As architects, our profession hasalways played a crucial role in shaping the built environment, influencing how resources are utilised and the impact our buildings have on their users and on our planet.

With the growing urgency to address and resource depletion, As an industry we must now move beyond debates and conversations, and lead the way in promoting and embedding circular economy principles in all architectural designs.

When it comes to the circular economy, however, there are currently some key elements missing from the puzzle. Discussion is mainly around materials, whereas if we are to make progress, we need to move towards a far more rounded perspective and include people and ecology.

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Educating, advocating and inspiring

We can start by educating ourselves and our peers about the concept and benefits of circular economy principles, to enable us to engage with greater confidence with clients, stakeholders, and policymakers to promote awareness and adoption of circular economy practices in their projects and across the wider built environment.

As a profession we already encourage research and innovation in circular design, biophilic design principles, construction techniques, biodiversity and material science to advance sustainable practices within the architectural profession.

We must now go further and design the best of this research not only into the fabric of our buildings, but into their environments and how they are used.

Collaboration with other disciplines is also critical, to persuade and take engineers, contractors, and other industry professionals along with us, to integrate circular economy principles throughout the entire building lifecycle. This interdisciplinary approach fosters innovation and ensures that sustainability considerations are incorporated at every stage of a project.

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Leading by example

Our design processes must automatically integrate design principles that prioritise resource efficiency, such as modular construction and cradle-to-cradle design approaches. We can also promote adaptive reuse by repurposing buildings where feasible.

The specification of sustainable and recycled materials, prioritising materials with low environmental impact and high durability, stands out as an area that has progressed considerably to date in practical terms. At Chetwoods, for example, we have developed and are rolling out a popular programme of Material Matters Workshops that discuss and prioritise materials that are renewable, recyclable, and non-toxic.

We also collaborate with material suppliers and manufacturers to support the development and adoption of circular materials and products.

We must demonstrate to more cautious clients the long-term economic and environmental advantages of sustainable design practices. We can now offer our clients greater commercial confidence by applying lifecycle assessment tools to evaluate the environmental impact of design decisions, optimise designs for sustainability, and benchmark, measure and validate data metrics on every aspect of a building’s design, construction, and performance.  

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Stepping up

As architects, we have the power and responsibility to shape not just a built environment, but a way of living in a building and its surroundings that is more regenerative, resource-efficient, and resilient.

We are taking steps towards this in our own practice. Led by Laurie Chetwood, we are developing the first UK architectural project which explores a ‘Circular Lifestyle’ that embodies three elements from a circular economy viewpoint: social, ecological and material.  

By embracing wider circular economy principles in our projects and practice, we can serve as role models for the wider construction industry, sharing knowledge, best practices, and case studies to inspire and empower fellow industry professionals, clients and project stakeholders to embrace circularity as not just a ‘nice to have’ but as a no longer negotiable ‘must have’.

By demonstrating the circular economy into action, we can create more buildings and spaces that not only meet immediate commercial needs but also positively safeguard the wellbeing of future generations and the health of our planet. We have a collective duty to lead this transformation towards a more sustainable and circular future for architecture and society as a whole.

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