In light of the ongoing climate crisis, should humanity sacrifice agricultural land for the expansion of settlement areas? This is the paradoxical question posed by urbanization: On the one hand, residential developments around the world are devouring thousands of hectares of farmland on the periphery of growing cities. On the other hand, housing is a human right. This publication examines these complex interrelationships. Following On Architecture and Greenwashing (2024), this is the second volume in the series The Political Economy of Space by RIOT. It presents a cross-section of positions on architecture and its political economies from diverse perspectives.
RIOT—Research and Innovation On Territory—is a laboratory engaged in pedagogy and research within the Institute of Architecture at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), lead by architect and urban designer CHARLOTTE MALTERRE-BARTHES. Believing that the construction sector and design disciplines must pivot and wholeheartedly engage in the current social and climatic urgencies by rewiring themselves to face and repair the harm, RIOT utilizes tactics and strategies to decarbonize, decolonize, and depatriarchalize space production—by design.
Texts by: Swarnabh Ghosh, Paulo Tavares, Andrew Herscher, Ana María León, Milica Topalović.
Year of publication: 2024
Editor: Charlotte Malterre-Barthes
Managing Editor: Kathlyn Kao
Project Management: Dorothee Hahn
Graphic Design: Fernanda Tellez Velasco
Copyediting: Irene Schaudies
Production: Alise Ausmane
Publisher: Hatje Cantz