The 14th São Paulo International Architecture Biennale
Extremos: Architectures for an Overheated Planet
Open call for proposals
https://bienaldearquitetura.org.br/en/participe/ FOR FULL INFORMATION
We live in a world of extreme climatic events, and the limit for human life, the point of no return, looms on the horizon. If architecture plays a part in the production of climatic extremes, resource use, and climate injustice, what is the role of architecture in reversing this scenario? Addressing extreme problems demands extreme, radical solutions. These can be at the cutting edge of technology and knowledge, or they can exist at the other end, on the margins: in the responses that emerge from the periphery of cities or in the traditional knowledge preserved in villages and quilombos (communities of escaped enslaved people).
Proposals generated within these different forms of knowledge, as well as from dialogue, friction, and mutual learning among them, offer new pathways to tackle global warming and adapt human habitats to the climatic extremes we already face. After a decade of decentralization, in 2025 the 14th International Architecture Biennale of São Paulo (BIAsp in Portuguese) will return to Ibirapuera Park to bring together, at Oca, a collection of these responses produced in the field of architecture from different parts of the planet. Another new feature of this edition of BIAsp, one of the most important forums for discussing the emerging challenges of architecture and urbanism, is the experimental construction and production of spatial solutions on-site.
Five axis will guide projects, experiences, experiments, and discussions aimed at transforming this landscape towards the creation of more resilient and adaptable cities, prepared to resume life after disasters.
The first axis, Preserving Forests and Reforesting Cities, suggests the radical incorporation of vegetation to reverse global warming by capturing carbon from the atmosphere and improving local microclimates to mitigate heatwaves.
The second axis, Embracing Water, will bring together experiences of stream renaturalization and Nature-Based Solutions to stabilize slopes and recover riverbanks, working in favor of the biogeochemical cycle of water.
The axis Refurbishing More and Building Green will address the adaptive reuse of obsolete buildings and the adoption of low-carbon sustainable construction systems to tackle the challenge of reducing greenhouse gas emissions associated with the construction and use of buildings.
Meanwhile, the axis Moving and Reaching Places Together with Renewable Energies will explore the possibilities of urban planning and rapid transit transportation networks to reduce the need for individual travel and promote active mobility, also considering the energy transition in public transport.
Finally, the axis Ensuring Climate Justice and Social Housing will focus on the disproportionate vulnerability of poorer populations (often racialized and with a strong presence of women and children) to extreme climate events. These communities, which have historically contributed the least to global warming, often inhabit high-risk areas—precarious housing settlements frequently located on floodplains and slopes. Due to its significance, this axis will cut across all others.
To construct the 14th BIAsp, we invite society to present and develop concrete proposals that unite advancements in climate science with ancestral knowledge, combining new socio-environmental technologies with traditional practices and materials. Proposals that together help us understand what architectures we need to inhabit a world beyond extremes.