This guide covers a workflow that moves from project parameters to generated floor plans, 3D perspective views, exterior design exploration, and site context visualization, using AI tools in place of preliminary CAD and rendering work.

A Drug Rehabilitation Center in the Cracolândia region of São Paulo. This was the theme of the first design competition organized by Labideias, open to students and recent graduates in architecture and urbanism with up to two years since graduation.

Architecture can play a critical role in questioning existing possibilities. It can be a voice that, through the built environment, proposes more humanized, creative, and inclusive approaches. Based on this premise, the organization invited participants to develop a proposal that addresses the needs of a marginalized and increasingly persecuted population. Discover the winners and honorable mentions of the #001 Labideias Competition below.

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While Chile is recognized as having one of the best education systems in Latin America, it also maintains a dual public and private system where disparities can often be significant. To address this issue, the Ministry of Education (MINEDUC) launched the Educational Reactivation Plan, which aims to allocate 100 billion Chilean pesos to preserve the infrastructure of public educational facilities.

The Region V association of the Federation of Architects of the Mexican Republic (FCARM) issued a call for entries for the "Second Biennial: Living Architecture." The event aims to identify, recognize, and promote the best architectural works, publications, research, and theses by architects from Region V, which comprises the states of Baja California Sur, Nayarit, Jalisco, Sinaloa, and Colima.

Several new projects have been introduced this year that bring significant changes to transit options for Chile's residents. These include the addition of the new Santiago Metro Lines and a new preliminary cable car project designed to connect Valparaíso with Placilla de Peñuelas.

In August, the Colegio de Arquitectos de Chile celebrated its 81st anniversary at its National Headquarters in Santiago. To mark this anniversary, the 2023 CA Awards ceremony was held. 

How are Brazilian municipalities preparing to face climate change? What laws are being created? How are resources being invested? To increase transparency regarding public policies focused on the climate and the environment, the Diário do Clima was created.

African countries have issued a stark joint declaration calling on major polluting nations to help poorer countries develop without further destroying the planet's climate and ecosystems, as wealthy nations did. They advocate for a global carbon tax as the primary mechanism to enable sustainable investment in vulnerable countries.

The results of the National Wood Architecture Prize - PNAM’23 have been announced. In its seventh edition, the award recognized a winning project and two honorable mentions in “Sustainability and Circular Economy” and “Material Typology.”

The top prize was awarded to the renovation of Sala Projeto I - Colégio das Artes at the University of Coimbra, designed by architect Paulo Providência, with carpentry by Veiga Lopes, S.A., Carpinlux, and Brito Móveis. The University of Coimbra was the institution responsible for executing the project.

On Tuesday, September 26, the National Electoral Commission released the list of architecture and urbanism professionals eligible to vote in the October 10 elections.

Check the Qualified Electoral Roll for the entire country on the CAU/BR election website.

Throughout October, more than 230 events will discuss building urban resilience in the Global South. Featuring representatives from over 20 countries in Latin America and Lusophone Africa, the 2023 Urban Circuit (Circuito Urbano) will take place from October 2 to 31. The schedule is now available on the event website.

The Liberdade neighborhood, in the central region of São Paulo, will begin testing the Open Streets (Ruas Abertas) program this Sunday (1st). Similar to what has been done on Paulista Avenue since 2016, four streets in the area will be open exclusively to pedestrians from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Sundays and holidays.

Led by the Municipal Department of Urban Development and Licensing, the initiative aims to prioritize the use of urban space based on pedestrian needs. “The goal is to foster conditions that encourage people to linger, improve walkability, and strengthen the area as a tourist and commercial attraction,” the São Paulo city government stated in a press release.

Atrium Ljungberg unveiled Stockholm Wood City in Sweden, the world's largest urban construction project in wood, and in Norway, just four years ago, Voll Arkitekter completed the Mjøstårnet Tower on Lake Mjøsa, one of the tallest wooden buildings in the world at 18 stories. On the other side of the planet, the Tamango project by Tallwood Architects is an example of the challenges and opportunities of wood construction in Chile, as it could become the first 12-story building with a prefabricated wood structure in Latin America. Meanwhile, in Peru, the Construye para Crecer project by Poggione+Biondi Arquitectos won the XIX National Architecture Biennial 2022 with a residential complex to be built mainly of wood. Nearby, Uruguay recently concluded its social housing in wood competition, paving the way toward innovation in social interest architecture. Furthermore, in 2020, Vicente Guallart won an international competition to define the standards for the buildings of a new city in China. The project, titled The Self-Sufficient City, was already a design that materialized a new urban model in wood across four city blocks.

Across the globe, sustainability and innovation in construction are constantly evolving, and wood structures are presented as a promising option. ArchDaily presented The Future of Wood as its monthly topic, opening up a discussion to explore and hear predictions and thoughts from our readers regarding the future of this material in architecture and urbanism. Is wood the key to a more sustainable and livable urban future? Or are there challenges we must address before embracing this trend? What are the implications for architecture, cities, the economy, and the environment?

The exhibition "Engine of Equality: La Residencia de Señoritas (1915-1936)" will be open until October 15, celebrating a unique, iconic, and pivotal institution in promoting equality in Spain. It is housed in the Ortega-Marañón Foundation's recently opened cultural space—an expansion at the rear of the central "casa" in Madrid that joins the historic 1930s building designed by Carlos Arniches on the corner of Miguel Ángel and General Martínez Campos streets.

Architects and urban planners across the country will participate in a national election this Monday and Tuesday, October 16 and 17. More than 200,000 professionals in the field are set to choose 402 state councilors for the Councils of Architecture and Urbanism of the States and the Federal District (CAU/UF) and 28 federal councilors for the Council of Architecture and Urbanism of Brazil (CAU/BR) – one from each Federative Unit plus one representative of Higher Education Institutions (IES).

The Council of Architecture and Urbanism of Santa Catarina (CAU/SC) has announced the results of the design competition for the partial renovation of its headquarters. Acquired last year, the six-story building is located on Rio Branco Avenue in Florianópolis, and its main spaces—such as the atrium, reception, and facade—will be renovated according to the winning design.

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Casa da Arquitectura and Hinterland are organizing the Por Exemplo meeting on October 13, bringing together 10 practices of young Portuguese and Spanish architects aged 45 and under for an exchange of ideas, methods, and work processes.

There is a generation of young architects who have been developing their work in a stimulating international context, driven by the pressure of the tourism market. Despite their brief experience, these professionals have mastered digital tools, but they navigate a highly competitive and continuously accelerating world.

The Student Union of the Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism of UFRJ (FAU UFRJ), in collaboration with the Abricó UFRJ Model Architecture and Urbanism Office and in partnership with various entities, including the National Federation of Architecture and Urbanism Students, organized the first edition of the Quick Student Ideas Competition - CRIE!. The objective was to seek proposals for a space featuring a pizza oven and barbecue grill that dialogue with the original project by Burle Marx for the Jorge Machado Moreira Building court area, promoting solutions using bioconstruction techniques and low-impact environmental materials.

Mexican architect Enrique Norten has been awarded the Lorenzo H. Zambrano Award for his outstanding career as an architect and professor. He is the founder and director of TEN Arquitectos (Mexico City, New York, and Miami) and, throughout his career, has been internationally recognized for his extensive portfolio of more than 60 built projects around the world.

Since 1985, for 38 years, the School of Architecture at the National Autonomous University of Mexico has organized and hosted the calls for entries for the Alberto J. Pani Architectural Composition Award, with the goal of bringing together the top students from institutions affiliated with the Association of Architecture Teaching Institutions of the Mexican Republic (ASINEA). The event is organized in collaboration with an ASINEA member institution, which this year is the School of Architecture, Design, and Urbanism at the Benito Juárez Autonomous University of Oaxaca (UABJO).

2023 has been characterized by new trends in renovating existing spaces, such as the Nueva Alameda Plan, which aims to revitalize a key hub and make it more environmentally friendly. Along these lines, numerous other projects are emerging, such as the recent "Londres 50-46 Building Rehabilitation" plan, led by Inmobiliaria Londres SpA and represented by Simón and Joaquín Duch Salas.

Earlier this month, the National Institute of Historic and Artistic Heritage (Iphan) launched a public call to select architectural and engineering projects dedicated to preserving Brazil's Cultural Heritage. This initiative is part of the Federal Government's New Growth Acceleration Program (Novo PAC) and aims to select up to 100 new projects for the restoration, conservation, and promotion of Brazilian cultural heritage sites. The deadline for applications is November 10, 2023, and submissions must be made through the TransfereGov platform.

In its quest to develop circular products, Chinese company Yi Design has been creating various bricks from recycled materials. These products offer construction alternatives to address a major industry challenge: the generation of ceramic waste.

According to Yi Design, approximately 18 million tons of ceramic waste are produced every year in China. Headquartered in Jingdezhen, the country's ceramics capital, the group developed YiBrick, a permeable brick made of over 90% recycled ceramic. The material's production also incorporates wastewater and the fine dust from crushing raw waste.

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Gympass has announced a partnership with Tembici to promote the bicycle as a healthy means of transportation. Gympass users in Brazil can now make up to eight trips per month using Tembici's shared bikes in several Brazilian cities, including São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and Brasília, among others.

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The recent arrival of the Minergie certification in Chile is overseen by EBP Chile. This effort includes training Chilean professionals in this Swiss low-energy building standard, alongside the recent granting of provisional certification to the Covarrubias Hernández House in Lliu Lliu, Limache, designed by Murillo+Toro Arquitectos, and the Burgos Net Zero Building, developed by Cristián Izquierdo together with Tecton Inmobiliaria.