Where cities were once shaped by simple structures that could adapt to new uses, they are now packed with rigid dwellings—often designed with a single use in mind and fixed in both layout and lifespan. As climate deadlines tighten, communities demand more resilient, resource-conscious spaces, and work and living patterns continue to shift, this rigidity is becoming a liability. When buildings refuse to bend, they are often treated as disposable, triggering cycles of demolition, downtime, and loss. Adaptability, once considered an added convenience, is becoming an imperative—something the inaugural Adaptable Building Conference (ABC) in Rotterdam aims to put front and center.
Why Cities Can't Afford Static Buildings
For Cécile Faraud, clean construction program manager at C40 Cities—a global network of mayors driving the future of city climate action—and a speaker at ABC, the urgency is clear. "We rely on buildings daily—they're our homes, offices, schools, hospitals—but they also significantly drive the climate crisis," she says. The statistics on the subject are well known: concrete alone contributes at least 8 percent of global emissions, consumes scarce raw materials and vast quantities of water, and reinforces the impermeable, heat-trapping qualities of urban areas. With an additional 2.5 billion people expected to live in cities by 2050, this impact will only grow unless existing buildings are used far more intelligently. "Local governments must tackle this complex issue now," Faraud says, adding that the priority must be to maximize the use of existing buildings, especially when they are underutilized or vacant.
Adaptability and Circularity: Two Sides of the Same Agenda
Circularity is often mistakenly equated with recycling, but Faraud argues that it begins much earlier, by "rethinking how we use stuff, including our buildings. The first actions are to reduce and reuse. Adaptable buildings provide an excellent solution to both." They sidestep the embodied emissions of new construction and raw material waste. By using what already exists, says Faraud, adaptable buildings can "serve changing needs while retaining identity, heritage and community bonds."
What Cities Can Do Now
What practical measures can cities take to encourage developers and designers to build more flexible, low-carbon structures? Faraud advises setting clear visions and targets, leading by example in procurement, tightening planning and building rules where possible, and using softer tools such as convening stakeholders, supporting training, publishing guidance, showcasing flagship projects, and shaping incentives to build momentum through encouragement and expectation.
Rethink What Buildings Are For
If buildings continue to be conceived as static, single-purpose structures, cities will remain trapped in a cycle of obsolescence and replacement. Adaptability offers another trajectory: buildings as evolving frameworks. The challenge is significant, but the opportunity is greater. With the right tools, incentives, and collaborations, buildings can learn to change as quickly as the world around them.
While there are many strong efforts across the value chain, fragmentation and siloed approaches remain the norm. As a result, we're still not acting at the pace and scale a sector like this demands, where everyone needs to shoulder their share of responsibility. The more we document what's already happening at the city and industry levels—and the cost of inaction—the more we can build the collaborations needed on the ground. Initiatives like the Adaptable Building Conference (ABC) offer such an opportunity.—Cécile Faraud
The inaugural Adaptable Building Conference will focus on offices—perhaps the building typology under the greatest pressure to adapt, whether to a new layout or an entirely new function. Speakers will include Steven Paynter (Gensler) on conversion feasibility; Paco Bunnik (City of Amsterdam) on municipal levers; Martine Gründemann (Zadelhoff) on the developer perspective; and Hubert Rhomberg (CREE) on industrialized timber–hybrid systems. The event will also introduce the Adaptable Building Certificate, designed to help specify adaptability and demonstrate performance over time.
Register now to join the Adaptable Building Conference and shape the future of adaptive architecture—book here.
