MVRDV Planet Week

Globally operating architecture and urbanism practice MVRDV organises their first edition of the "MVRDV Planet week" to address the 21st century expectations and opportunities for Planet Earth. The week is a call for action through workshops, lectures, and a Pecha Kucha. During the October 2nd workshop, guest lecturer Catherine De Wolf presents her research at the Structural Xploration Lab (SXL) on low carbon circular design. The building industry is the most resource-intensive sector in all industrialised economies, produces a third of all generated waste in Europe, and is responsible for more than a third of global greenhouse gas emissions. To transform the most polluting sector, the building sector, into a circular economy, the current extract-produce-dispose industrial model of structural materials needs to shift towards a restorative and regenerative model. Identifying the need for academia-industry-government collaboration, this workshop is addressed to all stakeholders of the building industry. Indeed, circular buildings require data sharing and synergies across different sectors globally.

MVRDV was created by Dutch architects, landscape architects, professors, and urbanists Winy Maas, Jacob van Rijs, and Nathalie de Vries. Built projects include the Netherlands Pavilion for the World EXPO 2000 in Hannover, the Market Hall in Rotterdam, the Pushed Slab in Paris' first eco-district, the Silodam Housing complex in Amsterdam, the Matsudai Cultural Centre in Japan, and the Mirador and Celosia housing in Madrid. The firm also worked on publications, installations, and exhibitions. Together with Delft University of Technology, MVRDV runs The Why Factory, a think tank and research institute envisioning the city of the future.