Designing Multispecies Public Space with Recycled Matter

Design for GreenInCities explores the intersection of circular construction and multispecies design through the reuse of construction and demolition waste. This seminar introduces rammed earth techniques using recycled materials to position public space as an ecological interface that supports both human and non-human life. Working within the Besòs pilot project of the GreenInCities initiative, students engage in hands-on processes of material sourcing, processing, and fabrication to develop site-responsive design proposals. Through group work, participants design and prototype public space elements that address environmental conditions such as microclimate, water collection, and material performance. Emphasizing coexistence, this seminar fosters a design approach grounded in circularity, material experimentation, and the creation of inclusive multispecies urban environments.

Syllabus

Credits: Digital Matter Studio 2023/24 – Re:New by Vivek Venkateshappa, Govind Chithrath, and Shuotong Zhang (https://blog.iaac.net/renew-2/)

This seminar addresses the growing relevance of circularity and material reuse in contemporary architecture, focusing on the innovative potential of reusing construction and demolition waste (CDW) through rammed earth techniques (rammed construction and demolition waste). In parallel, it engages with an expanded understanding of the city as a space that fosters the wellbeing of both humans and non-humans, promoting coexistence through the design of inclusive public environments.

Within this framework, the seminar explores the design of public space elements for the Besòs pilot project, part of the GreenInCities initiative developed by IAAC. Through hands-on workshops and lectures, students will learn how to transform locally sourced CDW into new architectural components, engaging directly with processes of material collection, processing, and compression using rammed construction techniques.

Public space is approached as an ecological interface: a shared environment where multiple species interact. Students will design elements that provide shelter and support for non-human life, fostering coexistence while addressing environmental conditions such as water collection, microclimate, and material performance. Qualities such as porosity, texture, light, and structural expression will be integral to the proposals.

Working in groups, participants will develop and prototype a series of public space elements, including vertical structures and inhabitable surfaces, testing them through 1:1 or scaled models. Selected outcomes may be integrated into the Besòs pilot project, which is scheduled for implementation starting in autumn 2026, positioning the seminar within a real and evolving urban transformation process.

Credits: Introductory Studio G4 2024/25 – Pixel Ecology by Matias Chadwick, Gokberk Aktas, and Ivane Gventsadze (https://blog.iaac.net/pixel-ecology/)

Learning Objectives

At course completion the student will:

Understand how to design circular architectural elements for more than human public spaces through the technique of rammed construction and demolition waste.
Build rammed construction and demolition waste prototypes (1:1 or scaled) to test proposed design solutions exploring texture, colour, function, lighting.
Be capable of implementing design strategies to accommodate the needs and wellbeing of non-humans (flora and fauna) – designing from the non-human perspective.