Every year, Earth Overshoot Day demonstrates that the availability of natural resources has a limit. In the words of the WWF, this day marks when “humanity’s demand for ecological resources and services in a given year exceeds what Earth can regenerate in that same year.” As this day arrives earlier each year, implementing renewable strategies becomes vital for sustainable development. To minimize environmental impact, the concept of ‘sustainable building’ has emerged as a guide to promote sustainability throughout all stages of construction. Alongside the integration of technologies that foster passive strategies, selecting materials based on local availability and conditions is essential to reducing a building's environmental impact, both in its construction and its future use.

Jachen Schleich, architect and coordinator of the CEELA Project in Mexico, discusses their vision of architecture and the importance of sustainability in design decisions. For their architectural firm, ‘Locus’—whose name means place in Latin—architecture must establish a new aesthetic understanding through site-responsive design. The 'VI' Project exemplifies this design methodology, where form is proposed as the result of three dimensions: behavior, belonging, and function.

Despite women's achievements and overall societal progress, cities continue to be planned and built through a patriarchal lens. Urban planning often overlooks the diverse needs of the population regarding the inclusion of race, gender, and social class—factors that directly shape the use of space and the urban layout.

The Mapocho Vivo Foundation was formally established in 2020 on the initiative of Joaquín Moure, an agricultural technician and muralist, who since 2019 had been captivated by the flora and fauna he found in the river when everyone else believed it to be lifeless, waste-filled water. Today, the project has established itself as an organization that maintains cleanliness, protects, and plans the future of the 110-kilometer biological corridor spanning 16 municipalities of Santiago de Chile, operating under the understanding that architecture must embrace natural ecosystems to integrate them into urban systems.

Federico Correa Ruiz, co-designer of iconic architectural works in Catalonia, a legendary professor at ETSAB, and one of the most highly regarded figures in Barcelona's architectural community, passed away on October 19 at the age of 96, with this year marking the first anniversary of his passing.

The School of Architecture at the National Autonomous University of Mexico invites the public to the exhibition “20 Years: Lines in Dialogue. Archive of Mexican Architects,” celebrating the anniversary of this institution and its commitment to preserving Mexico's architectural heritage. The Archive of Mexican Architects (AAM) project began in January 2002 with the acquisition of the Augusto H. Álvarez collection. This initial contribution paved the way for subsequent donations over the past two decades, now totaling 31 collections.

On October 13, Design House opened in Mexico City. As it does every year, the event showcases a series of installations integrating disciplines such as design, architecture, and interior design. Over the course of ten years, across various properties, it has presented cutting-edge proposals from more than one hundred participating firms in collaboration with the showrooms of the Ruta del Diseño (Design Route), which provide the pieces and accessories that bring the diverse spaces to life.

In legal terms, road space belongs to government entities and is therefore viewed as public. However, according to economic theory, the various goods produced by society exhibit distinct characteristics.

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To mark one of Mexico's most important celebrations, architect Miguel de la Torre designs an annual installation for November 1 and 2. The celebration features cempasúchil (Mexican marigold) flowers, a plant native to Mexico that blooms in autumn. According to traditions dating back to pre-Hispanic times, the yellow and orange petals are used to guide the deceased during their visit, as they are believed to hold the light and warmth of the sun.

As part of the annual collaborative efforts of the Design Week team in Mexico City, the "Inédito" exhibition opened on October 14 at the Espacio CDMX Arquitectura y Diseño gallery. This showcase is part of the seventh consecutive edition of this open call, which aims to support, disseminate, and promote utilitarian design projects across several categories: social impact, environmental impact, innovation, function, aesthetics, concept, user experience, materials, and processes. Rather than being competitive, the exhibition—divided into professional, university, and limited-edition categories—opens up new opportunities in both national and international markets for exceptional design with commercial and production viability.

This year's United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP27, takes place against a backdrop of multiple global crises.

The cascading effects of COVID-19 and Russia's invasion of Ukraine have pushed energy prices to record highs. At the same time, unprecedented climate disasters are causing devastating and widespread disruptions. Historic levels of rainfall, heat, drought, wildfires, and storms are battering virtually every corner of the globe.

Based in Mendoza, Argentina, Estudio Reynals was founded in 2018 by partners and sisters Laia and Cristina Reynals, two architecture and design professionals.

On October 19, 21, and 22, Laguna in Mexico City hosted the second edition of the first design festival created by Coolhuntermx, conceived by and for projects led by cis women, trans women, and dissident communities. This festival was conceived with an inclusive, diverse, and collective approach, curated by designers Andrea Soler and Taina Campos. Following a first edition filled with key learnings and shared knowledge, the objective remains the same: to serve as an inclusive platform for design proposals and other creative expressions seeking alternative dialogues to those taking place during Design Month. This year, various forums were held to address topics such as "Social and Community Impact," "Representation and Decision-Making," "Activism for Transformation," and "Design of Care." In addition, the "Voces Estudiantiles" (Student Voices) exhibition showcased posters addressing various contemporary topics being explored in universities. Similarly, a mural by Artsynonym and Flaminguettes captured some of the core concepts and guiding principles of the festival. The event also featured 'Mujeres de la Tierra' (Women of the Earth), a collective of Indigenous women who defend the land and their lives against violence: "we stand in solidarity with the struggle by planting, cooking, and sharing knowledge." Attendance and participation during the event were highly diverse, enriching the panels to foster a horizontal dialogue addressing specific concerns. It is increasingly necessary to create these spaces to bring visibility to the collective struggles resisting day-to-day dynamics. Therefore, if you were unable to attend, the full talks are available below on coolhuntermx's Twitch channel; simply click on the link for each session. DAY 1
Panel: Social and Community Impact
WATCH THE RECORDING HERE
The panel featured Alessandra Cireddu (Moderator): National Director of the Architecture Program, Tecnológico de Monterrey (@alitac); Talachas Girl (Speaker): EXCLUSIVE SERVICE FOR WOMEN AND LGBTQ+. Remodeling, interior design, recycling, savings, construction, and creation (@talachas.girl); CACEH. Marcelina Bautista (Speaker): Domestic worker for 22 years, currently director of CACEH, a civil society organization that empowers and professionalizes domestic workers (@caceh_nacional); and Colectiva Argamasa (Speaker): A women's collective seeking to coordinate the presence of women in spaces through cross-cutting architectural interventions (@colectiva_argamasa). Panel: Representation and Decision-Making
WATCH THE RECORDING OF THE TALK HERE
The panel featured Vulvísima, Avelina Fonseca (Moderator): Feminist activist, B.A. in Political Science from UNAM, specializing in emancipatory feminist economics and the social organization of care. Creator of Vulvísima (@vulvisima); Ashby Solano (Speaker): Creative Direction. Digital Fabrication Jedi. Multidimensional creative being (@ashbysolano); GirlUp (Speaker): Passionate advocates for gender equality, sexual and reproductive rights, climate action, mental health, and other social injustice issues (@girlupmx); Marbella Figueroa (Speaker): Co-creator and collaborator of Afrochingonas, a self-managed project addressing and problematizing Afro-descent and racism in Mexico (@marbellabrilhinho); and Astra Lem (Speaker): Graphic designer and trans activism (@astra.lem). DAY 2
Panel: Activism for Transformation
WATCH THE RECORDING OF THE TALK HERE
The panel featured Dora Bartiloti (Moderator): Multimedia artist. She explores the material qualities of textiles and electronics as tactical mediums for feminist activism and collective action (@dorabartilotti); Zines por Morras (Speaker): The project aims to share experiences of harassment against lesbian and bisexual women in Mexico City (@zinespormorras); Alina Kiliwa (Speaker): "As a lettering artist, I seek to reclaim the sign-painting tradition and revalue the practice through participatory processes" (@alinakiliwa); Mi calle Nuestra Calle (Speaker): Urban laboratory of participatory futures [futures + feminist urbanism + community art] (@micalle_nuestracalle); and MOFA (Speaker): Feminist collective of young women from the urbanism, landscape, architecture, and industrial design programs at the Faculty of Architecture, UNAM (@mujeres_organizadas_fa). Panel: Design of Care
WATCH THE RECORDING OF THE TALK HERE
The panel featured Sofía Probert (Moderator): Illustrator. Through her work, she invites political and philosophical questioning around socio-environmental issues (@sofia.probert); Jovenas Comuneras de Milpa Alta. Daniela Moreno (Speaker): "We are a space for meeting and constructing action-participation to defend and care for our territories, land, and our existence within them" (@jovenascomuneras); Eli Caballero (Speaker): Environmental care and support for ADHD (@hazcompitas); Madres desobedientes (Speaker): Mothers parenting and transforming the world. Disseminating women's artistic projects and supporting feminist parenting (@madresdesobedientes); and Mariana Robles (Speaker): Gynecologist with a feminist perspective. Non-conscientious objector. Health at Every Size. Mom of two (@dra.mariana.robles). For more information, visit Diseña Mexicana.

Buildings hold stories, but those who built them are the ones who tell them. Mañungo, a Chilote carpenter, narrates through his notebooks the cultural, identity-defining, and architectural history of 12 rural communities in the archipelago of Chiloé. Through ethnographic research, the study reveals the attributes and qualities of the churches belonging to these territories and their connection to the lives of their inhabitants.

In 1972, Caetano Veloso announced in the song Triste Bahia that “the steamboat from Cachoeira no longer sails on the sea.” Indeed, ours is a generation unfamiliar with Salvador's nautical capacity, since most of us have not had the opportunity to experience the daily rhythm of a port city. A brief look at the records of photographers such as Marcel Gautherot, Pierre Verger, and Lázaro Roberto, from the 1950s to the 1970s, reveals that the daily dynamics along the waterfront were vastly different from those of today.

Earthquakes, tsunamis, mudslides, and wildfires are just some of the natural disasters that Chile has experienced throughout its history. Every November 5, the UN-declared World Tsunami Awareness Day is observed to promote a global culture of preparedness and awareness around this issue. Following the 27F earthquake and tsunami in 2010, Chile had to maximize its efforts to improve its emergency management and construction regulations, streamline reconstruction plans, and place greater emphasis on the strategic planning of its cities, given the country's vast number of coastal urban settlements. This opened up new possibilities for waterfronts. Below, we invite you to reflect on the future of the urban image of Chile's coastlines through the example set by the city of Constitución.

Sixty-two years separate the inauguration of Brasília and the opening of the 22nd edition of the FIFA Men's World Cup, hosted in 2022 in Qatar. Of course, it is not only their placement in time and space that differentiates these two historical occasions; we must also add the geopolitical context, the character, the actors, and the interests surrounding each. What, then, remains as a link between them? Beyond the fact that the emirate now has its own model city (Lusail)—built in the wilderness of the peninsula under the playbook of the latest urban and technological trends, echoing to some extent the avant-garde spirit of Brazil's Federal District at the time of its construction—the inextricable link between the two events lies in the construction sites that materialized the architecture hosting them.

Much has been said about the power of artificial intelligence and how its rise could transform the architectural profession. This topic has already been explored in previous articles here.

The primary tool causing concern among industry experts is DALL-E, a machine learning-based software that generates images from text prompts entered by the user. Other platforms offer similar capabilities, such as Midjourney and Stable Diffusion.

Brazil is currently the sixth country in the world most affected by climate disasters, according to the United Nations. The primary issues are waterlogging and flooding, as they bring windstorms, landslides, and flash floods. One in three disasters in Brazil falls into this category — with more than 10,000 official occurrences recorded between 1991 and 2010.

After at least five years of study, the time comes for Architecture and Urbanism students to present their final graduation projects—often referred to as TCC, TFG, or final thesis projects. In choosing their topics, students highlight civil, urban, or theoretical projects of great importance, sparking crucial debates about the future of our cities, the built environment, urban infrastructure, mobility, and many other essential topics shaping how we inhabit space.

In November 2022, Augusta Park celebrated its first anniversary of reopening to the public. The park reached maximum capacity on its opening day and, today, has welcomed over 1.5 million visitors. The site went through a long journey before reaching consolidation. The nearly 50-year struggle for the park deserves to be highlighted, and public participation in its creation must be recorded and shared so it can inspire new campaigns for public spaces across the city.

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Videos

As part of their latest release, architect and visual artist Erik López (IMGN) and electronic music producer and composer Edgar Mondragón have unveiled their new piece "Santuario," which is described as "a remote experience that connects with the existence of a physical space that cannot be visited." This audiovisual piece consists of a 3D model of the Museo Universitario Arte Contemporáneo (MUAC), designed by Mexican architect Teodoro González de León for the Centro Cultural Universitario.

Rooftop farms and urban gardens are popular options for providing food in cities while mitigating heat islands, increasing building thermal insulation, and improving air quality. However, these plants often end up smaller and less healthy, as they suffer from higher solar radiation, wind exposure, and low soil moisture.

The urgent need to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the transportation sector presents both a challenge and an opportunity for local governments. This is particularly true for Zero Emission Areas (ZEAs)—urban zones where pollutant emissions are neutralized. This measure primarily benefits citizens, who enjoy healthier urban spaces and more vibrant commercial activity. However, ensuring success—or at least mitigating public backlash—requires deep social engagement and effective communication with the population.

Various studies have indicated that, to prevent temperatures from rising more than 1.5°C, there must be a major drop in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. To achieve this, it is necessary to develop compact cities designed for pedestrians, cyclists, and transit users, as well as rapidly and strategically adopting electric vehicles, with a focus on public transportation.