Architecture

The Aga Khan is greenwashing their awards

The hotel’s basic ozonation and composting systems lack advanced treatment needed for sensitive coastal zones. Without independent monitoring, there’s no way to confirm that wastewater meets safety standards. On an island without a municipal sewage network, any leakage could threaten coral reefs, seagrass beds, and turtle habitats.

The 2025 Aga Khan Architecture Winners: Building Resilience and Community

The 2025 Aga Khan Award for Architecture honors seven projects from Bangladesh to Iran that blend sustainability, cultural heritage, and community empowerment — from flood-resilient homes to the revival of Egypt’s historic Esna — showcasing how design can tackle climate, social, and urban challenges with beauty and purpose.

Afghanistan’s earthquake and mud-brick homes. Can they rebuild safer and more sustainably?

A 6.0-magnitude earthquake in eastern Afghanistan killed over 800 people as mud-brick homes collapsed in rain-soaked landslides. Here’s why traditional earthen houses failed, how human-driven slope damage worsened the disaster, and how sustainable, earthquake-resistant construction can save lives.

Earthships: the off-grid homes built to weather any future

Earthships are off-grid, self-sustaining homes designed by Michael Reynolds to provide shelter, water, power, waste treatment, food, and comfort—using recycled and local materials. From forests to deserts, their design adapts to any climate, blending modern resilience with traditional building wisdom.

Rewilding the Suburb: Lagoon Valley’s Profound Plan for Conservation Community in California–– An Interview with Developer Curt Johansen

Lagoon Valley developers have set aside a remarkable 85% of its total land for open space, trails, and protected habitats—a rare move in an era of unchecked development. This isn’t just a nod to green space; it’s a full embrace of a conservation community model, where nature isn’t a backdrop but a partner.

Iraqi Zaha Hadid’s legacy reinvented in Saudi Arabia’s clay-rooted museum?

She was the first woman and first Muslim to win a Pritzker Prize and was notorious for blowing through budgets, with no concern for environmental issues. Her clients did not find this problematic. Has the Zaha Hadad brand become penitent in its latest project?

SOMBRA Pavilion: MVRDV’s Living Ode to the Sun Debuts in Venice

SOMBRA, a name fusing the Latin words for sun (sol) and shade (umbra), is more than a temporary pavilion—it’s a living laboratory. Shaped like a heliodon, the structure mimics how the sun moves through the sky, providing an intuitive experience of solar patterns. It operates without motors, electronics, or external energy. Instead, it breathes, opens, and closes using only passive physical principles.

Five Innovative Architecture Firms Building with Bamboo

Bamboo, often referred to as the "green steel" of the future, is quickly gaining popularity as a sustainable alternative to traditional building materials. With its fast growth cycle, minimal environmental footprint, and impressive strength, bamboo is emerging as a game-changing material for the construction industry. Not only is it an eco-friendly choice, but its versatility allows it to be used in everything from flooring to scaffolding, and even entire buildings.

5 Brilliant eco-architect alternatives to Foster + Partners

In the world of architecture and design, there’s a growing movement towards exploring new, uncharted territories. While renowned firms like Foster + Partners and Zaha Hadid have undeniably shaped the skyline of modern architecture, there’s a wealth of untapped potential in emerging voices that can offer bold, innovative, and sustainable alternatives. These next five studios are pushing the boundaries of creativity, blending technology with art, and designing spaces that respond to the future needs of communities and the planet. Let’s take a closer look at these pioneers who are crafting tomorrow’s architectural landscape today.

Vernacular Architecture in America: A Tradition Rooted in Adaptation

Vernacular architecture refers to structures built using local materials, knowledge, and cultural influences rather than formal architectural styles. It is often associated with deep-rooted...

BIG Palliative Care: Denmark’s Nature and Spirituality in Dignified End-of-Life Care

Bjarke Ingels Group has won the competition to design the new Sankt Lukas Hospice and Lukashuset, a 8,500 m² palliative care center envisioned as a village nestled within nature. Building on the legacy of the Sankt Lukas Foundation, established in the 1930s, this project will significantly expand Denmark's palliative care capacity, tripling its current facilities to serve approximately 2,100 patients each year.

This stunning ancient citadel in the Sahara Desert Has a mysterious past

Today, the Rock Round Palace stands as a historical site, a reminder of the diverse cultural heritage that once thrived in the region. Videos circulating on Youtube suggest that anyone off the street can wander inside and around the citadel suggesting it's not being protected well for future generations.

What is regenerative design? A UK crew develops a future-thinking handbook

Sustainability has been championed for four decades to manage and minimize damage to the Earth’s resources but has been slow to penetrate the industrialized world. The guidebook’s authors note that contemporary net-zero emissions efforts and global climate target policies do not prescribe a way forward for “human systems to contribute positively to natural systems.”

Do you have the greenest city? Apply for this global award

Cities around the world are encouraged to enter their greening initiatives to showcase their achievement and commitment to nature-orientated solutions to address major challenges facing urban environments.

Al Faya Lodge: Sustainable Architecture Meets Desert Serenity

The lodge's design takes the region's extreme climate into careful consideration. Sharjah’s desert environment presents a unique set of challenges, from searing heat and prolonged sun exposure in the summer to chilly nighttime temperatures. Jonathan Ashmore, Anarchitect’s founder, emphasized that any design in such an environment must account for these factors.

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How to Balance Convenience and Sustainability During a Big Move

Long moves are priced by weight and space, and a heavier truck burns more fuel over the same miles. So every box you leave behind cuts the bill and the emissions at the same time.

Prêt-à-porter made with algae

Danit Peleg is reinventing 3D-printed fashion with algae-based biomaterials, AI-powered design and made-to-order manufacturing. Can circular fashion become commercially viable?

Aduro Takes Flexible Packaging to PepsiCo Innovation Hub as Investor Yazan Al Homsi Calls It Chemical Recycling’s Toughest Test

Aduro Clean Technologies is testing a chemical recycling solution for snack wrappers, flexible films and multilayer plastics. Its presentation to PepsiCo in Mexico City highlights the challenge of turning difficult packaging waste into valuable new materials.

The Sustainable Moving Checklist Every Household Should Follow

The most important step is the one nobody enjoys. Six weeks out, walk the house room by room and decide what has earned a place on the truck. Anything you wouldn’t pay to ship is moving out of habit.

6 Best Eco-Friendly Web Hosting Providers That Don’t Sacrifice Speed

Not all green web hosting is created equal. Some companies buy renewable energy certificates, others use cleaner data centers, and some extend the life of existing servers. We compare six web hosts, including GreenGeeks, SiteGround and Hostinger, to see how their environmental claims stack up against performance, speed and transparency.

Topics

How to Balance Convenience and Sustainability During a Big Move

Long moves are priced by weight and space, and a heavier truck burns more fuel over the same miles. So every box you leave behind cuts the bill and the emissions at the same time.

Prêt-à-porter made with algae

Danit Peleg is reinventing 3D-printed fashion with algae-based biomaterials, AI-powered design and made-to-order manufacturing. Can circular fashion become commercially viable?

Aduro Takes Flexible Packaging to PepsiCo Innovation Hub as Investor Yazan Al Homsi Calls It Chemical Recycling’s Toughest Test

Aduro Clean Technologies is testing a chemical recycling solution for snack wrappers, flexible films and multilayer plastics. Its presentation to PepsiCo in Mexico City highlights the challenge of turning difficult packaging waste into valuable new materials.

The Sustainable Moving Checklist Every Household Should Follow

The most important step is the one nobody enjoys. Six weeks out, walk the house room by room and decide what has earned a place on the truck. Anything you wouldn’t pay to ship is moving out of habit.

6 Best Eco-Friendly Web Hosting Providers That Don’t Sacrifice Speed

Not all green web hosting is created equal. Some companies buy renewable energy certificates, others use cleaner data centers, and some extend the life of existing servers. We compare six web hosts, including GreenGeeks, SiteGround and Hostinger, to see how their environmental claims stack up against performance, speed and transparency.

Oil Spill Cleanup Crews Face Hidden Health Risks 

Oil spills grab headlines for black beaches and struggling wildlife. Fewer stories follow the people who scrub those shores. Workers and volunteers often spend days breathing fumes and touching tar. Their health matters as much as the coastline.

Walk of Water offers $9,000 for water stories that nobody sees

The 2026 Walk of Water Photostory Contest is offering $9,000 in prizes for photographers documenting the hidden side of water, from wastewater and pollution to sanitation workers, public health and clean-water solutions.

Kids plant mangroves in Ajman, adding 45 more trees to the UAE’s coastal forests

Twenty-six students planted 45 mangrove saplings at Al Zorah Beach in Ajman, joining a much larger Gulf-wide push to restore mangrove forests and protect vulnerable coastlines.
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