The Regenerative Architecture Index FAQs

  • Who can take part?
    The RAI encompasses architectural practices of any size from sole practitioners to global multi-disciplinary firms. It also welcomes entries from organisations and individuals in related disciplines including engineering, landscape, quantity surveying, planning, communications and manufacturing.

  • How much does it cost to take part in the RAI?
    The entry fee is £125 plus VAT.

  • Should we include the good, bad and ugly in our submissions?
    Absolutely! A central principle of the programme is to promote shared learning and identify obstacles to progress so we strongly encourage submissions that highlight what worked and what hasn’t worked.

  • Can I edit my entry once I have submitted it?
    Yes – once an entry has been submitted and the entry fee has been paid, the entry can still be edited online until the final deadline of 16 May 2025.

  • Who will be assessing my entry?
    All submissions will be reviewed by a special panel of invited experts alongside members of AD’s Steering Group.

  • Will the results be published?
    The RAI will be published by Architecture Today in print and on the website in October 2025.

  • How can we support the Regenerative Architecture Index?
    There are a number of opportunities to get involved. To discuss please email us.

Glossary

  • Bioregionalism:

    A philosophical approach which proposes that socio-economic systems would be more just and sustainable if they are based on regions defined by biology (for instance by watersheds and bioclimatic characteristics) rather than by abstract political boundaries.

    Suggested sources:
    • Bioregionalism by Pooran Desai and Sue Riddlestone
    • ‘Material Cultures’ https://materialcultures.org/

  • Biophilia:

    Developed by the eminent biologist E.O.Wilson, the biophilia hypothesis is based on the idea that, because humans evolved in direct contact with nature, there is a lot of evidence to suggest that we are happier, healthier and more productive when in regular contact with nature.

    Suggested sources:
    • ‘14 Patterns of Biophilic Design’ by Terrapin Bright Green https://www.terrapinbrightgreen.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/14-Patterns-of-Biophilic-Design-Terrapin-2014p.pdf
    • ‘The Economics of Biophilia’ by Terrapin Bright Green https://www.terrapinbrightgreen.com/report/eob-2/ 

  • Biomimicry:

    A functional discipline that looks to biological adaptations as sources for innovation. With biomimicry the potential exists to design out toxins, to develop low energy materials manufacturing, more efficient structures, ways to thermoregulate, etc. For just about every challenge we face there will be equivalent solutions in biology that can inspire high performance innovation.

    Suggested sources:
    • Ask Nature (allows you to enter a functional question and it shows biological examples that can be studied)
    https://asknature.org/
    • Biomimicry: Design Inspired by Nature by Janine Benyus

  • Ecomimicry:

    (also referred to as ecosystems thinking, industrial ecology or industrial symbiosis): Closely related to biomimicry, this discipline takes inspiration from the way that ecosystems work in interconnected webs of species in which the under-utlised resource from one become the input for another part of the system. Treating the elements of a city as equivalent to species and connecting their resource flows may well be the biggest and most under-explored aspect of the circular economy.

    Suggested sources:
    • Chapter 3 in Biomimicry in Architecture (2nd ed.) by Michael Pawlyn
    • Saving The Planet By Design: Reinventing Our World Through Ecomimesis by Ken Yeang

  • BioTRIZ:

    The forerunner to this is the Russian problem-solving methodology called TRIZ. Developed by Genrikh Altshuller, TRIZ was taught in all Russian schools and some have claimed that this explains why the Russians were more inventive than NASA in the space race. More recently, it was adapted by Nikolay and Olga Bogatyrev to include biological strategies in addition to human inventive principles. This can be a very useful method for resolving difficult functional challenges

    Suggested sources
    • There aren’t many readily implementable sources for BioTRIZ as it requires a one or two-day training course to be proficient. An alternative would be to involve Olga Bogatyrev in a workshop. She can be contacted on olga@biotriz.com. She is working on a book that will compile 55 BioTRIZ strategies with case studies.
    •     https://youtube.com/@biotriz?si=rZ6JESh8Yu4tEj6O