Lacol
Lacol is a non-profit cooperative of architects founded in 2014 in the Sants neighborhood of Barcelona. The collective aims to create community infrastructures that support sustainable living, using architecture, cooperativism, and participation as tools for the eco-social transition. Their practice operates through a horizontal system of labor, combining architecture, housing policies, energy transition, and construction management, blurring disciplinary boundaries to develop a cross-sectional and participatory approach.
Lacol was conceived as a space for reflection and political engagement through architectural practice. Their involvement in social movements informs the political potential of architecture. With a proactive approach, they generate projects that serve as levers for change in their immediate environment. Recognizing the importance of intercooperation, they have created new organizations with other cooperatives, including La Dinamo Fundació and BATEC – Cooperative Hub for the Energy Transition, to expand their impact.
The collective’s work has been recognized and exhibited locally and internationally, including the Mies van der Rohe Award (Emergent Category, 2022) and the Venice Biennale of Architecture How Will We Live Together? (2021), among other notable projects.
