A transition to a biobased, circular construction industry is increasingly heralded as a solution to our environmental and social crises, offering designers, contractors, and manufacturers a sustainable way forward. This transition demands a radical transformation of the industry's practices, culture and critical assessment towards the materials it uses to build. Today, biobased building practices are still marginal, and much of the tradition of their use has been lost. Relearning these practices is now critical to scaling them. 

Material Cultures from the UK and Atelier Fanelsa from Germany will present their approach towards regional bio-based building and construction. The speakers will be Summer Islam and Paloma Gormley for Material Cultures and Niklas Fanelsa for Atelier Fanelsa. What strategies and methods can architects use to contribute to the transition to a biobased and circular building industry? What do we now need to learn about materials, processing, and the landscapes from which they are drawn in order to design responsibly? And how will that influence our design practices?