In her editorial for our newly released winter issue, our editor in chief Floor Kuitert explains why fully recognizing the world as an interconnected system can lead to more regenerative design solutions that promote community and wellbeing.
‘Soil is the point of contact for buildings everywhere, and it’s important to design a relationship with it.’ This is a quote by bacteri-architect Tsukasa Ono featured in our new book The Futureproof Home: Design for Conscious Living, which I encourage you to check out as it makes a case for contemporary housing to be crafted with a conscious awareness of the land it occupies, the materials it comprises and the lives that will inhabit it. In other words: to consider the interconnectedness of our built environment, the natural world and society at large. As I’m reading through all the stories of the sustainability-themed issue you currently have in your hands, I’m noticing a similar focus on interconnectedness – it has, in fact, become somewhat of a common thread.
Many of the projects covered on the following pages are aimed at reconnecting people with the land by means of architecture and design, whether that’s by utilizing regionally vernacular building materials, incorporating endemic vegetation or boosting local biodiversity. Featured as one of our Ones to Watch studios, Heiter X, for example, uses food as a medium to design experiences that echo the interconnectedness of all life. Founder Helis Heiter explains that her installations often incorporate living elements like edible plants that remind participants of the delicate balance – and their role – within natural ecosystems. Sharing the Ones to Watch denomination, design collective RAD+ar in turn shows how Indonesia’s vernacular architecture can provide a rich resource for site-sensitive design, and that blending traditional elements with more industrialized materials can help preserve distinctive local characteristics.
Another way of reconnecting people with the land that has proven prominent in this issue is by encouraging them to get involved in the environment, thus fostering environmental stewardship. In our Insights section, for example, you can read a story on how sustainable neighbourhoods are paving the way for a greener future. This piece emphasizes that, regardless of how well-designed a sustainable neighbourhood may be, its success ultimately hinges on long-term commitment and custodianship. Similarly, our article on flood-resilient architecture stresses that ‘floods may be devastating forces, but they also present an opportunity for communities to come together and build resilience’. ‘Empowering locals is essential in this process, and those who have experienced flooding are vital contributors to the creation of flood-resilient spaces,’ writes Alexandre Langlois. ‘Their insights and experiences are invaluable in developing designs that truly meet the needs of vulnerable populations.’
The story with perhaps the strongest focus on the interconnectedness of our social and ecological systems is this issue’s The Conversation. It shares the vision and ventures of Re:arc Institute, a non-profit organization working at the intersection of climate action and architecture philanthropy that catalyses support for a variety of situated, spatial practices that respond to their local socio-environmental needs and contribute to a climate-just future. Re:arc’s director of public discourse, Alice Grandoit-Šutka, stresses in the article that our current climatic contexts and the social realities they shape are interrelated and therefore need to be addressed simultaneously. ‘To do this,’ she says, ‘we need to think more expansively about the practice of architecture’ and ‘include a variety of actors who, through their work, take responsibility as custodians of our built and natural environments’. Her organization thinks there’s a lot to gain in the building sector, saying that Re:arc ‘believes that architecture, urban planning and the built environment are tremendously overlooked leverage points in the context of the climate crisis’. As showcased by this issue, we see the same potential, and have compiled inspiring and optimistic projects and stories that (already) exhibit an active role for designers in building a more environmentally conscious society with an innate understanding that no stakeholder acts or exists in isolation.
Get your copy of FRAME 159 now.
