What is sustainable architecture?

This publishing platform asks a straightforward but very complex question: What is sustainable architecture? The articles you will find on the website suggest that the answer is more of a multi-layered mosaic than a clear-cut definition. In this time of “poly-crisis,” meaning a complex situation of interconnected crises, we need to look at sustainable architecture from different angles and think about related concepts like resilience, climate neutrality, self-sufficiency, the circular economy, and more. If the core of sustainability is the pursuit of a dignified life on a planet that is habitable in the long term, then it is necessary to focus on the dynamics and tensions between its environmental, economic, and social aspects. Architecture and the built environment embody these relationships: inside buildings, in public spaces, and in the landscape, we can observe where materials and energy flow, who has access to what, and what receives attention and care. Architecture thus becomes a space for negotiation and collaboration, where the future takes concrete shape.

The aim of this platform is to map the terrain, collect provisional answers, and develop critical thinking about sustainability in architecture in the Czech environment. We divide the published texts into three categories: “Strategies” are devoted to concepts and approaches that we associate with sustainability in architecture and which we place in broader thematic and geographical contexts. “Examples” represent and illustrate these general approaches: we focus on projects implemented or planned in the Czech environment and, rather than selecting the “best,” we attempt to present the complexity and diversity of sustainability concepts in the local context. Strategies and examples intertwine and refer to each other, while sub-topics may be approached in different ways and with different emphases in different texts. “Interpretations” then open up space for research and creative outputs that offer further specific perspectives on a given topic. This is where we are happy to publish contributions from authors outside our team.

The project originated at the Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague (UMPRUM), on the initiative of SHIFT – Sustainability Transitions Lab. This research platform goes hand in hand with other school programs and projects focused on climate and environmental issues, whether it be the activities of the Kafkárna – Center for Arts and Ecology or individual departments and studios. The topic of sustainability in architecture is, so to speak, “in the air” at UMPRUM, and this platform offers an opportunity for its ongoing reflection.

The authors of the texts in the Strategy and Examples sections graduated from UMPRUM with degrees in architecture or art and design theory and are engaged in research in the field of architecture and design or architectural practice. The Rethink Architecture organization, which has been dealing with the topic of sustainability in architecture for a long time, is also involved in the project and contributes to the creation of content through expert reviews and partial research collaboration.

The platform also complements and builds on other projects dedicated to this issue in the Czech environment, which shape professional discussion and are a useful source of information. In 2018, for example, a professional conference on the topic of What is Sustainable Architecture? was held at the Faculty of Architecture of the Czech Technical University in Prague, and since 2022, doctoral symposia on the topic of Architecture in an Expanded Field have been held at the same faculty. In 2024, the Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague held a professional conference and exhibition called Alteration, focused on the possibilities of sustainable design and interdisciplinary cooperation. Other web platforms and databases are also important for the development of sustainability in architecture, such as the ClimArchiBase platform (Rethink Architecture Institute), the Adapterra Awards database (The Environmental Partnership Foundation), and the Passive House Catalog (Passive House Center).

The platform would not have been created without financial support from the EU through the National Recovery Plan and the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic. It was funded by the project “Web Platform for Sustainability in Architecture” (project registration number at the Ministry of Culture: 0443000045).