Heat Resilient Design: How City Leaders Use Building Materials to Fight Urban Heat

Extreme heat is one of climate change's most urgent and rapidly growing consequences, especially in cities. Urban areas are particularly vulnerable because they trap heat in building materials and urban streets, creating dangerous conditions for residents. As temperatures continue to rise and heat waves lengthen, cities are grappling with how to remain livable in the face of this intensifying threat.

Interiors of Bars and Restaurants that Blend Cultures, Arts, and Materials: El Equipo Creativo and Their Works in Barcelona

How does the design of contemporary interiors create different experiences through its materials? How does the adaptability and reuse of certain materials make it possible to generate contrasting and/or complementary atmospheres within a single space? According to each material's textures, proportions, colors, or properties, interior architecture currently recognizes the opportunity to create environments where materiality plays more than just an aesthetic role. With special attention to the final experience of its users, El Equipo Creativo aims to combine designs where landscape, nature, culture, and art stand out in interior compositions that accommodate broad programs and audiences.

Wintercircus Technological and Cultural Hub / OYO

OYO Architects, an architectural practice based in Ghent and Barcelona, presents Wintercircus, a 4,830m2 interior design project that breathes new life into a monumental historic building in Ghent, Belgium. This 125-year-old giant, once a circus and later a garage, is now converted into a vibrant technological and cultural hub that extends the life of the building and ensures a sustainable future for both the campus and the city. Located in the heart of Ghent, this 1885 building has undergone several transformations, most recently in 2015, in which its original robust structure was preserved. From this base, OYO has renovated the interiors of Wintercircus to align with the ambitions of TENT, a consortium of local technology entrepreneurs and the city, to turn the building into a catalyst for the city's community, economy, and employment. To quote OYO Architects: "The magic of the Wintercircus lies in the opportunity it provides to foster innovation, inspired by spontaneous interactions and the exchange of ideas between entrepreneurs, researchers, students, digital creatives and the general public".

The European Citizens’ Initiative HouseEurope! Receives the 2025 OBEL Award

HouseEurope!, a registered non-profit organization focused on promoting the social and ecological transformation of Europe's built environment, has received the 2025 OBEL Award. Presented annually by the Henrik Frode Obel Foundation, the award recognizes architectural contributions with the potential to drive meaningful change. Aligned with this year's theme, "Ready Made," the OBEL Award Jury selected HouseEurope! for its efforts in raising awareness and fostering public engagement around the need for a shift in construction and housing practices across Europe.

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