The global financial crisis of 2008 revealed the damage done by unchecked housing speculation, yet in the ensuing years, the use of architecture as an investment tool has only accelerated, heightening inequality and contributing to worldwide financial instability. We rarely consider architecture to be an important factor in contemporary economic and political debates, yet sparsely occupied ultra-thin "pencil towers" develop in our cities, functioning as speculative wealth storage for the superrich, and cavernous "iceberg" homes extend architectural assets many stories below street level. Meanwhile, communities around the globe are blighted by zombie and ghost urbanism, marked by unoccupied neighborhoods and abandoned housing developments.

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Smart design can make solar, wind, and geothermal energy beautiful, affordable, and accessible to all. Thirty-five projects from around the world that demonstrate how clean, healthy energy is within reach in every sector and field. Projects include homes for all income levels and climates, schools, parks, offices, and even power plants. Harmonizing nature, technology, and space, each project in Good Energy shows how design can improve planetary well-being while producing cost savings and creating green jobs.

Pura Arquitectura: International Congress of Latin American Architecture takes place within the framework of Road to BIALIMA, the pre-biennial event of the Lima International Architecture Biennial - BIALIMA 2021, organized by the CAP Regional Lima.

Romania’s contribution to the 17th Venice Architecture Biennale showcases a new perspective on mass migration, a phenomenon with a wide array of causes, ranking high on the international public agenda. Titled Fading Borders and curated by architects Irina Meliță and Ștefan Simion, the exhibition explores the challenges and opportunities of migration and its consequences on the built environment. Using Romania as a study case, where three million people have left the country in the last decade in pursuit of a better life abroad, the curatorial project frames a conversation around the role of architecture in the successful management of the migration phenomenon, as territorial boundaries continue to fade around the globe.

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In the second half of the 20th century, Soviet architecture has spread a common aesthetic across highly diverse environments, being an integral part in promoting the totalitarian ideology that disregarded local cultures, envisioning a unified, homogenous society. Nevertheless, in practice, the architecture proved itself susceptible to adaptations and local influences, perhaps nowhere more than in Central Asia. The article looks at the architectural heritage of a geographical area largely excluded from the Western-centric narratives on Soviet Modernism, encouraging a re-reading of a layered and nuanced urban landscape, with images by Roberto Conte and Stefano Perego.

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Award-winning architecture firm Bjarke Ingels Group has collaborated with lower-impact battery metals developer The Metals Company to reimagine a traditional metal production facility in a new contemporary and sustainable context. The firm designed a circular zero-solid-waste metallurgical plant that includes manufacturing, processing, and storage facilities, along with offices, visitor centers, and innovation facilities.

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The Architecture Film Festival London, now at its third edition, fosters conversations around architecture, society and the built environment through the medium of film. Along with the International Film Competition, the 2021 programme, debuting on June 2nd and held online, will feature a collection of diverse thematic screenings, essays and events titled "Capsules", which offer a platform to multiple curatorial voices.

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Eight organizations working toward Brazil's sustainable development are joining forces to promote Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) as a strategy to mitigate the effects of climate change in cities, address urban challenges, and make cities more resilient.

The term is relatively recent and still little known to the general public in the country. However, the concept, established by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), is simple: to promote interventions inspired by healthy ecosystems to address urgent societal challenges, especially in large metropolises. Water scarcity, flooding, biodiversity loss, health issues, and rising sea levels are some of the challenges that can be tackled by viewing nature as part of the solution, generating environmental, social, and economic benefits.

Lighting design for exhibition spaces in museums can be quite challenging because light must simultaneously enhance the space, preserve the integrity of the artworks and highlight them in a way that ensures the best conditions for the visitor's enjoyment.

In addition to having the highest CRI (Color Rendering Index), daylight contributes to a feeling of comfort and well-being in the built environment. In exhibition spaces, natural lighting is important to accurately reveal the colors of the objects on display, which is very significant for works of art and provides more visual comfort for visitors to clearly perceive the exhibits.

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Titled "Planet of the People", the Lithuanian pavilion at the 17th International Architecture Exhibition - La Biennale di Venezia, brings cosmic imagination to the picturesque Renaissance church Santa Maria del Derelitti. Curated by Jan Boelen, the pavilion will be on display from May 22nd until November 21st, 2021.

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