Forest said it is developing a new local plan with a policy relating to the development of tall buildings, in which bird strikes are highlighted.

The proposed Policy 57 notes that where high-rise buildings are constructed, the "harmful environmental impacts in relation to wind movement, solar glare, microclimatic conditions, air, noise and light pollution and bird and bat strikes" should be avoided.

This clause echoes Policy D9 of the London Plan 2021, which was flagged by the London boroughs of Ealing, Havering, Hillingdon and Bromley as the only planning policy guidance relevant to bird strikes.

Released in 2021, the London Plan is a strategy developed by mayor Sadiq Khan to offer a framework for how Greater London should develop over the next 20-25 years. Policy D9 suggests that the impacts of tall buildings on birds "may need to be taken into consideration" when in development.

"For example, the impact of new tall buildings in proximity to waterbodies supporting notable bird species upon the birds' flight lines may need to be considered," reads the supporting text.

However, both the London Plan and the emerging local plan of Waltham Forest do not explicitly prevent potentially harmful buildings from being constructed or offer suggestions for how they can be made more bird-friendly.

Both these policies also only refer to the development of tall buildings in the boroughs. However, according to Melissa Breyer, a volunteer for New York City wildlife charity NYC Audobon, building heights are not a key factor in bird deaths.

"The main culprit is definitely a reflective surface," she told Dezeen earlier this year, indicating that even low-rise buildings can be hazardous to birds.

"Almost all of these [bird strikes] are happening at the treeline because that's where the habitat is reflected," she continued.

Bird-friendly legislation more stringent in US

Unlike in the UK, city officials across the US have begun introducing more stringent guidelines to prevent bird collisions with buildings as awareness of the issue increases.

This includes Local Law 15 in New York City, a bill introduced in 2019 that requires the surfaces of new glass buildings over 23 metres (75 feet) tall to be patterned to make them more visible to birds.

However, existing glass buildings in the city continue to pose problems for migrating birds. In 2021, Breyer made headlines when she collected the corpses of over 200 birds that had flown into buildings at the World Trade Center.

In a single day, she found 226 carcasses from the pavements around the 3 World Trade Center tower designed by Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners and 4 World Trade Center tower by Fumihiko Maki.

At the time, Breyer said she identified many more, but that they were "inaccessible, or too mangled to collect".

Elsewhere, a bill was filed in Washington DC calling for new buildings in the city to be designed with products that deter birds from colliding with their glass surfaces.

Since being proposed earlier this year the bill has been widely supported in the city, according to the local organisation City Wildlife.

Its president Anna Lewis told Dezeen that the bill "will be highly effective" in solving the problem of bird collisions.

"We need to appreciate that these collisions are not random, that our building designs are causing them, and that there are simple fixes that can prevent these tragic collisions," she said.

Below is the data for each of the 43 UK councils surveyed, listed in alphabetical order:

Belfast

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

belfastcity.gov.uk

Birmingham

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

birmingham.gov.uk

Bristol

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

bristol.gov.uk

Cardiff

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

cardiff.gov.uk

City of London

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

cityoflondon.gov.uk

City of Westminster

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

westminster.gov.uk

Edinburgh

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

edinburgh.gov.uk

Glasgow

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

glasgow.gov.uk

Leeds

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

leeds.gov.uk

Liverpool

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

liverpool.gov.uk

London Borough of Barnet

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

barnet.gov.uk

London Borough of Barking and Dagenham

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

lbbd.gov.uk

London Borough of Bexley

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

bexley.gov.uk

London Borough of Brent

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

brent.gov.uk

London Borough of Bromley

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

Only relevant planning policy is D9 of the London Plan.

bromley.gov.uk

London Borough of Camden

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

camden.gov.uk

London Borough of Croydon

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

croydon.gov.uk

London Borough of Ealing

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

Only relevant planning policy is D9 of the London Plan and planning guidance published by Natural England on 14 January 2022.

ealing.gov.uk

London Borough of Enfield

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

enfield.gov.uk

London Borough of Hackney

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

hackney.gov.uk

London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

lbhf.gov.uk

London Borough of Haringey

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

haringey.gov.uk

London Borough of Harrow

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

harrow.gov.uk

London Borough of Havering

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

Only relevant planning policy is policy D9 of the London Plan.

havering.gov.uk

London Borough of Hounslow

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

hounslow.gov.uk

London Borough of Hillingdon

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

hillingdon.gov.uk

London Borough of Islington

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

islington.gov.uk

London Borough of Lambeth

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

lambeth.gov.uk

London Borough of Lewisham

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

lewisham.gov.uk

London Borough of Merton

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

merton.gov.uk

London Borough of Newham

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

newham.gov.uk

London Borough of Redbridge

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

redbridge.gov.uk

London Borough of Richmond upon Thames

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

richmond.gov.uk

London Borough of Southwark

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

southwark.gov.uk

London Borough of Sutton

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

sutton.gov.uk

London Borough of Tower Hamlets

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

towerhamlets.gov.uk

London Borough of Waltham Forest

Policy 57, Tall and Taller Buildings in part one of the council's proposed local plan includes the issue of bird strikes against tall buildings in the borough.

Under the proposed plan, tall buildings will only be supported where they are designed to prevent bird strikes, as well as other criteria such as overheating and light pollution.

However, this plan is currently in the process of examination and may be modified.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

However, the council said the issue of bird strikes is addressed on a site-specific basis in the assessments for new developments. For example, the Blackhorse Lane Masterplan framework considers bird migration routes.

walthamforest.gov.uk

London Borough of Wandsworth

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

wandsworth.gov.uk

Manchester

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

manchester.gov.uk

Royal Borough of Greenwich

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

royalgreenwich.gov.uk

Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

rbkc.gov.uk

Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

kingston.gov.uk

Sheffield

No record of specific policy or guidance in place concerning the issue of bird strikes in the area.

No record of assessment by the council of bird deaths caused by collisions in the area.

sheffield.gov.uk

The main photo is by Viveca Morris via Wikimedia Commons. 

The post Major UK councils failing to address bird-window collisions in planning policies appeared first on Dezeen.

Amid widespread scepticism about the sustainability claims of the upcoming 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, Dezeen asked experts if carbon-neutral global sporting events are possible.

The Qatar World Cup begins this Sunday amid a cacophony of controversy, with the environmental impact of the four-week championship coming under intense scrutiny driven by the organisers' claim that Qatar 2022 will be the first carbon-neutral FIFA World Cup in history.

"It's somewhat disingenuous, not just of the Qataris but of FIFA as well," sport and geopolitics expert Simon Chadwick said of the carbon-neutral claim.

"It's window dressing; it's built on sand," he told Dezeen.

Carbon-neutral assertion was "simply not credible"

These criticisms are on top of concerns about the Gulf state's human rights record, mainly focused on the treatment of migrant workers who helped to build stadiums for the tournament as well as Qatar's strict anti-LGBT laws.

Even Sepp Blatter, the former president of football governing body FIFA who announced that Qatar would host the World Cup in 2010, recently said the choice was a "mistake".

In a report released in June, non-profit advocacy group Carbon Market Watch said the carbon-neutral assertion was "simply not credible".

"Our goal is to offset all greenhouse gas emissions, while advancing low-carbon solutions in Qatar and the region," the event's sustainability statement reads. "A carbon-neutral tournament is delivered through a four-step process: awareness, measurement, reduction and offsetting. We are progressing rapidly in all areas."

But Carbon Market Watch argued that carbon emissions will be much higher than the 3.6 million tonnes estimated by the organisers and that the offsetting schemes which form the basis for the neutrality claim have a "low level of environmental integrity".

Several other climate experts have also expressed serious doubts.

Fossil-fuel-rich Qatar's overall environmental record is poor. The Global Footprint Network's Country Overshoot Day project, which marks the date when a nation's consumption of resources exceeds yearly planetary boundaries, put Qatar first in the world for 2022 on 10 February.

Beyond Qatar, the furore around the sustainability of this World Cup has reignited the conversation over the future of major international sporting tournaments.

"FIFA's decision to make this bold but fantastical claim has raised awareness about something many people don't think about: the impact of their favourite sports on the planet," Khaled Diab of Carbon Market Watch told Dezeen.

A similar debate raged ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, with accusations of "greenwashing". Olympic Games executive director Christophe Dubi later told Dezeen that future events will no longer involve building several new venues.

Chadwick, a professor at Skema Business School, argues that for major sporting events to minimise their environmental impact, sustainability must be built in from the start, including decisions about host location.

"Design the environment into your event when you create it," he said. "I think what we've got here with FIFA and the Qataris is post-hoc rationalisation, which is basically after the fact saying – well, okay, this is going to be an environmentally friendly tournament."

"Twelve years after they won the right to host the tournament it's a bit late now to be branding it as an environmentally sustainable event."

"It's not possible to have a global sporting event that is carbon neutral"

Claims about carbon neutrality are often controversial, especially when they rest heavily on offsetting like the Qatar World Cup.

Carbon Market Watch believes such events "should never be marketed as carbon neutral", and is dubious about whether major tournaments like the World Cup and the Olympics can achieve that standard at all.

"It's not possible to have a global sporting event that is carbon neutral, and certainly not one that involves the construction of major new infrastructure," warned Diab. "What sporting events should aim for is to minimise their climate and environmental impact, and to become more sustainable, without claiming carbon neutrality."

Chadwick is more hopeful. "I think that it's difficult and complicated to achieve, but it's not impossible," he said.

Dipesh Patel, principal and founder of BDP Pattern, a BDP-owned British architecture studio that worked on the Ahmad Bin Ali and Education City stadiums in Qatar, defended the country's approach and expressed optimism about future events.

"That the Qatar World Cup set out on a mission to be the first carbon neutral World Cup is admirable," he said. "The stadia are certainly much more sustainable than if they had been built without this goal."

"Now that Qatar has set the goal of being a 'carbon neutral' World Cup, all future major events will surely follow," he added.

"I think travelling tournaments are going to evolve significantly in the next decade," said Collective Works partner, Architects Declare steering group member and Architects Climate Action Network co-ordinator Alasdair Ben Dixon. "We're seeing much higher scrutiny over emissions which could well lead organisers to change the formats and rethink their legacy."

Both Dixon and Chadwick point to electric vehicle motorsport Formula E, which has made its world championship the only global sport to achieve third-party-certified net-zero carbon.

Before picking host cities for races, Formula E organisers undertake a sustainability audit to check, for instance, that its energy needs can be met from renewable sources.

New stadiums "incredibly lavishly constructed"

According to experts, the Qatar World Cup is particularly carbon heavy. Even FIFA's own disputed assessment put its estimated carbon emissions at over 70 per cent higher than the last tournament in Russia.

The Carbon Market Watch report highlighted the fact that of the eight Qatar World Cup stadiums, seven have been constructed from scratch.

It said that the carbon impact of the new venues, including Zaha Hadid's Al Wakrah Stadium and the Lusail Stadium by Foster + Partners, is up to eight times higher than the organisers calculate, making them the biggest contributor to the tournament's overall footprint.

"They are incredibly lavishly constructed," said Chadwick. "But it's also important to keep in mind that it's not just the stadiums that have been created, it's the eight-lane highways and metro network to and from the stadiums."

"It's extremely unusual to have a country construct not only the stadiums, but the infrastructure to go with the stadiums, essentially from scratch," he added.

That infrastructure includes an expansion to Hamad International Airport to deal with increased air traffic during the World Cup and the new 21 High St, an air-conditioned shopping street.

World Cup "huge opportunity to research and develop" sustainable stadiums

According to the stadiums' architects, significant efforts have been made to limit the carbon impact of some of the new stadiums and infrastructure.

Most notably, Fenwick-Iribarren Architects' Stadium 974 is constructed using shipping containers, and is designed to be demounted and repurposed after the tournament, with the intention to use it for the proposed Uruguay 2030 World Cup.

In a drive to improve public transport options, the Qataris have also purchased 700 electric buses to ferry spectators around the compact tournament.

BDP Pattern's Patel argues the World Cup has represented significant strides forward.

Nearly half the capacity of both venues his practice helped create is modular meaning seats can be removed and reused elsewhere, he said, while the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium reuses materials from the arena that previously stood on the same site.

"Qatar has given the international architects and engineers involved a huge opportunity to research and develop the challenge of sustainable stadia in a very hot climate," Patel told Dezeen. "As designers we know so much more now than we did before the Qatar World Cup came along."

Post-tournament legacy

A key element when considering the World Cup stadiums' potential sustainability is their legacy after the tournament has finished.

"Trophy venues for one-off events are not acceptable," said Patel. "It is therefore of the utmost importance to ensure a lasting legacy after the major event."

Of the six permanent new venues, Education City Stadium will become home to Qatar's national women's football team as well as hosting classrooms. Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium will act as the home ground of Qatari Stars League team Al Rayyan FC.

Two other stadiums – Al Thumama Stadium by Ibrahim M Jaidah and Al Bayt Stadium by Dar Al-Handasah – will be partially converted into hotels.

But some have raised doubts about whether Qatar – a nation of less than three million people – will be able to fully utilise six new major stadiums after the World Cup.

According to Chadwick, the country's most popular football team, Al Sadd SC, rarely gets more than 1,000 spectators at a game. Even post-seating reduction, these stadiums have many times that capacity.

Already a 15,000-seater sports arena in Lusail built for the 2015 World Handball Championships sits rarely used, he added.

"I think it is conceivable that moving forward from here, we will see a bunch of the venues probably being used, but not being used anywhere near to their optimal capacity," said Chadwick.

"The most sustainable new stadium is the stadium that does not get built," argued Diab. "Organisers of international tournaments must endeavour to make use of existing infrastructure as far as is humanly possible."

Architects have to "speak up on these issues"

As with human rights matters, Dixon believes concerns about the carbon impact of stadiums – and dubious related claims – have ethical implications for architecture firms.

"You've got to speak up on these issues," he said. "Wherever the project is you've got to consider your impact on society and the wider world. If you suspect that the sustainability claims don't add up or that human rights are at risk then it's time to consider walking away."

He added that architecture firms are often in a strong position to prevent greenwashing in their projects at events like the Qatar World Cup.

"A lot of larger firms will be selected based on their profile, and by lending their name to such projects they're bringing enormous prestige with them," he said. "If standards aren't being upheld even just threatening to withdraw could carry some weight."

At the same time, he acknowledges the ethical pitfalls of criticising Qatar too harshly.

"There's clearly a discomfort in raising these issues because no-one can be sure their work isn't causing harm and we aren't in a great position to lecture other nations," said Dixon.

"I think it isn't fair of those in the Global North to be making judgments about them in the Global South, when in reality we've been guilty of the same things in the past," echoed Chadwick.

Concerns about alleged human rights abuses have cast a shadow over the Qatar World Cup. The stadiums have been largely built by migrant workers, with the country widely criticised for the conditions experienced by these workers.

In 2016, Amnesty International accused Qatar of using forced labour on World Cup sites and last month released a report last month claiming that labour abuses are still happening "on a significant scale".

The Guardian has reported that 6,500 migrant workers have died in the country since 2010 although according to FIFA, there have only been 37 deaths connected to the construction of the World Cup stadiums.

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AI text-to-image software like Midjourney, DALL-E and Stable Diffusion has the potential to change the way that architects approach the creation and concept stages of designing buildings and products, experts say.

In the past year, numerous technology companies have released software that uses AI systems called neural networks to convert users' text inputs into AI-generated images.

The images created by these bots – including eerily real-looking imaginary buildings – have become an internet sensation and led to discussions about how they could impact the future of design and architecture.

Bill Cusick is the creative director at one such company, Stability AI – which has released text-to-image software called Stable Diffusion and DreamStudio – and also has experience working with the software of the popular visualisation company Midjourney. He believes that the software is "the foundation for the future of creativity".

"I'm seeing a sort of playfulness in design that I don't think we've ever seen before in terms of architectural design and renderings," he told Dezeen.

However, future applications of the technology are still up for debate, even among designers known for using it.

"It's meant to capture a vision of a project quickly"

Andrew Kudless, who works under the moniker Matys Design, said the technology may come to be essential in the early stages of projects, taking the place of sketching and idea creation.

Like architectural sketches, AI imagery is often colourful and dreamlike, but not necessarily actionable as a detailed plan, he explained.

"Whenever I'm sketching with a pencil, I don't worry if the column or whatever is in exactly the right place," Kudless told Dezeen.

"Because that's not the goal of a sketch. It's not meant to be incredibly accurate or precise. It's meant to capture a vision of a project quickly."

Indian designer and Midjourney user Manas Bhatia, who creates conceptual art showing futuristic cityscapes that depict complex integrations of structures and nature, agreed.

"AI has a huge potential in solving the 'thought-to-execution delay'," he told Dezeen.

"Currently, we are witnessing designers and creative professionals use AI for concept generation purposes, but with time AI will become an important part of the overall design process."

AI can reduce "thought-to-execution delay"

A trained architect, Kudless works in Midjourney to create evocative structures – often draped in fabric – that he believes show how material and scenery not typically included in initial architectural plans can change the way that projects are presented to clients.

Architecture studios are currently often awarded projects based on renderings that are expected to bear as close a resemblance as possible to the building eventually constructed.

"I think we should be showing [clients] renderings almost from day one, and getting them used to the fact that they're going to change," he said.

"That's actually a better thing for the relationship between the client and the designer because it engages them in the process in a way that's really important."

Designers acknowledged that the software has the potential to change the way in which labour is executed in architecture and design offices.

"It's incredibly frustrating at times the amount of labor that especially younger people are being asked to do within firms to produce [render] images," said Kudless.

"And I think if we can automate some of that and still gain control, then I'm all for that."

"This isn't going to upend anything"

He added that some more menial tasks like repeats for offices and parking lots – designs that take simple patterns and repeat them in different instances – could be helpful in augmenting the design process.

Cusick agreed that the technology, which produces its images by taking established aesthetic and formal concepts and mixing them in imaginative ways, creates huge potential for freeing up labour at the early design stages.

"It has become about the magic of combining styles that are totally opposite, taking different styles and combining them, taking different architects and using multiple different architects as references," said Cusick.

But Kudless believes that text-to-image software is more of a powerful tool than a replacement for architects, as it still requires a user with knowledge and skill to produce useful results.

"It's not unguided like natural selection," he said. "This isn't going to upend anything."

When working with the tools, designers often create hundreds or thousands of images that they then need to sort through and edit manually.

Though the AI systems register the text typed in order to generate images, they do not understand language as humans do, often focusing on secondary nouns and adjectives or misunderstanding context.

Choosing the right words to create something valuable therefore requires finesse.

"The software is a tool that needs a human counterpart to function," explained Bhatia, who creates conceptual art showing futuristic cityscapes that depict complex integrations of structures and nature.

"AI generates images based on the designer's idea that is fed in the form of text, and that idea will change from one user to another."

Cusick likened the software to chess, in that it takes a short amount of time to learn but decades to master.

"It cannot perceive the dynamic user"

The use of AI for design extends beyond architecture. Cusick said that interior design solutions have shown a lot of promise on his firm's platform.

Industrial design, too, has made inroads through the use of text-to-image software.

American designer Dan Harden of industrial design company Whipsaw said that AI is "gradually" entering industrial design but is "still primitive".

"Unlike digital design, where AI is integrated within a common software platform, product hardware design is different," he said.

"The three-dimensional aspects of a product and its relationship to its user and its environment present exponential challenges for AI, mostly because it cannot perceive the dynamic user interaction nuances within the physical world in which a product resides."

"Perhaps most importantly," Harden continued. "The actual design process is hard to replicate using ADI. It lacks 'embodied cognition' which reasons that a living creature's physical presence has bearing on how it thinks, and that the mind is not only connected to the body, but that the body influences the mind."

But Harden believes that as AI design progresses, it will get closer and closer to these embodied principles.

Kudless agreed, arguing that further advancements in text-to-image technology may have more and more noticeable impacts on designers – though he believes that AI software programs are more likely to prioritise art, animation and cinema.

He said that the next big step in software development would be AI that can output 3D visualisations or videos from text prompts.

"Once this gets into video, for me, it's going to change a lot of professions," he said.

According to Cusick, Stability AI is already working hard at implementing 3D processes for their platforms, and voice-to-image and image-to-image capabilities are other potentials for the technology that may soon be widely used.

"We're working on it as fast as we can," he said, adding that 3D processing was a "completely different animal" to 2D generation.

"We have a couple of different approaches that we're working on. It's a top priority."

Tendencies towards bias

One of the biggest problems with text-to-image technology is their tendency to bias, caused by their use of pools of existing images to produce new visualisations.

According to Kudless, certain architectural styles are overrepresented, as well as digitally generated images as opposed to real photography.

Kudless used the analogy of classic education, saying that teachers can create biases by focusing on one architect or style and ignoring others.

"We need to make sure that [the software] has enough data to not just have this inbred kind of feedback loop where it's only getting better at things that we're asking for," he said.

Cusick told Dezeen that people in the field have been considering this potential and that image-to-image processes – which would allow architects to input a variety of different styles via an image to create a synthetic mixture – can help to mitigate biases in the neural networks or bodies of images and text fed into the programs.

"We're talking about developing cultural models that can capture as much cultural data as any given country would be willing to give," he said, adding that Stability AI is having discussions about creating culture-specific neural networks.

Despite cultural biases, designers like Bhatia believe that technology can bridge the gap between the human and the natural by showing buildings with natural attributes – such as the form of a tree – that AI can capture with a high degree of detail.

"The idea is to make people think of a future where architecture co-exists with nature," said Bhatia.

"With the immense amount of research going on in building materials and technology, I am sure we can bring architecture closer to nature."

Kudless is more sceptical about the utopian visions associated with technology.

"Culture will always be full of biases and we're never going to reach this point of a utopian society," he said. "It's just a mirror and I think it helps us understand ourselves better."

The co-founders of furniture sourcing platform Clippings recently said they believe that artificial intelligence will "empower designers".

Other people using the technology include architecture critic Oliver Wainwright, who has created a speculative proposal for the Serpentine Pavilion using DALL-E.

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Architects and built environment sustainability experts have expressed frustration at the slow pace of global action to reduce carbon emissions as the COP27 climate-change summit kicks off in Egypt.

British architect and co-initiator of campaign group Architects Declare Michael Pawlyn told Dezeen it was "hard to find causes for optimism".

"It is very hard to be hopeful," echoed Kenyan architect Kabage Karanja, pointing to a failure to properly involve young people and a lack of will from richer countries to find the money to deal with the effects of global heating.

"COP26 was bitterly disappointing"

"The outcome from the official negotiations of COP26 was bitterly disappointing," added Studio Bark. "We should be circumspect about placing much hope in this process."

The London architecture studio argued the Conference of the Parties (COP) format has been proven ineffective and should be scrapped altogether.

But Arup director for climate and sustainability Matt Kennedy struck a more positive tone.

"My expectations are high," he said. "In terms of outcome, I want a global approach to climate action and sustainable development that is robust and defensible and that preserves ecological stability."

Dezeen spoke to 11 architects and engineers as the 27th COP, which is also known as the United Nations Climate Change conference, gets underway.

This year's conference, which will run from 6 to 18 November in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, is likely to grab fewer headlines than last year's COP26 summit in Glasgow as world leaders will not be negotiating a global climate pact this time around.

Instead, the focus will be on how last year's commitments can be implemented.

The sustainable architecture experts Dezeen spoke to called for COP27 to result in tangible action to urgently reduce the built environment's carbon emissions, as well as prepare it for the effects of climate change.

"No excuse for unhealthy, inefficient, high-emitting buildings"

"We hope that the focus shifts from goal-setting to imminently actionable solutions that address whole-life carbon emission reductions in the built environment," said Sindhu Mahadevan of Canadian studio Michael Green Architecture.

"The built environment already has the solutions and innovations to change the trajectory of current climate change projections," added World Green Building Council CEO Cristina Gamboa.

"This means that in this day and age there is absolutely no excuse for unhealthy, inefficient, high-emitting buildings."

"By now, it should be clear to everyone that we cannot leave the fight against climate change to our politicians alone," said Sinus Lynge, partner at Danish architecture studio EFFEKT.

"So I hope that COP27 will empower specific climate action across society from politicians to organisations, companies, communities and individuals," he added.

And Alexandra Hagen, CEO of Swedish studio White Arkitekter, was among those who urged governments not to let other global issues like the war in Ukraine hinder decarbonisation.

"At COP27 we want to see that geopolitical instability and the threat of global recession does not slow our pace towards a zero-carbon shift," she said.

Read on for selected pre-conference thoughts from architects and engineers.

"Architects are far too often passive bystanders"
Kabage Karanja, co-founder of Cave Bureau

"It is very hard to be hopeful when there is not enough active involvement of young people in and out of the so-called Conference of Parties. Which parties are these invited to the table, we ask? To quote the young African climate activist Patience Nabukalu from Uganda: 'World leaders at COP27 Egypt we are watching you. Discussing climate change without the active involvement of young people is an injustice to us.'"

"Beyond this glaring injustice, it is critical to recognise that there is very little economic will from the largest world economies, and for that matter the largest polluters, to not only reduce emissions and address climate-change impacts that are adversely affecting Global South nations but, importantly, to commit financially to bear the costs required to recover from these adverse effects."

"It is estimated that Africa, for example, needs about $53 billion annually in finance by 2030. Getting this commitment from the so-called developed nations is beyond hope, it is a pipe dream. The fund is postured more as a donation and less as compensation for past crimes against humanity and indeed all life on earth. This by extension naturally makes it less urgent for Global North nations to deal with climate justice head-on."

"As far as I'm concerned, architects are far too often passive bystanders when addressing climate justice. Our profession as a whole was, and still is, part of this climate-changing machinery that seldom confronts itself as such. Architects can no longer be afraid to give the necessary pushback to the prevailing powers to address climate justice immediately, even if it means biting the hands that feed you."

"Hard to find causes for optimism"
Michael Pawlyn, founder of Exploration Architecture

"It seems that Alok Sharma has done a good job as COP president but his efforts have been undermined by a system that increasingly resembles a kakistocracy rather than a democracy. It is therefore hard to find causes for optimism."

"As Architects Declare, we have made multiple attempts to meet with ministers to explain how architects and the broader industry could provide multiple solutions to the planetary emergency. It's perfectly possible to address the cost of living crisis and climate change at the same time, with an emergency programme to upgrade the energy efficiency of our buildings."

"More broadly, I hope to see more countries join the Wellbeing Group of Governments – an initiative launched by Iceland, New Zealand and Scotland with the intention of realigning the purpose of their economies towards maximising long-term wellbeing rather than the outdated and dangerous pursuit of endless GDP growth."

"There is absolutely no excuse for unhealthy, inefficient, high-emitting buildings"
Cristina Gamboa, CEO of the World Green Building Council

"The built environment already has the solutions and innovations to change the trajectory of current climate change projections. This means that in this day and age, there is absolutely no excuse for unhealthy, inefficient, high-emitting buildings."

"At COP26 we saw a breakthrough moment for the built environment with a dedicated Cities, Regions and Built Environment Day – only the second time that the built environment has ever been on the official COP agenda."

"In this implementation climate summit our industry has an even stronger presence across every thematic day, and there will be over 120 events across the 2-weeks of COP27. This demonstrates that a sustainable transformation of the built environment can accelerate resilience and climate action across every sector."

"I find it very important that it is being held in Egypt"
Stefano Boeri, founder of Stefano Boeri Architetti

"This year's COP does not only start from the consideration of a failure – the failure to meet the Glasgow 2021 targets – but also, if possible, from the worsening expectations related to the war in Ukraine and the ensuing energy and humanitarian crisis. Setting a target in this context is particularly ambitious."

"However, I find it very important that it is being held in Egypt, a country that more than others is suffering the consequences of the climate crisis. I hope it can raise awareness of the need and possible solutions – which do exist – for action on arid and extreme climates. Not least because they are unfortunately becoming an increasingly widespread and less exceptional condition."

"We will bring to COP27 the San Marino Declaration, which I signed with Norman Foster and the UNECE together with the Architects' Associations of several European cities in October. On the one hand, it is an invitation to international governments to act. On the other, it is an awareness on the part of architects and urban planners of a strong social and environmental responsibility in shaping international macro-policies and global goals in places, in physical spaces."

"I hope we will have the opportunity to study and discuss actual projects and not just statements. I think it is really important for us architects to bring concrete examples to Sharm El-Sheik, in addition to statements."

"We hope that the focus shifts from goal-setting to imminently actionable solutions"
Sindhu Mahadevan, head of research and development at Michael Green Architecture

"We hope that the focus shifts from goal-setting to imminently actionable solutions that address whole-life carbon emission reductions in the built environment, including reductions in embodied emissions, and building capacity to meet construction demand, especially in the Global South, that is resilient, regenerative, and sustainable."

"These solutions will require meaningful commitment across various levels of government to support sustainable reuse of existing construction and decarbonization of new construction. We need to encourage and incentivize innovation in new materials and new construction processes that can fundamentally change how we build."

"Focusing on the decarbonisation of steel and concrete through equitable and transparent means is a priority, but this alone will not meet our critical climate targets. Recognizing that we are not on target to meet our current climate goals, we hope that the attendees are able to transition from 'potential' to focused and effective solutions."

"Replace the failed COP process with something like an international citizens assembly"
Collective statement from Studio Bark

"The outcome from the official negotiations of COP26 was bitterly disappointing. But given that the previous 25 such COP conferences have failed to deliver much, this didn't come as a shock. We should be circumspect about placing much hope in this process."

"It is positive to see organisations such as Architecture 2030 having a presence as representatives from the built environment sector. However, COP is an exclusive and closed process which results in a democratic deficit overall. This exclusivity makes it difficult for civil society, including those in the built environment, to influence the process."

"An alternative model, which would encourage more professional diversity, would be to replace the failed COP process with something like an international citizens assembly. This approach could close the gap between policymakers and those who are working on sector-specific challenges including within the built environment."

"The climate crisis doesn't respond to targets or promises. Only action can salvage this. We need to see actionable plans to turn our global crisis around and ensure some kind of habitable future."

"We need bold and immediate action"
Simon Allford, president of the Royal Institute of British Architects and executive director of Allford Hall Monaghan Morris

"At COP26 nations adopted the Glasgow Climate Pact, which kept the goal of curbing global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius alive. However, without serious action, the opportunity to achieve this will slip by."

"COP27 therefore, must be about bringing real change. We need bold and immediate action to limit the global temperature rise. Governments have a key role to play in setting ambitious country specific targets. This requires them to embed sustainability within planning systems and building codes, reform public procurement, and build the vital enabling infrastructure."

"I am concerned that we will continue to focus on the risks of the climate emergency, rather than the solutions to addressing it. We must shift towards interdisciplinary education and practice, commit to reporting successes and sharing lessons learned, and constantly challenge current methods and approaches to ensure all practice is aligned with our sustainability goals."

"As a sector, we have the tools, knowledge, and technology to address the climate and biodiversity emergency. The challenge is to deploy them at the speed and scale necessary."

"Our presence in the programme is sufficient"
Ahmed Hossam Saafan, founder of AHS CxA

"As a practising architect, I feel that our presence in the programme is sufficient, but could be pushed more towards decision-making, especially with the role of urban planners, urban designers and cityscape architects. This is to illustrate their crucial input required for such pressing matters, as they possess the necessary tools to target problems in a holistic manner."

"I feel that issues such as building practices, infrastructure design, and designing for sustainable social impact are topics that could be more pushed into the spotlight."

"We should stop hoping for top-down achievements and start acting"
Sinus Lynge, partner at EFFEKT

"By now, it should be clear to everyone that we cannot leave the fight against climate change to our politicians alone. I think we should stop hoping for top-down achievements and start acting at all levels of society. Our action will empower the politicians to also start acting. So I hope that COP27 will empower specific climate action across society from politicians to organisations, companies, communities and individuals."

"Architects have marginalised their own relevance by not picking up the massive change agendas of our generation. Architects should help to model, draft, prototype, and visualise the regenerative world of tomorrow to build aspiration and show the opportunities of absolute sustainability and reintegration of human societies within nature."

"When we, as a profession, manage to pick up this wider agenda, I am sure architecture will be a relevant discipline in this big transition and then we will naturally also be included in the debate."

"We have to maintain collaboration to be successful"
Alexandra Hagen, CEO of White Arkitekter

"At COP27 we want to see the commitment from all nations to continue to contribute towards the goals, reassured. We have to maintain collaboration to be successful. At COP27, we want to see that geopolitical instability and the threat of global recession does not slow our pace towards a zero-carbon shift."

"We also hope to see progress towards the goals, for example agreeing on the phasing out of coal despite the ongoing energy crisis in Europe."

"My expectations are high"
Matt Kennedy, director for climate and sustainability and global leader for climate strategy services at Arup

"My expectations are high. In terms of outcome, I want a global approach to climate action and sustainable development that is robust and defensible and that preserves ecological stability. This needs to translate into broader societal decarbonisation that is driven by solidarity and fairness and a galvanisation of corporate action."

"COP27 focuses on thematic days such as decarbonisation, water and biodiversity but I am especially interested in the 'solutions' day. Architects, designers and wider built environment professionals can present alternative solutions, rather than prescriptive ones, that can enable wider benefits to become more visible and create long-lasting value."

"It often appears as if the design, construction, and operation of buildings give little consideration to the amount of carbon emitted. Given the carbon footprint of the built environment, our industry needs to influence and shape the future direction of action by bringing renewed focus on aspects like circularity, embodied carbon and the protection of natural habitats, while also delivering added value to the end users."

COP27 will run in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt from 6 to 18 November. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.

The top image is by Shutterstock.

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Next-gen solar parks that enable energy and food production as well as water conservation to work in synergy on the same plot can help to solve solar's growing land-use issue, according to the researchers making them a reality.

"There is this big debate around using land for solar versus using it for agriculture," said Colorado State University researcher Jennifer Bousselot. "And I just roll my eyes because you don't have to pick. They can be combined."

"This will be absolutely vital to the future of the energy industry," added Richard Randle-Boggis from the University of Sheffield. "Especially somewhere like the UK, where sustainable land use is a critical challenge."

Plants and panels can exist in "symbiosis"

Agrivoltaic solar parks see photovoltaic (PV) panels spaced further apart to allow more sunlight to reach the ground, and raised higher in the air so that crops – or even small livestock such as lambs – can be reared underneath.

When arranged in the right way, studies have found this approach can actually offer compounding advantages such as shielding plants from excessive heat, cold and UV damage, thereby increasing the yield of certain crops.

"One study found certain peppers will have three times the production," said Bousselot. "That's a shocking number."

As global temperatures rise, the panels can also help to conserve dwindling freshwater supplies by reducing evaporation from both plants and soil.

What evaporation does occur underneath the panels has the added benefit of cooling the PVs and boosting their electricity production, according to Randle-Boggis, a research associate at the University of Sheffield.

"It's a symbiosis because they're both benefiting each other," he told Dezeen.

As a result, agrivoltaics don't just use land more sustainably, they also help to bolster supplies of the most indispensable resources needed for human development – food, water and energy.

"The three resources we're going to need can all be managed more efficiently in an agrivoltaic system," Bousselot explained.

"When you think about our population into the future, having nine billion people by mid-century, we have to start looking at that to build resilience."

Agrivoltaics see three-thousandfold increase in capacity

As the world aims to reach net-zero emissions by 2050 in line with the Paris Agreement – and Europe attempts to reduce its reliance on Russian hydrocarbons in the wake of the Ukraine invasion – countries are racing to ramp up their solar capacity.

The UK is gunning for a five-fold increase by 2035 while the EU is aiming to double its capacity in the next three years.

Meanwhile, the US will need to build enough solar farms to cover the entire state of West Virginia if it hopes to achieve net zero.

But solar projects are increasingly being refused planning permission and faced with pushback from rural communities and farmers, who are worried that PV arrays will "blight" the local landscape and take fertile farmland out of production.

"There's a lot of backlash facing the solar industry, especially at the moment," Randle-Boggis explained. "It's getting a lot of flack."

To combat these land-use conflicts, a growing body of research is showing how the unused space underneath solar panels can be repurposed to benefit humans and nature alike.

At a more basic level, this can involve planting flowery meadows alongside PV arrays to create habitats for pollinators, which can improve biodiversity and potentially even increase crop production in surrounding farmland.

More advanced agrivoltaic systems, which co-locate solar panels with food crops, have been in development across mainland Europe as well as parts of East Asia and the US for the last 15 years and are now starting to become more common.

Ranging from research projects to commercial operations, these systems recently reached the same solar capacity as the entire UK, skyrocketing from five to 14,000 megawatts between 2012 and 2021.

"Over the last three or four years, it's really taken off," Randle-Boggis said.

Agrivoltaic plots more productive despite lower yields

How much food and energy can be generated from an agrivoltaic project is highly dependent on the location of the system, the crops being grown and the positioning of the panels.

Farmers in darker, colder countries like Germany or Denmark have to use a lower density of panels and space them further apart, so as not to rob the crops of the limited available sunlight.

Here, energy and crop yields are generally slightly lower than on a piece of land that is used solely for agriculture or solar.

But overall, the productivity of an agrivoltaic plot is still higher, Randle-Boggis says, as it is producing two different outputs at the same time.

"Some reduction in yield is still better than growing nothing," he argued. "It's about finding that economically optimal balance."

Researchers are also experimenting with novel technologies such as semi-transparent solar panels, vertical photovoltaic "fences" or grow lights mounted on the underside of traditional panels to improve the yield of agrivoltaic systems in light-starved environments.

System is crucial for drought-stricken regions

So far, some of the best results from agrivoltaic systems have been achieved in harsh, hot growing conditions such as in Arizona, where one study found that the production of cherry tomatoes doubled and chiltepin peppers tripled under solar panels.

"In those settings, it's so hot and we're also starting to face droughts," explained Thomas Hickey of energy company Sandbox Solar. "So if you can put a little bit more shade over those crops, then it will benefit them."

Randle-Boggis found similar results on a test plot in Kenya, where panels were placed at a higher density to shield crops from sun and UV damage, allowing for higher electricity generation while reducing the amount of water needed for irrigation by 47 per cent and growing cabbages that were 24 per cent larger.

This is especially significant in countries like Kenya, where unprecedented droughts caused by global warming are already affecting food and water security, and where buying electricity from the national grid is exceedingly expensive, according to Randle-Boggis.

"We've reduced their reliance on the national grid, so they're becoming more self-sufficient," he explained.

"And there is also the potential for climate-change resilience because you're essentially creating a more favourable growing environment and curbing some of those extreme conditions."

Rooftop agrivoltaics secure resources in cities

Another harsh growing environment in which agrivoltaics can excel is on rooftop farms, where limited water and higher temperatures can hinder both the functioning of panels and the growth of crops.

"When the temperatures get above 25 degrees Celsius, solar panels start to lose efficiency," said Bousselot. "And by 40 degrees, they're pretty much off."

"Rooftops get to that temperature pretty quickly in the summer. So the plants actually benefit the panels because they're evaporative coolers."

In a climate like Colorado, where Bousselot is running some of the very first test plots dedicated to rooftop agrivoltaics, the panels have also been shown to extend the growing season of some crops by keeping them warmer at night.

"It's like having a mini greenhouse without sides," she explained.

Ultimately, Bousselot argues that rooftop agrivoltaics could help to concentrate essential resources where they are most needed, as more than two-thirds of the world's population are expected to live in cities by 2050.

"It's a really neat idea because you're just getting maximum productive use out of an area that's already heavily developed," Randle-Boggis agreed.

Uncertainty a hurdle to adoption

Agrivoltaics are currently in their infancy, with researchers still in the early stages of charting what configurations and crops should be used in different climates to create optimal yields.

"With all the unknown variables, adoption is hard," Hickey said. "It's very slow going."

"There's so much variability in the results that we're getting, just because there are so many factors and it is such a new area of research," Randle-Boggis added.

"It won't work for every context. So the main focus for solar will still be your typical ground-mounted solar park."

In an attempt to convert farmers and developers to the cause, Hickey's company Sandbox Solar is currently developing an agrivoltaic design and modelling software called Spade in collaboration with the National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL).

It will allow users to get a rough idea of what crops and configurations they could use in their local climate, as well as the associated costs and profits based on existing research.

"So you can understand what input costs and what outputs you'll have – both from the solar and potentially from the crops – and how long the return on investment of that infrastructure would be," Hickey said.

Mounting systems more expensive, carbon-intensive and disruptive

There are other practical challenges to bringing agrivoltaics into the mainstream.

In general, dual-use solar systems cost more money to install, due to the larger and more complex mounting systems needed to hold up the panels.

Installing rooftop agrivoltaics, for example, can cost three times as much as installing a traditional flat roof, according to Bousselot.

"It is a high initial capital cost," she explained. "But the long-term return on investment is terrific because you end up protecting these [water, energy and food] systems."

Since agrivoltaics are raised higher above the ground than conventional solar panels, Randle-Boggis says they also need deeper steel foundations and therefore come with a higher embodied carbon footprint.

"They might also be more visually undesirable," he added. "How that balances with the fact that you're maintaining the agricultural land is something we will need to find out."

Solar Revolution
This article is part of Dezeen's Solar Revolution series, which explores the varied and exciting possible uses of solar energy and how humans can fully harness the incredible power of the sun.

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Following the Saudi Arabian government's unveiling of plans for an enormous linear megacity in the desert, urban design experts have expressed skepticism about whether its utopian vision is realistic.

"There would be so many physical and environmental phenomena that would have to be dealt with to achieve the incredible minimal and singular character that the renderings propose," said Marshall Brown, director of the Princeton Urban Imagination Center and an associate professor of architecture at Princeton University.

Philip Oldfield, head of the built environment school at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) Sydney, warned that the huge embodied carbon cost of construction "will overwhelm any environmental benefits".

C40 Cities director of urban planning and design Hélène Chartier argued she would not "want to live in a place where it's so narrow", while architect Winy Maas said he "would love to live in such a kind of environment".

The oil-rich Middle Eastern state recently unveiled dramatic images of The Line, depicting two giant mirrored walls running straight in parallel for 170 kilometres across the desert.

Designed by US architecture studio Morphosis, it would be 500 metres tall but only 200 metres wide, with the gap in between filled by densely packed urban fabric alongside trees and plantlife and a high-speed rail network embedded underground.

Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman boasted that the city, planned for nine million people, "will challenge the traditional flat, horizontal cities and create a model for nature preservation and enhanced human liveability".

Dezeen asked urban planning and design experts about how such a structure might actually work.

"It will not look like it is shown on the sketch"

"Is it feasible as a city? The challenge there is really a question of control," explained Brown.

The power of urban planning and design to determine exactly how a city gets built is limited, Brown added, particularly to the extent suggested in the visuals released by the Saudi government.

"These images project a degree of control which is very difficult to retain, especially over a period of time, even in a very autocratic society," he said.

"That is where I start to become a bit dubious. I don't mean to talk about this in a conservative way but I think there would be so many physical and environmental phenomena that would have to be dealt with to achieve the incredibly minimal and singular character that the renderings propose."

Maas, co-founder of prominent Rotterdam architecture studio MVRDV and director of cities think tank The Why Factory, is doubtful that any realised version of The Line would closely resemble the pictures.

"It will probably not look like it is shown on the sketch, for sure not, it will look like other kinds of densities," he told Dezeen. "I would not do that profile, with only two bars going straight up. That doesn't make sense in terms of variety, in terms of wind pressure, in terms of keeping cold air in."

Despite harbouring some criticisms of the design as shown in the images – the non-porosity of the outer walls, for example – Maas is positive about the overall concept.

"I love deserts and I do see the necessity to develop them and to make them so that ultimately rain comes back on those places, so I think it's crucial to work on that," he said.

"Would I mind to live there? I would love to live in such a kind of environment, when it has this kind of perspective and this message and this technical input and output, you can get me on board for making this kind of development. If this is the best place for it, if it's the best political circumstances, that's up for judgment."

C40 Cities' Chartier is less keen. "My first feeling was that it's interesting because we need a shock in urban development to endorse this idea of compactness and everything being mixed-use," she said. "But at the same time, I'm a little bit concerned that it creates some things that on paper seem interesting, but at the end is it really liveable?"

"I don't want to live there, to be honest," she added. "I don't want to live in a place where it's so narrow, there is a bit of the claustrophobic there."

In practice, the quality of life in The Line would rest heavily on its maintenance and management, according to UNSW's Oldfield, who has researched the experiences of people living in very large structures.

"Some of the internal spaces at The Line look incredibly alluring – lush atria, vast cavernous interior spaces Grand Canyon-esque in scale, with residents perched on the edge enjoying picnics," he said. "Even if these were built, the satisfaction of residents would mostly be informed by how such spaces are operated and managed, not how dramatic they look."

"What rules will be set? Can visitors use all the spaces? Which are public, which are private? Will you really be allowed to have a picnic on a ledge above a 200-metre-high atrium? Call me a cynic, but I highly doubt it."

"This would require a phenomenal quantity of steel, glass and concrete"

Brown agrees that living conditions within The Line would be largely dictated by how they are run and argues that, like in all cities, people would likely have differing levels of enjoyment depending on the resources allocated to their specific area.

"To expect that we would have a consistent experience one way or the other – the extremes being misery versus complete bliss – seems unrealistic considering it is 170 kilometres long," he said.

With the extreme compactness and absence of cars enabled by its high-rise, linear layout, plus the generous vegetation depicted in the renderings, The Line has been presented as a more sustainable alternative to conventional cities.

Its footprint would be 34 square kilometres – 46 times smaller than London's, which has a similar population size. This hyper-density would mean significantly fewer emissions from transport and less direct destruction of nature.

And Maas believes there are other aspects of the design that could be helpful from a sustainability perspective.

"The element which I find intriguing is that it's making this canyon-like space, so there could be a big temperature drop in the middle city gap," he said. "That is a technology that could be used to find ways to deal with increasing desertification."

In that sense, he added, "it puts a finger on a truly weak point of the planet".

But Oldfield is concerned about the embodied carbon impact of building The Line and all the necessary associated infrastructure, particularly considering its enormous height and the strength it would need to withstand wind loads.

"You cannot build a 500-metre-tall building out of low-carbon materials," he said. "This would require a phenomenal quantity of steel, glass and concrete."

Oldfield has estimated that building The Line would produce upwards of 1.8 billion tonnes of embodied carbon dioxide, equivalent to more than four years of the UK's entire emissions.

"My feeling is this vast embodied carbon will overwhelm any environmental benefits that a small footprint provides," he said.

"Utopian thinking is important; it helps us challenge the preconceptions in the built environment that have generated conventional outcomes which we know contribute to environmental degradation. But I think the sustainability and liveability arguments here are naive."

Oldfield and Chartier also point out that despite its small footprint, the length and nature of The Line's walls could cause biodiversity issues – including for migrating birds, for whom large mirrored structures are highly dangerous.

"In terms of biodiversity, what does it mean to create a big bar like that that cuts the environment? What does that mean for animals, how can they cross?" questioned Chartier. "We know that highways create a lot of problems."

And both argue that densifying existing cities should be the focus if we are to make more sustainable urban centres.

"Part of me thinks this may be a distraction"

"I think it's interesting to have this discussion and I don't want to criticise, but part of me thinks this may be a distraction from the real decisions we can make," said Chartier. "It's better to consolidate a good model."

The concept behind The Line is not entirely novel. Large, linear cities have been proposed multiple times in the past accompanied by similar arguments about efficiency.

As long ago as 1882, Spanish urban planner Arturo Soria y Mata was suggesting the idea of a linear city, with Soviet planner Nikolay Alexandrovich Milyutin later endorsing it in his 1930 book Sotsgorod: The Problems of Building Socialist Cities.

Architects Peter Eisenman and Michael Graves imagined a Linear City for New Jersey in 1965. Four years later, Italian firm Superstudio proposed The Continuous Monument, whose renderings bear an eerie resemblance to those for The Line.

More recently, British architect Peter Barber put forward a plan for a 160-kilometre-long, 200-metre-wide city wrapped around London.

None of these have actually been built. Corviale, a one-kilometre-long social housing block in Rome completed in 1984, perhaps comes closest to being a realised linear city.

Though the project has received significant attention, whether The Line will become reality is not yet certain.

"To even imagine what this would be like once it was completed or what would happen over time – even things like how much raw material it would require to build, how much force it would take to pump water through it from end to end, what happens to things like wind and heat at such scale – is not possible with existing comparisons," said Brown.

"We're in the realm of pure speculation, which points me back to the question of: what is this thing? I suspect the architectural image may be a provocation to instigate the conversation we are having right now."

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Two years on from the devastating explosion that destroyed much of Beirut, architects and designers have shared first-hand accounts of how everyday life in the city continues to be profoundly affected by the disaster.

"The Beirut explosion was for me the funeral of my hometown, the city I knew and once loved died on that day and will forever be dead for me," architect and founder of foam furniture company Blocksfinj Chrystèle Karam told Dezeen.

"We all know what and who caused [the explosion] but no one is being held accountable," said Rania Abboud, communications director of PSLab. "Those lack of answers create dispiritedness."

The disaster on 4 August 2020 was caused by the accidental explosion of 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate, which was being unsafely stored at the Port of Beirut.

It killed at least 200 people and left thousands injured while inflicting massive damage on the city's buildings and infrastructure.

"I do not want to have a relationship with this city"

Since the explosion, architects and designers have dealt with the after-effects in different ways, with some choosing to leave Beirut and others moving within the city to areas that were less affected by the blast.

Karam previously worked from a project space in an area that was "completely destroyed" by the explosion and has since been abandoned, so she relocated her business to a co-working space next to downtown Beirut.

But the incident has changed how she feels about the city.

"I do not want to have a relationship with this city," Karam said. "I don't want to walk on its streets or admire its charm and particularities. I don't want to trust it again or love it again."

"I keep my footprint small, and I don't care about making a change or 'rebuilding it' again, although deep down I love it and don't want to belong anywhere else."

Lighting studio PSLab left Beirut entirely after its headquarters was destroyed in the explosion, moving to its factory building in north Lebanon.

"Two years later we are still working from our factory and some of my colleagues have even moved out of Beirut to be closer to work," Abboud told Dezeen.

"Our relationship with the city is a mixed one," she added. "Nothing can wipe the images, sounds, fear, sorrow, loss that we have experienced on that night and the following days. Life goes on in a very disturbing way."

Parts of the city "still demolished"

Tessa and Tara Sakhi's architectural design studio T Sakhi moved to Venice, Italy after the explosion, which they say has impacted the city's energy.

"There is a discrepancy between our memories of the city and what it has become: Beirut changed, its energy changed, it is empty, people left the country, others moved to the suburbs and opened their businesses in the outskirts," they said.

Different parts of the city have been affected differently, with many areas still destroyed.

"When you walk around Beirut, you still see complete blocks still demolished, buildings that have not been repaired, broken glass on the sidewalks, broken vitrines and empty stores," Karam said.

"Districts that were once the fanciest spots became squatter spaces."

In contrast, other neighbourhoods have seen more repairs.

"In Gemmayze and Mar Mikhail, the centre of Beirut's nightlife, bars and restaurants are picking up," architect Annabel Karim Kassar said.

"They have new glass fronts, painted woodwork, and signage, some paid for by crowdfunding and donations from regulars."

"Beirut gave me strength through its instability"

As well as the physical effects of the explosion, the creatives described a profound psychological impact.

Architect Paola Sakr, who is mainly based in Dubai but is regularly in Beirut to overlook production, said the experience of the blast taught her to stop planning too far ahead and to let go of attachments.

"Nothing is permanent, everything is in constant movement and all we can do about it is adapt," she said. "Beirut gave me strength through its instability and this strength gave me the freedom to live in the present moment."

Design duo David/Nicolas, which also has a Milan office, has rebuilt its Beirut studio that was completely destroyed in the explosion and says the incident made them reassess what they do.

"In some weird way, the explosion forced us to reevaluate our whole 'system'," the designers said.

"It also pushed us to learn how to manage two different studios at the same time. When a catastrophe of that scale happens, you kind of reassess the fundamentals that keep you going."

Karam described the general feeling in the city as "constant anxiety".

"Knowing in the back of your head that it can flip from a quiet sunny day to a state of emergency in seconds at any time never makes you feel at ease, and thus you are constantly worried and anxious and therefore unable to enjoy life," she added.

Frustration with the government remains

Directly after the 2020 explosion, many expressed frustration at the Lebanese government, which was seen as negligent for having failed to prevent the incident.

Two years later the situation is still unstable, with Lebanese creatives saying that not much has changed.

"We are still governed by the same oligarchy responsible for the civil war, the Beirut explosion and the economical collapse – nothing has changed in the country apart for a large number of the population who emigrated to survive, thus an emptiness in the city," Tessa and Tara Sakhi said.

"Like many Lebanese who woke up the day after the explosion I was determined to rebuild," said Karim Kassar.

"However, two years on, the country's dysfunction is now intensified by open-ended strikes at most government offices, the country's economic crisis continues, and social services are slowing down," she added.

For some, there can be no proper rebuilding until those responsible have been held to account.

"We will only have closure when the political parties and individuals behind the explosion and the shambles that our country is facing are judged and held accountable," Abboud said. "This is when we can really properly grieve and start [to rebuild] our city and our community."

"The explosion has had a major political impact on the country and its people, leading to more divisions and a certainty that the current ruling parties cannot be trusted to provide safety and security for the local population," Doreen Toutikian, founder of Beirut Design Week, said.

"I will never give up on this city"

But despite the ongoing hardships and the scale of the rebuilding Beirut is still facing, there is a willingness to keep working to bring the city back to what it once was.

Many people Dezeen spoke to expressed a belief that the people of Beirut and Lebanon will be able to work together to revive the city.

"Architecturally, there has been a huge work done by local architects, NGOs and both local and international donations to rebuild," Abboud explained.

Architect Lina Ghotmeh, who is currently working on a project in Beirut and two other buildings in Lebanon, said that the economic situation in the country has led to an interest in local resources and in "developing local industries in the objective of allowing more self-sufficiency within the country and eventually building a sustainable approach to living".

"One never leaves Beirut mentally, there is always an attachment to this city," Ghotmeh added.

Sakr also chose to keep working in Beirut in order to help Lebanon.

"I will never give up on this city, the same way our corrupt government won't loosen its grip," she said. "The reason it is so crucial for me to keep my production in Beirut is that I figured it was the bare minimum I could do for my country."

"Rejoining the city was tough at first, however the love we have for Beirut is impossible to explain and we think that all Lebanese people have it too," David Raffoul and Nicolas Moussallem of David/Nicolas said.

"Beirut is healing too, its streets are lively again and there is a sort of common cause that united so many people."

The main image is courtesy of PSLab and was taken from its studios.

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On the fifth anniversary of the Grenfell Tower disaster, fire safety specialists have attacked UK architecture schools for failing to adequately teach students about the subject.

"Over the fifty years of my career architectural education has progressively shifted its focus away from issues of construction and buildability," said Paul Hyett, who is an expert witness at the ongoing Grenfell Tower Inquiry.

"Fire has hardly had a look in for the last four decades," added the former Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) president and vice-president for education.

"I've heard that in an architecture degree you get half a day on fire safety," agreed fire engineer and fire safety consultant Andrea White.

"You get half a day on fire safety"

The lack of training is leading to dangerous knowledge gaps in the architecture profession, argued architectural technologist and fire engineer Frances Maria Peacock.

"A lot of problems still persist within the architecture profession," Peacock told Dezeen. "I think there is still this tendency to want to use thermally efficient materials without thinking too hard about their fire safety."

The experts spoke to Dezeen ahead of today's fifth anniversary of the Grenfell Tower fire, in which 72 people lost their lives when flames engulfed a high-rise social-housing block in London.

Fire spread rapidly up and around the 24-storey block via flammable external cladding and insulation that had been fitted in a refurbishment completed only a year earlier.

Paul Hyett, who was appointed by the inquiry to analyse the work of the architecture studio involved in the flawed refurbishment, suggested students are not learning enough about fire performance.

"If you examine student portfolios you will find very little even in the way of paying lip service to fire safety," he told Dezeen.

Student projects often "give inadequate consideration to questions such as 'can we get people out in an emergency? Are the escape routes properly protected? Are the materials compliant with code in terms of combustibility?'" said Hyett, who is a founder of Vickery-Hyett Architects and has been an external examiner at four universities.

He added that while there has been "fantastic progress on sustainable design" in recent years, many tutors "have increasingly failed to appreciate the importance of building regulations and the technical performance of materials in their teaching".

"It is also a cultural issue: is it important? Should we look at the building regulations with respect or as something to be got round? Should we treat building control officers with the respect they deserve or as obstacles?" continued Hyett.

Bruce Sounes, the lead architect on the Grenfell refurbishment project for now-dissolved firm Studio E, displayed virtually no knowledge of fire safety when cross-examined at the inquiry.

He admitted being unaware of important industry guidance on fire safety and was not familiar with key terms such as "limited combustibility", while arguing that it was up to consultants and building control officers to ensure compliance.

Architecture practice Studio E specified a combustible polyisocyanurate foam insulation product for Grenfell Tower, in breach of building regulations. The insulation produced cyanide-infused smoke when it burned on the night of the fire.

This insulation was selected as Studio E pursued a level of thermal efficiency well above building regulations requirements.

Hyett criticised Studio E for its confidence in the foam insulation in his report to the inquiry, calling it "an ongoing and major failure on their part to understand both the requirements of the building regulations and the guidance".

"Much more emphasis placed on design aesthetics"

"Within my own profession [...] there has of late been much more emphasis placed on design aesthetics and the perceived elegance, 'richness' and efficiency of the planning, spatial organisation and appearance of buildings, than on technical aspects of design, particularly as they relate to safety of the building in use," Hyett's report added.

Other fire safety experts also told Dezeen they were concerned about the level of training on fire safety that student architects receive.

"I've heard that in an architecture degree you get half a day on fire safety," said White, a fire engineer and fire safety consultant.

"If you asked Joe Public whether an architect understands fire safety, they'd say yes," she added. "If you asked whether you'd think they would know how to make a building meet the relevant regulations they would say yes. But that is not always the case now."

The lack of education is leading to a culture of architects overlooking the importance of fire safety, argued architectural technologist and fire engineer Peacock.

"I definitely think it is to do with culture," she said. "I think the problem begins at university. When I did my degree there was not really anything about fire safety, and my view on this is that all architecture degrees should have a whole module on fire safety."

London Architecture School (LSA) chief executive Neal Shasore questioned whether educational institutions are giving the Grenfell Tower fire enough prominence in their curriculums.

"The lessons from Grenfell are absolutely fundamental," he told Dezeen. "And one wonders whether it is being looked at a little bit in silos, where actually it should be part of all the really big questions that we as educators and as institutions are trying to grapple with, and I don't hear that a lot."

The LSA is working on a new post-qualification fire education programme. The first pilot courses are set to run later this year.

"We will focus on the principles of fire safety design, on statute regulation and guidance, but also some of the political and philosophical and historical cultural dimensions of the issue," Shasore said.

"If we get it right, it won't just be about competence, it will be about excellence, and the course will become a way of creating advocates for whatever further regulatory changes or cultural changes we might need."

However, Hyett believes that the UK architecture profession has taken the issue of fire safety seriously since Grenfell.

"I think the profession was enormously affected by the tragedy," he said. Big practices have taken it very seriously and that runs through the smaller practices. But there is too great a division between 'practice' and academia. That too is wrong."

Jane Duncan, founder of Jane Duncan Architects and chair of the RIBA expert panel on fire safety, noted that the institute now requires practicing architects to undertake fire safety training as part of Continuing Professional Development (CPD).

"I think architects in the main are taking this seriously, and the RIBA have restructured their members' core CPD requirements to set safety at the forefront of design," she told Dezeen. "We will need to do some very serious CPD."

But White questioned whether CPD alone will be enough. "I do have concerns about whether self-directed CPD hours are sufficient," she said.

"There is a real danger that you don't know what you don't know – you learn the basics and gain the false impression that you know more than you do."

The top photo is by Narain Jashanmal.

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With the coronavirus pandemic forcing a rethink of our urban centres, Dezeen spoke to experts about how municipalities around the world are striving to become "magical" cycling cities.

Cycling is now a major global trend, with several city governments announcing bold ambitions to swap cars for bikes, particularly in Europe but also beyond.

"I would say that in the past two years there has been a seismic shift," said Will Butler-Adams, CEO of folding bicycle manufacturer Brompton. "One thing that Covid did deliver to the world was a reflection on how we want to live in our cities," he told Dezeen.

"We have the solution"

In October, Paris revealed a plan to become a "100 per cent cyclable city" by 2026. Milan wants to build even more cycle lanes than the French capital over the next 15 years. Berlin intends to create a car-free area larger than Manhattan.

The EU is considering proposals to require 424 cities across the continent to develop "sustainable urban mobility plans" prioritising cycling and walking by 2025.

Austin, Texas, voted in November for a new tax that will raise $480 million for active travel projects. Montréal accelerated its programme for a new 184km express bike network, the Réseau express vélo, during the pandemic.

While the pandemic forced many to evaluate their physical health – and reminded governments of the financial cost associated with an unhealthy population – lockdowns offered an opportunity to reconsider our city spaces.

Meanwhile, the increasing urgency of the climate crisis is galvanising a move away from the polluting, resource-hungry car.

"We don't need to do anything radical; we don't need flying cars," Butler-Adams added. "We have the solution. We just forgot about it."

Cycling "has the potential to simultaneously serve many challenges"

Significantly boosting cycling has multiple potential benefits for cities: reducing carbon emissions, making people healthier, reducing congestion, improving road safety and freeing up space currently dominated by cars.

"Whether it's health, climate, social justice, the economy or air quality, these are all things cycling can aid," said Dr Meredith Glaser, director at the Urban Cycling Institute in Amsterdam.

"I think that's a really unique aspect of bicycling in cities: it has the potential to simultaneously serve many challenges and it seems that cities have sort of leaned into one or a couple in particular."

So how do you transform a throbbing, traffic-clogged metropolis into a cycle city?

"You've probably heard the age-old adage that the three rules of real estate are location, location, location," explained Michael Wexler, Montréal director of cycling consultancy Copenhagenize Design Co. "For urban cycling, I would say the three rules are infrastructure, infrastructure, infrastructure."

In the main, that means bicycle lanes designed to best-practice standards – unidirectional, with road space taken away from cars to make room and a physical barrier protecting cyclists from vehicles.

Wexler subscribes to the "build it and they will come" philosophy. "It's very understandable that folks in central LA aren't going to be riding around until LA builds protected bike lanes," he said.

He cites the example of Seville, which built 80 kilometres of fairly basic protected cycle lanes in a matter of months in 2020 and almost immediately saw a seven per cent jump in the proportion of journeys taken by bike.

"It's not necessarily lots of bicycle infrastructure"

Other types of infrastructure are also important and are where good design is vital. The Netherlands is leading the way in bicycle parks, such as the Dezeen Award-winning garage in The Hague by Silo.

Then there is Cyclehoop, a London-based firm that builds secure hangars for multiple bikes with a footprint the size of a car parking space. Malmö has developed a sensor system to alert drivers when cyclists are approaching at junctions.

"It's really just taking what we've done so unfortunately well for cars and applying it to bikes," summarised Wexler.

The principle is simple, but the complexity is in establishing how this infrastructure should fit into the existing city.

"There's no point reinventing the wheel; we already know what works, what needs to be done," said Oskari Kaupinmäki, a cycling coordinator and urban transportation expert in the City of Helsinki's Urban Environment Division.

"It's not necessarily lots of bicycle infrastructure, it's putting bicycle infrastructure where it's needed."

Similar to many other cities, Helsinki is currently working on a fast-tracked Bicycle Action Plan, with an aim to increase the proportion of journeys taken by bike from its current level of around 11 per cent to 15 per cent by 2025 and at least 20 per cent by 2035.

Achieving that goal, it estimates, will reduce the city's carbon emissions by two per cent.

"We are going to become sort of like a Copenhagen with trams in about 10 years," Kaupinmäki told Dezeen.

"We are transforming Helsinki from a relatively car-oriented city into a human-friendly city. It's not that we're putting the bicycle on a pedestal and putting it over everything else. We're just treating it equally."

That is what Wexler refers to as the crucial "paradigm shift from the car-centric plan to more people-centric planning".

"It's putting the community, the person, at the heart of town planning," echoed Butler-Adams. "For 50 years or longer, the automobile has been right at the heart."

Helsinki already has the advantage of a world-leading public transit network, making it easier for the city to create "multimodal" options – such as cycling to a tram stop – appealing enough to disincentivise driving.

At the crux of the Finnish capital's plan is the construction of 130 kilometres of best-practice cycle infrastructure.

It currently has around 1,300 kilometres of cycleways – double that of Copenhagen – but apart from a 50 kilometre sliver, these are poor quality, based on a 1960s model that sees cyclists mixed with pedestrians on single paths. Kaupinmäki describes this approach as "terrible" for both those on foot and on bikes.

Before Kaupinmäki and his team could decide where this new infrastructure should go, they had to consider the city as a whole and how they want people to move through it.

"It really comes down to the comprehensive approach. So before you even think about cycling, you've got to look at the city map on a transport network level," he explained. "You've got to recognise the main arteries for car traffic, which are also usually main arteries for public transit, and then recognise all the local areas between those arteries."

These arterial roads, vital to the flow of traffic through the city, are where cars are funnelled and protected bike lanes come in.

"You can turn London, Paris, LA, San Francisco, Seoul into magical cities"

Elsewhere, in the neighbourhood streets, robust traffic calming measures are being used to enable even inexperienced cyclists to ride comfortably alongside cars.

This approach, which Kaupinmäki defines as "mix if you can, separate if you must", is set out in the widely influential Dutch Design Manual for Bicycle Traffic published by non-profit agency CROW.

In the UK, car-pacifying areas which block off through-roads are called "Low-Traffic Neighbourhoods" (LTNs). In Germany, they are known as Kiezblocks.

According to Glaser, they are where the "low-hanging fruit" lies for car-dominated cities in the US, where around three-quarters of journeys are less than five kilometres but just one per cent of journeys are by bike. In Copenhagen and Amsterdam, it is around 50 per cent.

But they are also politically controversial. There are examples of LTNs being implemented in London, only to be ripped out ahead of local elections as councillors apparently seek to appease rancorous motorists.

"We've heard many stories of very, very loud, powerful community groups that don't want to lose parking or something in their neighbourhood," said Wexler.

"And because their vitriol and their negative feedback on a project is so loud, then that pilot project, which was really potentially successful during its course, is then quashed because of politics."

Effective communication is therefore as important as infrastructure planning and design when it comes to building a cycle city, he argues.

If these political obstacles can be overcome, cycling could open the door for profound changes to our cities.

For starters, streets, which make up around a third of urban space, can become radically different places when bikes replace cars, according to Glaser.

"We have to remember that streets are not just places to move, but also places to stay and be," she explained. "And I think this is where cycling comes in really wonderfully, because it is what's called a liminal mode – a bicycle is a vehicle, but you can easily get off and become a pedestrian."

That is where architects and urban designers can get excited about the possibilities – a case that Danish architect Jan Gehl has already been making for decades.

Copenhagen is now implementing a planning policy that prioritises quality of environment above traffic flow on its thoroughfares – effectively turning all streets into public spaces.

"You can turn London, Paris, LA, San Francisco, Seoul into magical cities but it requires a shift in thinking and it is about that mindset change," said Butler-Adams.

"The role of the bicycle to unlock and to shift that thinking of urban living is totally there if the political will, which we're now beginning to see, is prepared to get behind it."

The main image is by Martti Tulenheimo.

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Several of America's largest architecture studios have taken steps such as mandatory unconscious bias training and partnership schemes with Black-owned firms in the two years since George Floyd's murder, Dezeen research has found.

The National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA) told Dezeen it "remains hopeful" in the push for greater racial equality across the architecture profession despite "stagnant" progress in wider US society.

Two years after the murder of Floyd at the hands of police shook the world, NOMA praised work by some studios to improve racial inclusion and help historically sidelined communities.

"A step towards realised change"

"I'm hopeful by what I've witnessed within the building and design industry, and the new support and resources dedicated to the planning and development of underserved and marginalised communities," said Jason Pugh, NOMA president and principal at Gensler.

"The purposeful tracking of metrics by global firms to increase the low number of minority design professionals beyond administrative roles, and the transparency, by some, in sharing those numbers publicly to track our progress is a step toward realised change," he told Dezeen.

Worldwide protests against systemic racism erupted after Floyd, an unarmed Black man, was suffocated when white police officer Derek Chauvin kneeled on his neck for nearly 10 minutes in Minneapolis on 25 May 2020.

Several major US architecture firms shared with Dezeen the action they have taken in the past two years to address racial inequality and racism, detailed below.

Pugh warned that notwithstanding advancements within the design industry, US politicians are failing to grapple with institutional racism while Black people are still being killed by police and racially motivated assaults are on the rise.

"Seven hundred thirty days [have passed] since the 'racial awakening' and recognition of this country's deeply rooted sins," he said.

"Yet we seem to be stagnant, making questionable progress towards change, as we take one step forward and two steps back."

In the architecture profession, NOMA hailed "inspiring" efforts by studios to work with Black and women-led firms on projects.

And Pugh cited NOMA's growing list of partner organisations as a cause for optimism.

Measures to improve inclusivity of workplaces and designs

Research conducted by Dezeen identified several large US architecture firms that have taken action to improve racial equality in the last two years.

To coincide with the second anniversary of Floyd's death, we contacted the 15 largest US architecture firms, as determined by Building Design's WA100 list, to ask them about changes they have made or accelerated that were prompted by Floyd's murder.

Nine practices responded. DLR Group, Perkins Eastman, PBK, Page, Corgan and Fentress Architects did not respond.

Six of the nine firms that responded mentioned setting up councils, committees or groups aimed at improving diversity and inclusion in their workplaces and designs through things like awareness training for staff and publishing data about employee characteristics.

HDR and CannonDesign said they had hired directors for a similar purpose as well as setting up employee groups for staff from underrepresented demographics.

Multiple firms said they had launched scholarship and mentorship programmes or are working with Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) on recruitment and education initiatives.

Three said they have set up processes to partner with companies owned by ethnic minorities and other marginalised groups, while others said they are working on projects that aim to address historic injustices.

Here is what the studios said:

Gensler

Gensler said it has increased its level of investment in racial equality over the past two years. It is now reporting diversity metrics annually and has created a Global Race and Diversity Committee. It has also established the Rising Black Designers Scholarship & Design Challenge, the Center for Research on Equity & the Built Environment, and a Diverse Consultant and Supplier Program.

"When we witnessed what happened to George Floyd, and the racial awakening that ensued, we knew we had to take the next step," the studio told Dezeen. "We understood the size and scale of our firm could positively shift the industry. We recognised that we were in a unique position to lead the way in transforming how we build the future."

HDR

HDR said it appointed a global inclusion, diversity and equity director in early 2020 who has since accelerated several initiatives aimed at making the firm more inclusive. That includes the formation of Employee Network Groups, which allow staff to join based on shared characteristics, experiences and interests to get support and career development.

"One of the things [we] communicated after the death of George Floyd was a continued commitment to use our voices to ensure Black employees are heard, understood and supported," the studio told Dezeen.

HKS

HKS said it appointed a director of justice, equity, diversity and inclusion (JEDI) in 2019, who since then has built a network of champions, programmes and events across the architecture profession.

In 2020, the firm joined the UN Global Compact, which encourages businesses to adopt more socially responsible policies, and publishes an assessment of its progress. It also adopted an environmental, social and governance (ESG) structure in 2021 as part of what it calls its "mission to create more just and resilient communities".

"We believe inclusion spurs creativity, and that innovation is born from an engaged culture of diverse people with diverse ideas," said HKS president and CEO Dan Noble.

CannonDesign

CannonDesign said it released a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) framework in June 2020, setting out five commitments and its strategy for improving equality within the organisation. It has since hired a DEI director, held 18 "internal listening sessions" for employees to share their expectations for the framework and launched its first DEI annual survey to measure the effectiveness of its initiatives, as well as launching a DEI Report Card to assess its leaders' performance on these issues.

In addition, it has launched mandatory unconscious bias training for all staff and set up Employee Resource Groups for underrepresented groups of people. It has also hosted fellows through NOMA's fellowship programme, which seeks to increase minority architect licensure.

For its project work, CannonDesign said it created the "first-of-its-kind Inclusive Partner Program to build deep-rooted relationships with XBE firms" and has had 19 participate to date. XBE refers to business that are owned by ethnic minority people, women, veterans or disabled people.

"We believe we are doing a strong job laying the foundation for improvement, but recognise we are at the beginning of our DEI journey and there’s much more work to be done," the studio said.

SmithGroup

SmithGroup said it established a Justice, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI) committee in 2020, which reviews its policies and processes with a view to dismantling injustices in the firm and its work. This committee is supported by committees in each of its local offices.

It has also created an index to track the diversity of its workforce, conducted pay analysis to find and resolve any inequities and reviewed its promotion processes. In addition, the firm is changing its hiring practices to better reflect the local communities it works in, which it said is diversifying the staff in its leadership roles.

A third-party consultant was appointed to carry out a diversity and inclusion assessment of the organisation with the findings currently being analysed, while an internal website containing educational resources about equality and diversity was launched.

Last year, SmithGroup began partnerships with architecture programmes at three HBCUs that intend to increase the number of Black students with architecture degrees.

It has also issued a statement to say it does not work on mass incarceration facilities and taken on more projects that involve restorative justice, such as the Richmond National Slavery Museum in Virgina and Michigan State University Multicultural Center.

"SmithGroup has been actively engaged in addressing the equity issues in our profession for many years, but the events of 2020 made it clear that we needed to escalate and accelerate our efforts," the studio said.

ZGF Architects

ZGF Architects said it set up a Diversity and Inclusion Advocacy Group, a forum for discussions about race issues with monthly meetings featuring guest experts, in 2013 and holds regular unconscious bias and anti-discrimination training for all staff.

In the immediate aftermath of George Floyd's murder, the group established a Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) taskforce to implement a racial justice action plan focused on recruiting talent that reflects the communities ZGF works within and scrutinising office policies.

The taskforce established an Emerging Black Architects Scholarship, funded by $160,000 in direct donations from staff. Under the scheme, two students who are in an accredited architecture or design programme are selected each year to receive $5,000 each toward university tuition and fees and offered a paid internship with ZGF.

HOK

HOK said that since Floyd's murder it has put more resources into its Diversity Advisory Council established in 2013, which is made up of volunteers from across its offices and devises actions to make the firm's work environment and designs more inclusive.

Recent initiatives by the council include scholarship programmes for minority design students, mandatory unconscious bias training for all staff and a new online portal aimed at helping to assemble more diverse project teams and partner with minority- and women-owned businesses.

The firm also set more ambitious diversity goals for its leadership positions in 2020, which it said have since mostly been realised or surpassed and consequently raised.

A "Designing for Equity" initiative, which will roll out this year, will reshape HOK's "design culture, design principles and design approach" to make sure people that live in its projects have equal access to shelter, health and nature, the studio said.

HOK released a report summarising its efforts to advance diversity, equality and inclusion in June 2021.

NBBJ

NBBJ said it has formed a formed a Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI) Advisory and Ambassador Group. It also holds regular diversity training sessions and company-wide town halls about unconscious bias and inequity with Kwame Christian, director of the American Negotiation Institute.

The firm has established partnerships with the Hip Hop Architecture Camp, which introduces architecture to underrepresented young people, as well as NOMA, and worked on projects aimed at addressing historic racial inequalities, such as the Seattle Children’s Hospital Odessa Brown Children’s Clinic.

Leo A Daly

Leo A Daly said it has established an Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Council composed of diverse employees to make policy recommendations to its leadership. The council has set up partnerships with HBCUs and NOMA, recruiting interns and graduates and hosting fellows from underrepresented backgrounds.

The firm is also providing staff training on social justice issues and unconscious bias and working on setting up a youth mentoring program.

In addition, it has a supplier diversity programme that sees it proactively partner with minority- and women-led enterprises on its projects.

The top image of tributes at the site of Floyd's murder is by Vasanth Rajkumar.

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China's decision to ban supertall skyscrapers "will not hinder the potential of architecture" and is in fact leading to more sustainable, culturally sensitive buildings, architects have told Dezeen.

After the Chinese government announced a full ban on skyscrapers taller than 500 metres last October, architecture firms working in the country have had to adjust their approach.

Buildings taller than 250 metres are also now "strictly restricted" as the spotlight turns onto the sustainability and cultural relevance of China's architecture.

"While China ranks top in terms of total number and annual growth rate of supertall buildings, issues such as costs, energy consumption, safety, and environmental impact have become an increasing concern," deputy minister of the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development (MOHURD) Yan Huang said in a press conference after the announcement of the ban.

But far from spelling the end of high-rise building in China, the new regulations and sensibilities are leading to a fresh wave of architectural innovation, architects have told Dezeen.

The global standard definition for supertalls is 300 metres, though in China the term is sometimes applied to buildings 100 metres and above.

In the past decade, dense and growing urban populations, severe land shortages and hefty land prices in major Chinese cities have contributed to a frenzy of supertall skyscraper developments.

According to the US-based Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH), 56 of the 106 buildings taller than 200 metres constructed in 2020 were in China.

The world's most populous country is home to 2,581 buildings that are over 150 metres in height, including 861 above 200 metres and 99 above 300 metres.

More recently, however, China's love affair with supertalls has come under strain following a spate of half-finished buildings, empty towers and environmental and safety concerns.

In one prominent case, the 356-metre SEG Plaza in Shenzhen started shaking last May and was evacuated for four months while it underwent modification.

There is also the issue of skyscrapers being abandoned. According to CTBUH, as of September 2020 there were 81 unfinished skyscrapers in China where construction had been suspended, among which 66 are expected never to be completed.

In the city of Dongguan in southern China for example, while new office buildings have been sprouting up in the recently relocated city centre, those in the old financial district have a staggering vacancy rate, leading to unsalvageable financial losses for developers.

By October last year, MOHURD and the Ministry of Emergency Management had had enough.

They issued a joint notice on "strengthening the planning and construction management of supertall high-rise buildings", stipulating that development of supertall buildings over 500 metres must stop nationwide.

Cities with populations of less than three million must also restrict the construction of high-rise buildings of more than 150 metres and ban those above 250 metres outright.

Larger cities must restrict the construction of new buildings over 250 metres, meaning the application and approval process will become much more difficult.

After the announcement, a series of ongoing projects were forced to revise their original designs.

Ronald Lu and Partners (RLP) slashed the Wuhan Chow Tai Fook (CTF) Financial Centre from 648 metres to 475 metres.

The height of under-construction Suzhou Zhongnan Centre was finalised just under the threshold at 499.15 metres, down from an originally planned 729 metres.

It was designed by US firm Gensler, whose Shanghai Tower is currently the second-tallest building in the world.

Similarly, Nanjing Greenland Jinmao International Financial Centre, designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) is currently under construction and set to become the tallest building in Jiangsu Province with a height of 499.8 metres.

The building is an example of how the supertalls ban does not necessarily signal the end of unusual high-rise design in China.

SOM used structural arches to collect and redirect gravity to the four corners of the tower where they contribute to its structural efficiency, while also evoking the curved gateways of Nanjing’s ancient city walls.

"China's unique high-density high-rise market demands innovative building types," Aedas global design principal Andy Wen, who has a track record of building skyscrapers in China, told Dezeen.

"So even the introduction of the latest height restriction will not hinder the potential of architecture to make full use of the land," he continued.

Architects are having to respond to the environmental worries that are partly behind the new regulations.

China has announced a roadmap to see carbon emissions peak before 2030 and become carbon neutral by 2060, which means more energy efficient and sustainable architecture is now more likely to get state backing.

Like in the rest of the world, architects in China are aware of the part they play in achieving these aims.

"Architecture plays a vital role in reducing carbon emissions, and architects must incorporate that mindset into their design process," said Bryant Lu, vice chairman of Hong Kong-based studio RLP.

"Building supertalls is still a viable solution in large megacities of high density," SOM’s design partner Scott Duncan told Dezeen. "What is technically challenging about designing tall buildings today is how to do so while using less material — less concrete, less steel — to reduce the impact on the planet’s resources".

"Efficiency and smart engineering are the keys," he said. "We are seeing tremendous demand for natural ventilation in tall buildings, driven both by pandemic considerations and a desire to save energy, and this is not easy to achieve."

"We have moved away from the idea of a building as a hermetically-sealed bubble, and instead talk about breathing buildings," Duncan added.

Clean-cut glazed facades have come to define the modern skyscraper, with eight of the world's 10 tallest skyscrapers wrapped in large expanses of glass.

Glass towers provide well-lit interiors and double as viewpoints, but require high levels of air conditioning, making them notoriously energy inefficient.

The WeBank headquarters in Shenzhen, also designed by SOM and nearing completion, is instead fully breathable, with a network of atriums that act like lungs for the building's large, mezzanine-style floors.

"There is enormous risk in designing buildings of any height that don't provide these kinds of sustainability measures going forward," said Duncan.

Vertical forests – towers with facades covered in plants – have also been gaining popularity in high-rise design over the past decade thanks to their energy-saving capacity for helping to regulate building temperatures.

Italian studio Carlo Ratti Associati has unveiled plans to build a 218-metre-tall skyscraper in China that would grow crops using hydroponics.

The 51-storey building proposed dedicates 10,000 square metres to the cultivation of crops, creating a vertical hydroponic farm.

It is expected to produce 270 tonnes of food per year, enough to feed roughly 40,000 people, creating a self-sustained food supply chain that manages cultivation, harvest, sale and consumption all within one building.

Meanwhile, the lush green on the 220-metre-tall office building Treehouse in Hong Kong, designed by RLP post-supertall ban, not only serves as a visual centrepiece but also provides self-shading inclined facades on the upper floors.

The project won the architecture category at Hong Kong Green Building Council's Advancing Net Zero Ideas competition.

Some studios are finding other ways to make sure their high-rise projects appeal to the authorities.

For example, China's General Office of the State Council previously signalled its desire to see transit-oriented development (TOD), which puts large construction projects hand-in-hand with railway improvements.

RLP is particularly interested in TOD and has used it to win support for a project well above the 250-metre "strictly restricted" threshold.

"Transit-oriented development is one of the architectural forms that maximise land use," RLP's Lu told Dezeen. "By reconnecting the transport system with nearby communities, the land is put into maximum usage."

Wuhan CTF Financial Centre, designed by RLP and currently under construction, is one of the latest examples of urban TOD in China.

It comprises a 475-metre-tall office building, two residential towers, and other commercial complexes, all connecting two urban rail transit lines.

"Alternatively, we can revitalise existing land resources, such as through transformation of old factories and less developed towns and villages, to achieve efficient reuse of space with reasonable layouts while improving the residents' living conditions," added Lu.

The Hong Kong-based studio recently revealed its redevelopment plan for Nanji Village in Haizhu district, Guangzhou.

This former "urban village" suffers from frequent floods during the monsoon season, while its transport and drainage infrastructure desperately needs an upgrade.

In response, RLP dug water canals into the village, reducing the threat of flooding and providing a better landscape for the local community.

Meanwhile, the studio preserved some of Nanji's historical buildings such as the old Guangzhou Shipyard, the ancestral hall of the historical ruling clan, and the Pak Tai Temple, but also added the Folk Culture Exhibition Hall and Central Square.

"I see no problem pursuing supertall skyscrapers, as long as their design reflects local culture and historical value," said Wen.

"Urban landmarks must first of all possess powerful shape and form, while incorporating relevant culture, events, and history into their presentation," he added.

Duncan predicts that China's attraction to skyscrapers is unlikely to disappear, but will be judged differently in the future.

"To the question of what makes a good landmark, I would certainly point to skyscrapers, because, if done well, they represent the pinnacle of engineering of their time," he said.

"The existential challenge before us now is how to achieve a better balance with our ecosystems, so the landmarks of our future will likely be those structures that most intelligently respond to that challenge."

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Legislation is needed to force architects to prevent the mass slaughter of birds that "didn't evolve to deal with glass", experts have told Dezeen.

"We need broad-scale legislation requiring buildings to be bird-friendly," said Kaitlyn Parkins, an ecologist who is campaigning to reduce bird deaths in New York City.

"Birds do not understand the concept of glass," added architect Dan Piselli, director of sustainability at US architecture studio FXCollaborative, who has worked on reducing bird strikes at several New York City buildings.

"They didn't evolve to deal with glass. They simply cannot see it."

One billion US bird deaths caused by collisions alone

Collisions with buildings cause billions of bird deaths a year. As many as one billion birds are killed this way every year in the US alone while the British Trust for Ornithology has estimated that windows cause 100 million bird collisions in the UK each year. One-third of these are fatal.

Awareness of bird-window collisions, as they are called, is rising. In 2019, New York City introduced Local Law 15, a bill that updated building codes to make new glass structures safer for birds.

The bill requires the surfaces of new glass buildings over 23 metres (75 feet) tall to be patterned to make them more visible to birds.

"It is causing glass manufacturers to take this issue much more seriously and to develop more solutions," said Piselli, whose studio helped reduce bird strikes by 90 per cent at New York City's Jacob K Javits Center by making changes to the glazing.

FXCollaborative replaced mirrored cladding with fritted glass, helping to turn the convention centre from "one of the deadliest buildings for birds in New York City to perhaps the most hospitable," according to the New York Times.

However, architects continue to make extensive use of bird-threatening glass in their projects. Eight of the world's 10 tallest skyscrapers are wrapped in expanses of glass while glass-clad buildings currently under construction include The Spiral in New York by BIG, the Tour Triangle in Paris by Herzog & de Meuron and the Jeddah Tower by Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill.

None of these architects responded to Dezeen's requests for information about measures to reduce bird deaths at their projects.

Mirrored buildings "just as dangerous"

Dutch architecture studio MVRDV recently opened Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen, a mirrored glass building in Rotterdam.

"As with all buildings with a glass facade, it is possible that birds living in the museum's park will be adversely affected," the practice told Dezeen.

"A completely transparent building, such as a bus shelter or a greenhouse, is possibly more dangerous for birds, according to experts, than a mirrored building in which the bird can see itself approaching."

However, Piselli said that mirrored surfaces can be just as dangerous to birds as transparent ones.

"I have been consulting with bird experts and ornithologists for a number of years now and what I understand from them is that both [glass and reflective facades] are hazardous," he explained.

"Reflectivity is clearly a problem," he continued. "We've all seen buildings that just reflect the landscape and birds just think that they can go straight through there."

The impact of tall buildings on birds hit the headlines last year when Melissa Breyer, a volunteer for New York City wildlife charity NYC Audobon, collected the corpses of over 200 birds that had flown into buildings at the World Trade Center in a single day.

Breyer collected 226 carcasses from the pavements around the glazed 3 World Trade Center tower designed by Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners and the mirrored 4 World Trade Center tower by Fumihiko Maki.

Many more corpses were "inaccessible, or too mangled to collect," Breyer said at the time.

Most bird strikes occur at low levels

However, Breyer told Dezeen that building height is not a key factor in bird deaths.

"The main culprit is definitely a reflective surface," she said. "But what is really surprising is that it doesn't have to be a skyscraper."

Even low-rise buildings are hazardous, she said. "Almost all of these [bird strikes] are happening at the treeline because that's where the habitat is reflected," she continued.

Breyer, who is editor of Treehugger magazine, added that light pollution from buildings that are illuminated at night creates additional confusion for birds.

Artificial light can confuse birds that fly at night, resulting in disorientation, exhaustion and collisions, said Breyer. She suspects this was partly to blame for many of the deaths she recorded at the World Trade Center last year.

"A lot of people think it's just lights," she said. "A lot of people think it's just glass. But really the two go hand-in-hand. Both things need to be addressed."

"Broad-scale legislation" is required

Unlike humans, who understand that glass surfaces cause reflections, birds get confused by them, according to Kaitlyn Parkins, an ecologist who is campaigning to reduce bird deaths in New York City.

"Birds don't see glass as a solid barrier and can't use the architectural cues humans use to know when glass is present, for example, mullions or door frames," she told Dezeen.

"They see the reflection of vegetation in glass, or habitat through glass, and try to fly to it without realizing there is a solid barrier present."

Parkins agreed that collisions tend to happen at lower levels. "Birds tend to hit the lower levels of buildings at and below the treeline, where they are most active, the height of the building doesn't necessarily matter," she said.

Initiatives such as New York City's Local Law 15 are welcome, Parkins said, but added:

"In a perfect world, we wouldn't need legislation, because people would always opt for bird-friendly design and make other environmentally-friendly decisions."

"But since we don't live in that world, I do think we need broad-scale legislation requiring buildings to be bird-friendly and to reduce light pollution, which contributes to collision mortality."

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