The world's first upcycle timber high-rise and Denmark's tallest timber tower, TR, is a 78-meter beacon of circular construction, showing that large-scale architecture can combine reused materials, biogenic resources, refined aesthetics, and high performance without compromise.
Houses could function perfectly well as simple, efficient structures that keep us warm, dry, and comfortable, but we demand gables, columns, brick facades, and decorative trim because we want them to look appealing. The materials and energy required to build and maintain those aesthetic choices far outweigh what's actually needed for shelter. If we were all blind, the argument goes, our houses would be optimized spheres or domes with minimal material use and maximum efficiency.
Construction of Zaha Hadid Architects' Yidan Center in Shenzhen, China, has reached full height. The new landmark will serve as the headquarters of the Chen Yidan Foundation and the Yidan Prize, organizations dedicated to promoting lifelong learning and innovation in education. The center will host facilities for academic research, cultural events, and exhibitions, supporting the foundation's mission to advance global education. Located adjacent to the Qianhai Museum, the Yidan Center helps define a new cultural quarter in China's third-most-populous city.
Designed by Yong Ju Lee Architecture, this project arrives at a critical juncture. The architecture and construction sector currently accounts for the highest carbon emissions among all global industries. After 10,000 years of evolution alongside humanity, architecture entered the 20th century prioritizing efficiency and economy above all else, adopting concrete and steel as its near-exclusive materials. This pursuit of industrial optimization, while enabling rapid development, detached architecture from its ecological roots and intensified the environmental burden of the built environment.
The architecture and construction sector currently accounts for the highest carbon emissions among all global industries. Architecture, which has evolved alongside humanity for over 10,000 years, entered the 20th century prioritizing efficiency and economy above all else, adopting concrete and steel as its near-exclusive materials. This pursuit of industrial optimization, while enabling rapid development, also detached architecture from its ecological roots and intensified the environmental burden of the built environment.
With expertise spanning architecture, interior design, master planning and construction management, Spectrum is setting new standards for modern development by reconciling the demands of contemporary architecture with the responsibilities of environmental and social stewardship. The internationally recognized firm operates with a core philosophy rooted in nature, drawing inspiration from elements like the textures of stone, shifting light, and the cadence of the surrounding landscape.
Earth-sheltered homes - often called "hobbit houses" in homage to J.R.R. Tolkien's beloved tales, are quickly becoming a top trend in sustainable architecture. These unique dwellings blend seamlessly into the landscape, offering homeowners peace, energy efficiency, and a closer connection to nature. If you're searching for a home that's as eco-friendly as it is enchanting, earth-sheltered living could be your answer.
Renewable energy systems in commercial architecture often remain hidden behind facades or tucked away on rooftops, treated as necessary but unsightly additions to building design. This approach misses opportunities to celebrate sustainable technology as part of the architectural experience, particularly in industries like wine making, where connection to natural cycles and environmental stewardship could enhance rather than compromise the visitor experience.
The architectural form immediately catches your attention with four dramatic, arching concrete composite segments that echo the rolling hills of California wine country. Large glass sections bridge these arches, creating expansive views while maintaining the sculptural integrity of the design. Sustainably grown wood slatted pathways weave throughout the vineyard and flow up and over the house itself, serving as both circulation routes and natural shading devices.
The sustainable Hortus office building creates a modern and flexible working environment for a new generation of technology companies that are settling in the Basel metropolitan region. Our client, Senn, commissioned us to design a radically sustainable office building made of renewable and recyclable building materials. The brief initiated a design process aimed at combining the lowest possible grey energy during construction, an energy-optimized concept during operation, and a surplus of self-generated energy.
Organized by CAFx (Copenhagen Architecture Forum), the new platform evolves from the city's previous annual festival into a broader international biennial for architectural dialogue and exchange. Led by Josephine Michau, the event seeks to create space for reflection on architecture's role in shaping societies and the environment. The chosen theme, Slow Down, invites participants to reconsider the pace of transformation in the built environment in response to global pressures such as rapid urbanization, resource consumption, and climate change.
Transcending their role as mere infrastructure, bridges have long served as powerful architectural statements. This expressive potential is now being explored with renewed vigor across South-East Asia, where a growing number of architects are re-evaluating traditional materials. By championing wood and bamboo, these designers are creating distinctive structures that integrate local craftsmanship with contemporary needs, resulting in landmarks that are both functional and deeply rooted in their landscape.
Guwahati International Airport (GAU), also known as Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport, was just announced as one of seven winners in the International Architecture Awards 2025 for the Airports and Transportation Centers category, for a brand-new terminal that will soon debut. The airport primarily serves the northeastern corner of Assam, India. The beautiful terminal, designed by the firm Nudes Architecture, was commissioned as part of an effort to improve local infrastructure and accommodate a higher number of air travelers. The structure is inspired by Assam's natural environment, culture, and biodiversity-and particularly by orchids and bamboo. In Assam, there are more than 400 wild species of orchids, and "bamboo orchids" was the main inspiration for the airport's design brief.
In Fukushima, a region still defined by the aftershocks of the 2011 earthquake, tsunami, and subsequent nuclear disaster, Japanese architecture studio Vuild has envisioned a structure that seeks not only to host matches but also to embody the spirit of regeneration. The new wooden stadium for Fukushima United FC stands as a thoughtful fusion of sport, sustainability, and community resilience, offering a design that looks beyond function to symbolize healing and renewal.
After moving to Marfa in the 1970s, Judd purchased 22 buildings in the small Chihuahua desert town and transformed them into spaces to live, work, and display art. Among them are a former military complex turned residence and galleries for his large-scale pieces, an adobe house for his paintings and collection of antique Swedish and Shaker furniture, and an old Safeway for his art studio.
Inca Hernandez Atelier unveils Liwa Farm Village, a 7,000-square-meter masterplan in the historic Liwa Oasis of Abu Dhabi's Western Region that combines agricultural production, cultural spaces, and community life. The project draws on ancestral building traditions, including rammed-earth walls, windcatchers, aflaj irrigation, and palm-trunk roofing, while adapting them through contemporary strategies that prioritize sustainability and thermal comfort in the harsh desert climate.
Nestled away in Toronto's Don Valley Ravine, the West Don Ravine Passive House makes history as the city's first PHIUS-certified home. Gregory Rubin of Poiesis Architecture designed it for his parents, turning a personal project into something much bigger. After 15 years working on high-end projects, his parents gave him complete creative control for his first ground-up build. The timing couldn't have been better.
The Colombia Pavilion at Expo Osaka 2025 embodies the theme "ICE CUBE," inspired by Gabriel García Márquez's One Hundred Years of Solitude, featuring translucent cubes that illustrate movement.
Pojeon-jip, designed by sukchulmok and BRBB, is a residential project that embraces its agricultural surroundings in Gyeonggi-do, integrating cultivated landscapes into the living experience.
The renovation of the Boathouse Zuka embodies sustainable architecture by skillfully blending traditional alpine design with modern scientific requirements, exemplifying how purposeful restoration can breathe new life into historical structures.
Anadu Pine Villa comprises three elegantly designed guest suites, complemented by a refined wine and cigar bar, embodying the philosophy of 'Find yourself in nature.'
The anticipated Zayed National Museum is set to open in December 2025 in the Saadiyat Cultural District, joining a growing network of landmark institutions such as the Louvre Abu Dhabi.
The residence, nestled in Haiku, sits quietly among the greenery, its minimalist lines and sculptural roof taking cues from the landscape rather than imposing upon it.
