What's Already There: Sustainable Architecture from Brussels [Exhibition Catalogue]

Construction is now identified as the most resource-consuming human activity. It is widely acknowledged that the sector needs to undergo a major shift, but the possible ways remain elusive. What’s Already There presents six projects designed by architecture firms based in Brussels that demonstrate a strong commitment to dealing responsibly with local resources—be it solar energy, geo- and bio-based materials, reclaimed construction elements, or existing structures—as well as the drive and skills of clients, users, workers, or interested peers. The exhibition and its catalogue are organized as a collection of stories about specific architectural elements. It is from these fragments that a larger picture emerges about the multitude of challenges that we must face today, be it as architects, clients, contractors, legislators or as users, all of us are actors in a critical sector—and more broadly inhabitants of a world that we urgently need to treat with more care.