Climate emergency | Design in the making

In association with Crittall

Why steel is a sustainable choice for modern architecture

Materials that combine longevity, performance and recyclability will become increasingly valuable

Hackney Victorian house extension lets the light flow through

Architecture for London’s extension creates a sense of rhythm through its use of brick

Will there be enough sustainable timber to go round?

As the construction sector turns increasingly to timber to achieve net zero, forestry may be unable to keep pace

Favourite books: Why social justice is integral to climate justice

Chloe van Grieken picks Mikaela Loach’s book on climate justice, It’s Not That Radical

Facade power: solar cells generate office tower’s electricity needs

A Melbourne office tower has over 1,000 solar cells on its facade, generating more energy than the building consumes

Saudi architects turn to rammed earth for sustainable building

Traditional material scores highly on heritage and aesthetics too

MacEwen Award 2025 Longlist: 30 projects epitomising architecture for the common good

Thirty projects that engage with inclusion, sustainability, communities and health

Favourite books: 50 years on, Schumacher’s call for small is as pertinent as ever

Shankari Raj on EF Schumacher’s Small is Beautiful with its call to stop plundering the earth's resources

Scottish builder launches prefab Passivhaus homes range

System could slash heating bills by 79%

‘Invisible’ photovoltaics on steel standing seam roof

‘Invisible’ Velario solar roof gains traction among UK architects

Breaking timber in Denmark: How, why and what next

The motivations and issues of designing in timber

Woodmill and St Columba’s RC High School sets Passivhaus record

School exemplifies a dedication to going beyond ‘traditional’ indoor learning

Fewer projects meet sustainability targets than a decade ago

Ten percent fall in success rates signals trouble with climate action

Vectorworks Design Day explores potential impact of AI on architecture

AI’s effect on architecture, sustainability and collaboration were among the day’s key themes

Really sustainable buildings need a radical view of nature

Don’t try to beat nature; join it

Webinar: Housing counts its carbon calories

Sustainability is a priority in the race to supply homes

Delve Architects on the nitty-gritty of working with cork

A house extension by Delve Architects makes the most of cork’s thermal, acoustic and sustainability properties

King of the New Stone Age

Stonemason Pierre Bidaud explains why he is championing stone as a low-carbon affordable alternative to concrete

Roundtable: How to find more homes without building anew

Sustainable options include improving existing buildings and using them better

Four ways you can embrace the circular economy today

Easy ways to use the circular economy now

Architect duo wins government grant to enhance home renovation app with AI

Poulsom Middlehurst will use the £50,000 funding to expand HomeNotes app

Five key moves to turbo-charge decarbonisation

AI, sustainable materials and sharing are among key points

Déchelette Architecture’s rammed-earth residential

The four-storey Paris apartment building uses prefabricated raw-earth blocks

Podcast: Regenerative change with Angharad Palmer of Hawkins\Brown

Angharad Palmer on embedding a culture of regenerative design at Hawkins\Brown

Rising Star: Heather McNeill

Sustainable design advocate delivering Passivhaus, Passivhaus plus, and Enerphit plus projects

Can we really put retrofit first in social housing supply?

How to prioritise green renewal rather than demolition

RIBA Awards celebrate Reinvention, Housing, Emerging Talent and Client of the Year

2024 honours span diverse typologies and locations

Contacts Book: Orms' most valued collaborators

Director John McRae details the experts and craftspeople who have played in a key role in Orms’ projects

How to green the Gulf

Sustainable design for rising temperatures and populations

Could Iceland tame molten lava for insitu construction?

Lavaforming would harvest lava to create low carbon building material

Cost considerations in projects go beyond the bottom line

How to marry value engineering and sustainable design

Jo Cox Centre's WELL Platinum award is a UK first

Certification recognises attention to air quality, sound, lighting and materials

Passport to circularity

Material passports can enable reuse of materials as part of a circular economy

Insulation firm turns developer for two low-carbon homes

Two testbed affordable eco-homes seek to prove such housing can be well designed

Seductive imagery mustn’t lead to a wasteful design

The Emory hotel offers lessons in avoiding unnecessary structure or enclosed spaces

Leader: When reuse throws up a curveball

The architecture of reuse can lead to surprise revelations once a project goes on site

Contacts Book: Sanchez Benton’s most valued collaborators

The practice details the experts and craftspeople who have played in a key role in its projects

Lean design is nothing new, we just need to relearn it

Today’s technology makes building waste more avoidable than ever

Gathering evidence on embodied carbon

An evidence base for Essex county council could help everyone

Woven flax structure creates sustainable waves

Hybrid flax fibre/CLT roof for prototype pavilion enables column-free spans

North-south divide: what each hemisphere needs

Growing south needs newbuilds while retrofit suits built-up north

Sussex cottage extension improves functionality while respecting historic charm

HAPA Architects has added modern design elements while retaining the cottage’s historic charm

Olympics 2024: what can architects learn from overlay design?

Learn more about a type of architecture that saw increased usage at the London Olympics in 2012 and now contributes to a more circular approach to large events

Structural timber prototype uses 100% waste from demolition

Building-scale installation from waste points way to circular economy

Cantilevered terrace marks out Gillespie Yunnie’s extension to house on Dartmoor

Gillespie Yunnie adds a dynamic first-floor extension to a 20th-century house in Ashburton, Devon

Artefact adds a series of Caribbean-inspired living spaces to Surrey house

Artefact on its new wing for a detached home in Epsom that spurns open-plan living spaces

Minoro answers urgent need for decarbonisation at every project stage

Grimshaw-led team's guidance and management tools cover the entire building process

Books: A new way to see Modernism and how to build better sustainably

Three fascinating books packed with valuable information

Nine essential steps for fundamental design overhaul to achieve net zero

Nine key steps for a climate-conscious approach to architecture