'Long Life, Low Carbon' spotlights shining applications of the circular economy in architecture

The circular economy revolution that has gradually taken hold in the architectural consciousness of the United Kingdom in recent years has finally come north thanks to a special relaunch of the recent Royal Institute of British Architects ‘Long Life, Low Energy: Designing for a circular economy’ exhibition from RIBA North and the Tate Liverpool.

Launched in October at the six-year-old RIBA North headquarters on Liverpool’s Mann Island, the restaged showcase features a new local spotlight on firms whose work has spearheaded efforts to include more recycled materials and adaptive reuses in order to instigate a movement towards change in the building sector known to account for more 40% of carbon emissions globally. 

This is the first exhibition at the venue since the start of the pandemic and offers those who missed its London premiere a chance to explore the contributions of several firms from the north country and Wales to its development. Curators were able to dig into an extensive RIBA Collections archive, finding within it the best regional examples from OMI, Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios, and others that are at the forefront of the industry-wide answers to spirited calls for change.