Fix It!

The future is already built: rethinking renovation and demolition in a climate-conscious Europe.

Did you know that each minute a building in Europe is demolished, making architecture accountable for nearly 40% of global CO2 emissions. Given the current climate and housing crisis that our society faces, we need to rethink our approach on architecture. Rather than destroying buildings, HouseEurope! advocates for a new norm. As their official Dutch partner, ACAN NL, AvBA and IABR host a public event to highlight the movement’s call for EU legislation that promotes renovation over destruction. Join us for a film screening, lecture and panel discussion, where we create a space that encourages dialogue on systemic change and architectural responsibility. How can the Netherlands contribute to this creation of a more sustainable European future? And more importantly, how will renovation projects provide answers to the challenges that we as world are currently experiencing?

Met in dit programma Hedwig van der Linden Architect, Researcher and Co-founder at Dérive Olaf Grawert Co-Initiator and Communications at HouseEurope! and founding partner at design practice b+ Nathalie de Vries Founding partner of MVRDV & Professor of Architectural Design and Public Building at TU Delft Janna Bystrykh Architect & researcher; Head of Programme in Architecture bij Academie van Bouwkunst Amsterdam

About HouseEurope!

HouseEurope! wants to create incentives that make renovation the new norm. This will boost the renovation market and give new value to what is already there. The goal is to preserve homes and communities, ensure a fairer and more local building industry, save energy and resources, and preserve our memories and stories.

Every minute, a building in Europe is destroyed – not by natural disaster, but by human hands. While they profit, you pay the price: with rising rents and rising temperatures. We want to stop this destruction and make renovation the new norm — because demolishing existing buildings is as outdated as food waste, animal testing, fast fashion, and single-use plastics.

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Sign the European Citizens’ Initiative to create new laws that discourage the demolition of existing buildings and promote renovation and transformation. Only EU citizens are eligible to sign. We need 1 million signatures for laws to protect affordable housing and the climate!

More about the speakers

Olaf Grawert plans, writes, and talks about architecture. His work focuses on the Poetics and Politics of Space: the political and economic conditions, as well as the imaginaries and narratives that shape the built environment. Collaborating with a network of individuals and institutions across Europe, he develops projects that bridge theory and practice, including building design, campaigns, exhibitions, films, publications, and teaching.

He is a founding partner at the collaborative design practice b+ (bplus.xyz), which focuses on the adaptive reuse of existing buildings. He is the co-initiator and campaign manager at HouseEurope!

Hedwig van der Linden is an architect and educator, and co-founder of the Brussels and Rotterdam-based design and research practice Dérive. She studied architecture at TU Delft and worked at the Chair of Area Development and Architecture Workroom Brussels, where she focused on cultural production and spatial transformation. With Dérive, she explores how design research, dialogue, and co-creation can support transitions in urban environments. Her projects range from climate-adaptive interventions in Rotterdam courtyards to neighborhood-based cultural programs. Hedwig also teaches at the Amsterdam University of the Arts, the Rotterdam Academy of Architecture, and TU Delft.

Nathalie de Vries is founding partner of MVRDV, an architect and urban planner and the “DV” in MVRDV. She is an Honorary Fellow of the AIA and International Fellow of the RIBA. She is currently Professor of Architectural Design and Public Building at Delft University of Technology, and from 2021 to 2023 held the role of City Architect for Groningen.

Read more De toekomst is al gebouwd: 17 Amsterdamse renovaties die Europa inspireren

De discussie over slopen of renoveren staat centraal in de Europese architectuur. Met gebouwen verantwoordelijk voor bijna 40% van de wereldwijde CO2-uitstoot, is het hergebruik van bestaande structuren niet alleen een esthetische of economische keuze, maar een dringende klimaatopgave. Het initiatief HouseEurope! vraagt daarom om een radicale verschuiving: “Renovate, don’t speculate”. Het pleit voor Europese wetgeving die renovatie stimuleert, niet de sloopkogel, en laat zien dat de toekomst van onze steden grotendeels al is gebouwd.

Kom naar het gratis HouseEurope! Symposium op maandag 29 september vanuit Pakhuis de Zwijger!