‘Long Life, Low Energy’ at RIBA celebrates sustainable architecture strategies

‘Long Life, Low Energy: Designing for a circular economy’, the latest exhibition to open at RIBA's London headquarters on Portland Place takes a much-discussed issue – namely sustainable architecture – and dissects it in a disarmingly clear and simple way. No mean feat, considering how complicated and multi-layered designing eco-consciously can be. But this show has it all – case studies, numbered sections and a straightforward, accessible breakdown of strategies and steps an architect can take in order to bring a piece of building design closer to that coveted net-zero result. 

‘Long Life, Low Energy’ at RIBA

Curated by Pete Collard, the show 'demonstrates how the principles of the circular economy can help create more sustainable, net-zero architecture for the future’, the RIBA website explains. And the exhibition’s sections do that quite effectively. 

There is a section on working with low-tech methods, embracing plant-based materials such as ultra-sustainable cork, sourcing elements through urban mining and making the most of being hyper-local. 

Circular design and reuse also take a prominent role – as examples of the scale of the Battersea Power Station and Park Hill show. But there are smaller, 'everyday' gems that do just that too, such as Alma-nac's House Within A House. 

Meanwhile, a stance against demolishing existing buildings and saving what can be saved and adapted bolsters ‘Long Life, Low Energy’s environmentally friendly thesis. 

The exhibition is relatively small in scale, but its premise and content feel rich and layered. 'RIBA’s Built for the Environment report shows that 40 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions are attributable to buildings and construction, consuming about 50 per cent of all raw materials worldwide in the process. 

‘In addition, over 50,000 buildings are demolished each year across the UK, many of which could have been repurposed. The circular economy offers ways to reduce these unsustainable figures, seeking to eliminate waste by reusing buildings and their material components wherever possible,' the RIBA writes of the show. 

architecture.com