Sustainable Design Methods

Conceptual design by Daniel Lie Jia Kua

Located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, the site was refurbished in 2019. It has successfully attracted young artists and made the courtyard more lively. The location is utilised for ongoing festive activities, but it remains uninviting during off-peak season. The project aims to redesign the place for local workers as a hanging spot during their break time. A series of transitional spaces for hangouts and reminiscences of the past is created.

Conceptual design by Erleta Berisha and Irena Llapashtica

Located in Pristina, the pavilion is designed for intersecting animal communities and human use, The pavilion is modular, vertical structure composed of various cuboid sections. Each section is designed to accommodate different animal habitats, incorporating elements such as nesting areas, planters with vegetation, and spaces filled with natural materials like twigs and leaves.

' It is good to remember that utopia is nothing but the reality of tomorrow and that today's reality is yesterday’s utopia'

Le Corbusier

Illustration by: Munashichi,Future Economic View of Innocence, 2015

In 2023, the world faces a pressing challenge from climate change, with drought, forest fires, and torrential rains becoming more frequent. As a result, people are striving to create resilient communities that improve the quality of life and create a 'brave new world' for future generations. Architects have long hoped to create a better society through utopian ideas, but the current situation is deteriorating water quality, increasing temperatures, and emitting emissions.

To combat urban heat island, small green spaces can be used as a means of cooling cities during heatwaves. The tiny actions we each take add up to a great deal when multiplied among a global community. For sustainability to evolve, this is a crucial strategy.

The conversion of a small area of underutilized urban land into a miniature nature reserve benefits the neighbourhood in numerous ways.Their comprehension and order of importance regarding these issues will determine their future.

This semester, Mix n' Match will concentrate on small urban areas that emphasise a combination or relationship to several components, such as a combination of environments and mood, environments and cultures, and so forth. Its goal is to research and examine various underutilized urban areas and combine them with various components that influence a resilient and sustainable society, where they may be used for the restoration of social and mental health.

How can students identify underutilized open spaces, combine different elements, and build an urban enclave that supports itself as a community recreation and revitalisation area?

Conceptual design by Erin Kong 

Located in Cottbus. The key idea of the project is to be ‘more than a museum’, where the building acts as an initiator and catalyst for integration and education. The sunken courtyard guides users closer to the water's edge, mimicking the topography of the ex-mining site. Reflecting the development, the structure showcases 2 different views. One blends with the surroundings and the other is a modern Lightbox from the sea.

Congratulations to the students on the successful completion of their Master's thesis at Studio Peter Ruge on the theme: "Fire & Water: What the future holds". It was the best studio in recent years, also due to the fact that WinShen Tay was awarded the Robert Oxman Prize for the best student project at DIA this year. The theme of the future-looking thesis was Urban Rematerialisation - Reimagining a Circular Metabolism of Materiality.

Photo courtesy of Lelaram Thiyagarajan

Conceptual design by Shaqir Shaqiri and Elvis Isaac Enebeli

Located in Nigeria. The site faces issues such as lack of adequate school, health centres and food. The project aims to create a build environment that serve both as productive and nurturing spaces. 

Conceptual design by Benjamin Kah Ho Ngai and Cian Wong

@benthedurian and @ciann.w

Located in Cottbus. The key idea of the project is to utilise modular/prefabricated construction components for the proposed information centre, to address the changing relationship between cultural history, the natural environment and coal mining in the region.

Conceptual design by Avneet Madan and Pratiksha Dutta

@avneetmadan and @pratiksha_dutta19

Located in Halle, the key idea of the project is to utilise adaptive reuse from existing structure- The primary features of the warehouse of seamless integration of residential spaces with laborative environments, such as art galleries, workshops, an urban/ideas lab, and dedicated areas for artistic expression such as graffiti art rooms.

The different spaces connected give users a chance to use their skills and get involved with the local culture.