“Research by Design” is one of the core formats within the Congress activities. The programme brings together research and architectural practice to address today’s environmental, social, and political challenges through concrete and transformative projects.
Over the course of a year, the studios selected by curators Pau Bajet, Mariona Benedito, Maria Giramé, Tomeu Ramis, Pau Sarquella, and Carmen Torres will develop proposals that will be presented during the Congress through talks, an exhibition, and an official catalogue. Each team will conduct their research within one of the six thematic frameworks: Becoming More-than-Human, Becoming Attuned, Becoming Embodied, Becoming Interdependent, Becoming Hyper-Conscious y Becoming Circular. These lines of research explore a wide range of issues, from ecological coexistence and material circularity to social relationships and environmental awareness.
Six projects will take Barcelona as their field of study, while the remaining six will address international contexts.
The project “Water Parliaments: Projective Ecosocial Architectures”, led by Eva Franch i Gilabert together with TAKK (Mireia Luzárraga and Alejandro Muiño), was already presented at the 2025 Venice Biennale as part of the Catalonian Pavilion. The project explores the water crisis as both an ecological and cultural challenge, proposing new forms of ecosocial governance through architecture.
Two additional Research by Design programmes will be developed by the winners of the “MINERAL. Architectures of Urban Mining” call, launched by the BIT Habitat Foundation of the Barcelona City Council. The call aimed to foster prototype proposals that integrate principles of circularity and resource reuse in urban environments, within the frameworks of Becoming Embodied and Becoming Circular. More details on the winning teams — BC architects & studies & materials, Baukunst, and Structural Xploration Lab EPFL — are available in the post dedicated to the call.
Among the Spanish teams, H Arquitectes is known for its focus on sustainable construction processes and material intelligence, while the work of Anna Puigjaner with Care., MAIO, and Pol Esteve stands out for its reflections on inclusive architectures that rethink domestic structures from a feminist perspective.
The international teams bring a wide variety of approaches. De Vylder Vinck (Belgium) explores the harmony between matter, space, and time. Forensic Architecture, led by Eyal Weizman, applies spatial and visual analysis to investigate institutional and environmental violence, establishing itself as a key reference at the intersection of architecture, human rights, and technology.
The Japanese practice Atelier Bow-Wow investigates urban micro-architectures, while Brandlhuber+ and HouseEurope! propose a critical reflection on European legislation and the real estate market.
Bruther explores the capacity of architecture to adapt to changing contexts, while landscape architect Dirk Sijmons and the HH+N+S team examine the role of design in the face of the challenges of the Anthropocene. Finally, Colectivo C733 develops public projects in vulnerable communities across Mexico.
These are the teams selected by the curators of UIA2026BCN to develop the 12 Research by Design programmes:
A JDVIV / IVJDV A (Belgium), Anna Puigjaner together with Care., MAIO and Pol Esteve (Switzerland and Spain), Atelier Bow-Wow (Japan), Baukunst + Structural Xploration Lab (Belgium and Switzerland), BC architects & studies & materials (Belgium), Brandlhuber+ and HouseEurope! (Germany), Bruther (France and Switzerland), Colectivo C733 (Mexico), Dirk Sijmons and the HH+N+S team (Netherlands), Eva Franch i Gilabert and TAKK (Spain), Forensic Architecture (UK), and H Arquitectes (Spain).