Circular Architecture: Transforming How We Build

As we all strive to cut our carbon footprint, our attention turns to obvious culprits. These being the cars we drive, the food we eat, the clothes we wear, and so on. But it may surprise you to hear that 25% of the UK’s emissions come from the built environment. This encompasses everything ranging from the stores we shop in, warehouses that store our goods, offices we work in, and the homes we live in.

So, how can we build our shops, offices, homes etc. to be less environmentally damaging? The answer could well be circular architecture. This is an approach to designing and building properties and infrastructure that places a focus on sustainability, efficiency, and an overall reduction in waste. It could be seen as a sibling of the circular economy you’ve likely encountered when buying clothes. But in the case of architecture, the challenges and opportunities could be far greater.

A Whistle-stop Tour of Circular Architecture

For those of us with a keen interest in architecture, you may wonder where circular architecture started. Truth be told, it’s difficult to pinpoint a singular origin. Instead, circular architecture seems to be an amalgamation of various movements, philosophies, and principles. Together these emphasise the need for us to minimise the use of and maximise the reuse of materials used when planning and building.

Cradle to Cradle Design

Thought up by architect William McDonough and chemist Michael Braungart in their 2002 book, Cradle to Cradle Design has a simple idea at its heart. This is that products and buildings should be designed with the intention of being reused or recycled after their initial use. In the case of shops, homes, offices and so on, this largely entails the building materials that go into creating them. This could be the insulation in your loft or concrete used in the foundations, for example.

Adaptive Reuse Practice

Sharing similarities with Cradle to Cradle Design, the practice of adaptive reuse focuses on reusing existing buildings or structures before you choose to demolish and build from the ground up. This goes beyond simply using reusable insulation or rammed earth on a project, but instead asking why you cannot use the insulation or foundations already being used within your existing property. In doing so, it immediately eliminates the demand for new materials and removes the emissions associated with their creation, transportation etc.

Biomimicry

Although one of the most holistic aspects of modern architecture, biomimicry’s popularity has grown in tandem with circular architecture. In its simplest form, it aims to learn from naturally occurring strategies and structures. Then with a lot of thought, of course, it looks to use these in how we build shops, homes, offices etc. The theory is that by doing so we can create more efficient homes with less waste by simply learning from the systems found in the natural world.

Circular Architecture in Our Lives

If we can agree that we want to minimise the emissions produced when building, then there are few places where circular architecture doesn’t have a place. From buildings to public places to infrastructure, all of them could benefit from a more circular approach. But due to the complexities of achieving change in the public arena, let’s focus on our homes from this point onwards. More specifically, let’s focus on building new homes and renovating existing homes.

Materials

The emissions tied to the built environment mostly come from the manufacturing of materials. This is hardly surprising with many staples of the construction industry being very dirty. For example, PIR insulation sees chemicals such as isocyanates leak into the environment when placed into landfill. Equally, concrete uses a huge number of natural resources such as sand and water during its production. Lastly, timber relies on deforestation in many cases and often travels far.  

But in recent decades several more eco alternatives have come onto the market. You’ve got insulation made from wool that is free of chemicals, eliminating the harm it can do when disposed of. You’ve also got hempcrete that is not only made from renewable sources but also absorbs carbon dioxide from the environment as it cures. Finally, bamboo is a great alternative to timber cladding or decking because of the speed at which it regrows.

Principles

Even with more sustainable materials, the principles of construction must shift. Thankfully, circular architecture encompasses numerous approaches, principles, and philosophies. Of course, the central principles include designing a building to use minimal natural resources to keep warm, provide electricity, and supply water. In the case of minimising the use of gas or electricity to heat a building, its orientation to the sun is key. When it comes to supplying electricity, you must first design a building that requires less through the use of natural light. To conserve water, you could introduce an underground water collection system that captures rainwater.

Another consideration within circular architecture is ‘designing for disassembly’. This requires architects to create buildings that can be as easily disassembled as when they were assembled. More specifically, they can be taken apart whilst allowing you to reuse their materials. Modular buildings are fantastic for this as well as those that use little permanent adhesive or fixings. This aims to eliminate the need for materials when restructuring a building to meet changing needs.

The Future of Circular Architecture

As the desire to create more sustainable homes grows, so will the need for a circular approach to architecture. This will be pushed further as homeowners and developers become wiser about the ‘gimmicks’ of eco-architecture and demand a more thorough approach by architects. In an ideal world, this will see both the principles of designing buildings and the materials used in their construction become more sustainable and reusable.

Our Hertfordshire-based architects have both a passion for and experience in sustainable architecture. In fact, we’ve gone a step further and are advancing towards zero carbon architecture that considers biodiversity, air quality, and the broader environment. So, whether you’re looking to renovate your Watford home or are an independent developer in St Albans – get in touch!