3. New Life for a Building

Recognizing the materiality of architecture requires acknowledging that we can no longer produce objects at the same rate as now. The circular economy is often understood as the recycling and reuse of materials, but a much more important goal is extending the lifespan of buildings and materials we already have. Thus, the most sustainable building is one that is kept in use and loved.

Currently, without recognized aesthetic or cultural values and a protected status, a building is not truly viewed as a permanent object. Instead, a building remains in place 'for now'—until it is demolished and turned into waste. In most countries, there is no proactive, deliberate approach to the preservation of buildings, but rather protection happens case-by-case when it does. The attitude towards the permanence of buildings is vividly captured in the idea of a building’s 'life cycle,' as if it were necessary or even logical to assign a 'best before' date to materials like stone.

At the same time, as some cities and regions grow while others shrink, more and more of our existing buildings are in the 'wrong place.' As people move, buildings are left behind, and the materials and resources embedded in them are perceived as having lost their value. In addition, a building’s functionality can also become obsolete as demographics shift and societies evolve. Sometimes, the building is known to meet only a temporary need already as it is being designed.

While preservation on heritage grounds remains justified, our relationship with the existing building stock requires a rethink. In the future, more buildings will need to be shielded from demolition, but not all of them can or should be protected in a similar manner. How can buildings be transformed, or even transferred to another place, to remain in use? We need different, active ways of approaching the integrity of the original design as well as an increased tolerance for wear and historical layers.

The illustration is adapted from the Hierarchy of resource-efficient construction (Towards Sustainable Architecture: Finland’s national architectural policy programme 2022–2035, Finnish Government, Helsinki, 2022)