Carlo Ratti: "If architecture continues to focus on formal issues, it will end up forgotten."

MadridClimate change poses increasingly demanding challenges for architects. Construction is one of the most polluting sectors on the planet: according to the UN, it consumes 32% of the world's energy and produces 34% of greenhouse gas emissions. The sector responded to these figures with strategies to reduce emissions, with last year being the first year since 2020 in which emissions stopped growing. But now we must take a step forward, and architect and engineer Carlo Ratti, director of the upcoming Venice Architecture Biennale, argues that it is no longer enough for architecture to contribute to the "mitigation" of emissions; he is now talking about "adaptation," that is, "helping our built environments."

Before the Architecture Biennial begins on May 10, Ratti has spoken about this central idea of his project in different international forums, and on Thursday and Friday he did so at the eighth edition of the Rebuild fair in Madrid, the most important fair dedicated to industrialized construction in Europe, where he is going to Intelligens: Towards a new architecture of adaptation."We mustn't lose sight of mitigation, but adaptation means we must live in a climate that is changing," Carlo Ratti explains to ARA. "If we look at what happened in Valencia," he adds, "Europe and, particularly, Spain are disproportionately affected by climate change. Therefore, architecture is the only hope, because the only thing we can do is transform the environment."

Ratti says his Architecture Biennale will be a "call to action" to analyze how architecture can "be central to future urban and human development." This means a change in social role; "It's something like what Martin Luther King once said about utopia or oblivion. If architecture continues to focus on beautification or formal issues, it will undoubtedly end up forgotten," warns Ratti.

In this new look at the environment, Ratti emphasizes how architects work together with professionals from many other disciplines, from "engineering to science, science to forest management, agriculture, cuisine and fashion." "The way to make a difference in adaptation is precisely by working together," he emphasizes.

The promising horizon of wood construction

In this edition of Rebuild, whose motto has been The time has come: Industrialized construction, There were around 630 exhibitors from all types of companies; from companies dedicated to building kitchens and bathrooms to those dedicated to energy efficiency, air conditioning, and industrialized construction systems. Around 27,000 professionals participated, including developers, builders, architects, engineers, and designers. Their goal was to make construction—especially housing—more affordable and sustainable. The fair included the Advanced Architecture and Construction 4.0 Congress, which featured architects such as Josep Llinàs, awarded the 2024 Gold Medal for Architecture; Frenchman Dominique Perrault, who explained how the 2,800 homes in the Paris 2024 Olympic Village were built—primarily using wood; and Austrian architect Silja Tillner, a pioneer in her country in affordable housing projects.

One of the highlights of the congress was the wood construction, and one of the roundtables addressed the question of whether there is enough wood in the Spanish state to implement this idea on a widespread basis. France is a model in this field: from 2022, the French government has mandated that at least 50% of the materials used in public buildings be wood or other biologically derived materials, and demand for wood is expected to increase by 20% in the coming years. As for Spain, the use of wood is still very much in the minority, at less than 1%, according to the Mass Madera network report.

But the sector is optimistic: Spain is the second European country in terms of forest area (26,300,000 hectares), behind Sweden, and sources from the Spanish Association of Wood Trade and Industry report that 63% of member companies expect an overall increase in sales. "We don't know if there will be enough wood or not, but it won't be enough if we don't use it efficiently and if we're not able to motivate proper forest management," says Juan Picos, a professor at the University of Vigo. For Gonzalo Anguita, director of the Forest Stewardship Council Spain (FSC), wood is an "opportunity," and he points out two keys to good management: using it where it has "greatest economic value," and avoiding competition, in other words, ensuring there's enough "for all uses." "The best way to have wood for construction in the future is to use wood in construction," Picos emphasizes.