“Sustainability is inseparable from energy, and inseparable from the process of recycling.” – Lord Norman Foster, Chairman & Founder, Foster + Partners, United Kingdom.
6th Holcim Forum 2019
Some 350 leading thinkers from architecture, engineering, urban planning, materials technology, and the building and construction industry from 55 countries met at the Holcim Forum held at the American University in Cairo, Egypt on April 4-6, 2019.
6th LafargeHolcim Forum
“The existing building is tomorrow’s new building material.” – Anne Lacaton, Principal, Lacaton & Vassal Architectes, France at the 6th International Holcim Forum held in Cairo, 2019.
LafargeHolcim Awards 2017 for Middle East Africa prize handover ceremony, Nairobi
The first LafargeHolcim Building Better Recognition was presented to Francis Kéré (right) of Kéré Architecture, Berlin. His Secondary school in Gando, Burkina Faso won the Global LafargeHolcim Awards Gold 2012. Today, the school is reality for hundreds of children and stands the test of time.
Associated Universities - AUC
Over 350 leading thinkers from architecture, engineering, planning, and the construction industry in 55 countries met at the Holcim Forum “Re-materializing Construction” 2019 hosted by The American University in Cairo (AUC).
The Forum’s keynote speakers illustrated the importance of considering sustainability even before the design process commences and included Lord Norman Foster, Foster + Partners Architectural Design & Engineering, United Kingdom, Christine Binswanger, Herzog & de Meuron Architekten, Switzerland, Anne Lacaton, Lacaton & Vassal Architectes, France, Francis Kéré, Kéré Architecture, Burkina Faso/Germany, Laila Iskandar, former Minister of Urban Renewal & Informal Settlements, Egypt, and Mitchell Joachim, Terreform ONE, USA.
“The urgency to re-materialize construction is extreme”
Watch a 5-minute summary featuring statements on “Re-materializing construction”, the topic of the 6th International Holcim Forum.
Workshops
Changing paradigms: Materials for a world not yet built
Examining various new models for creating a sustainably built human environment that is both fully recyclable and constructed from materials that are grown or naturally transformed so as not to damage the non-human environments of the world.
Shifting the flows, pulling the strings: Stocks, flows, and their dynamics
Exploring four nested, interrelated temporal dynamics: the natural cycles that interact with bio-based material production and energy use patterns, the building life cycle, human lifestyle patterns, and the evolution of the city over time.
From manual to digital and vice versa: Digitalization, labor, and construction
Investigating to what extent the trends of digitalization can offer new opportunities and examine instances where the application of digital solutions may in fact prove unintentionally detrimental – learning from best practices and striving for consequential, collaborative solutions.
Rethinking the supply chain and improving the efficiency of materials framed by three questions: what is the right material, what is the best material, and how can we minimize material use.
The Forum brought together faculty members and students of leading technical universities associated with the LafargeHolcim Foundation for Sustainable Construction. Post-graduate students presented their concepts in a poster exhibition that showcased their innovative concepts living up to the “target issues” for sustainable construction.
The winners of the student poster competition represented associated universities of the LafargeHolcim Foundation from Universidad Iberoamericana (Mexico), Ecole Supérieure d’Architecture (Morocco) and the National University of Singapore, along with a post-graduate from India.
Forum 2019 Materials Book Re-materializing Construction Cairo Ruby Press
Inspired by the Holcim Forum for Sustainable Construction on “Re-materializing Construction” held in Cairo, Egypt in 2019 – The Materials Book is published by Ruby Press in Berlin, Germany. The 400-page book offers essays, case studies, and a catalog of building materials and resources that are environmentally mindful and socially responsible. The contributions by more than 60 architects, engineers, and scientists from around the world aim to accelerate the creation of a more sustainable built environment.
