The UIA World Congress of Architects 2026, held in Barcelona from 28 June to 2 July, brought together more than 250 speakers across more than 100 sessions. The central thesis was clear: Becoming. Architectures for a planet in transition — architecture as a process of transformation in the face of a planetary crisis that no longer admits partial answers.
The programme was structured around six thematic threads. These are the ideas that remain.
Becoming More-than-human — Architecture is not only for people
Designing for the twenty-first century means thinking about interspecies alliances. Radical ecologies, multispecies landscapes, microbial life as a project variable. Mark Wigley, Bas Smets and Beatriz Colomina argued that a building can no longer ignore the ecosystem into which it is placed.
Becoming Circular — The best material is one that already exists
Lacaton & Vassal, H Arquitectes and several European teams presented projects in which reuse is not a constraint but a design intelligence. The question is not how to build, but how to build less using what is already built.
Becoming Embodied — Materials are time and place
Marina Tabassum, Shigeru Ban and studios such as BC Architects argued for a rooted architecture: locally available materials, situated construction techniques, structures that respond to climate and community. The globalisation of the construction detail was questioned.
Becoming Interdependent — Housing is a political project
From Mariana Mazzucato's political economy to the decolonial practices of Samia Henni and Estudio Teddy Cruz, the congress affirmed that housing design cannot be separated from the power structures that produce it.
Becoming Hyper-conscious — AI transforms practice, not just process
Mario Carpo, Areti Markopoulou and Lluís Ortega debated generative intelligence and creative agency. The conclusion was uncomfortable: AI is not just another tool — it is an epistemic shift. How architecture responds to that remains to be seen.
Becoming Attuned — Beauty is also an ethical position
Smiljan Radic and Enrique Walker spoke about ephemeral architecture. Atelier Bow-Wow and Pezo von Ellrichshausen presented work that resists the logic of spectacle. A defence of architecture as a practice of listening.