The relationship between architecture and the environment is multifaceted. It involves a dynamic interaction between built spaces and the surrounding natural context. It shapes how buildings and cities function, impacts ecosystems, and influences the well-being of inhabitants.
Many factors link architecture and the environment. They span from practical considerations such as natural materials and renewable energy sources to broader aspects like integrating and appreciating local culture. Within this wide range of possibilities, we have selected five interviews that showcase different approaches to this theme. These interviews stimulate essential reflections on the contemporary architectural context.
Ailton Krenak: “Instead of Operating in the Landscape, We Should Blend in With It”
Ailton Krenak is an environmentalist, philosopher, writer, and poet, awarded an honorary doctorate by the Federal University of Minas Gerais and the Federal University of Juiz de Fora. As an indigenous leader, Krenak weaves images from his lived experiences into concepts and conveys them through a language rooted in orality and poetry. His worldview does not separate landscapes from human beings, animals, rivers, and mountains, and his call for new ways of life is urgent.
The question is: with so much technological development, why wasn't Sapiens able to invent something other than a cave, a bunker? A building made of iron, cement, and concrete is a cave. And a cave of bad taste. Can't we create permeable environments, where we can feel like we belong to spaces, instead of on top of spaces?
Gloria Cabral: “Everything Begins With the Wisdom of a Place”
Born in Brazil and educated in Paraguay, Gloria Cabral is an architect who early on learned that home can be many places—or none at all. Guided by a comprehensive understanding of the geography, culture, and social conditions of the places she designs, she has left her mark on buildings and artistic installations constructed in various locations, from Asunción to Venice. Besides her interest in the specificities of the places where she operates, Gloria focuses on resource economy and material reuse — a trending theme that Gloria has championed for over fifteen years.
I believe everything begins with the wisdom of a place. However, when you not only understand what to do but also why you're doing it, wisdom transforms into adaptable knowledge applicable to any region.
Returning the Building to the Soil: an Interview with the Architect and Scientist Mae-Ling Lokko
Agriculture and the food industry seem to have little in common with architecture, but it is precisely the overlap of these three areas that interests Ghanaian-Filipino scientist and architect Mae-ling Lokko, founder of Willow Technologies based in Accra, Ghana. Working with recycling agricultural waste and biopolymer materials, Lokko searches for ways to transform the so-called agrowaste into building materials.
Architecture lifecycle should encompass both what our buildings do to materials and how the environment deals with the materials after. But that is a huge challenge, we have to understand much better what happens, what our soil is made of, what’s in our materials. That is a paradigm change.
Looking for an Architecture of Essence: Interview With Laurent Troost
Laurent Troost is a Belgian architect with a vast history of projects in the Netherlands, Spain, and Dubai. He made the decision to move to Brazil in 2008, settling in the city of Manaus. In this region filled with challenges and inspiration, Troost developed a unique architectural practice by combining his experiences in designing luxury buildings abroad with structures in the heart of the Amazon.
Regarding the sustainability of the construction industry, I believe it's essential to consider the impact of urban use and buildings. In all our projects, we always try to study the wind patterns or the lack thereof and create ventilation whenever possible to reduce the need for air conditioning. We also pay a great deal of attention to site planning, the impact of sunlight through the use of sunshades, double skins, and intelligent placement of functions such as bathrooms and other humid areas where there is more sunlight.
Gabriela de Matos and Paulo Tavares: Earth as Ancestral and Future Technology
Addressing "earth" in all its meanings, the curators overlay issues related to soil and territory with the planetary problems, the curators of the Brazilian Pavilion at the 2023 Venice Architecture Biennale, Gabriela de Matos and Paulo Tavares, overlay issues related to soil and territory with the planetary problems. They propose an approach to reparations and decoloniality - emerging in Brazil - with broad topics such as decarbonization and the environment, decisive in the contemporary global debate.
How can we expect entire generations that associate the earth with dirt to connect with urgent environmental and climate issues? This is a global reflection because it connects to many contexts. Furthermore, it is also an invitation to think about the earth as an ancient and future technology simultaneously. An invitation to think about how we can associate it with today's technologies and build more respectfully with the environment.
Discover ArchDaily's interview section, where we explore topics as varied as technology, construction materials, architectural design, cities, community, sustainability and the environment.
