International teams create new beacons of sustainable design

C40 Cities has announced the first 15 winners of its Reinventing Cities competition, an initiative launched in December 2017 to transform underused sites into carbon neutral spaces. Supported by European knowledge and innovation agency Climate KIC, the contest aims to establish new models of public-private collaboration for sustainable development. City authorities from around the world submitted a total of 31 sites for the competition, each seeking design proposals for regeneration.

The 15 successful teams of architects, urban planners, designers, developers, entrepreneurs and innovators were selected by juries in each city, from amongst 82 finalist entries. The winners will transform diverse sites in Chicago, Madrid, Milan, Oslo, Paris, and Reykjavik. When announcing the winners, Anne Hidalgo, Mayor of Paris and Chair of C40, stated: “More than 1,200 architects, urban designers, community groups, artists and engineers submitted proposals to participate in this unprecedented competition. Together they have raised the bar for what sustainable urban design looks like, including a multitude of solutions for zero carbon buildings and more sustainable ways of living in our cities.”

A typical project, called Recipe for Future Living, is based in Oslo and aims to reduce 90 percent of emissions by upcycling local construction materials. It will host a start-up community promoting ecological living, with 50 percent of the site dedicated to green public spaces. Vetle Isdal Bringsjord, project developer, stated: Reinventing Cities is probably the most challenging construction competition in the world. It forces you to think about every aspect of the building from how we recycle rainwater to urban farming. The competition has also made me aware of the enormous responsibility our industry has to be a part of the climate solution. Doing “less bad” is not enough. We must drastically change our business models and I think the Reinventing Cities competition provides a clear and analytical road map on how we can achieve this.”

Lucy Nordberg
TenderStream Head of Research

This competition was first published by TenderStream on 29.11.2017 here

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