A FRAMEWORK FOR REGENERATIVE DESIGN

By Colin Rohlfing

In the August 2021 report from Working Group 1 of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (WPG-1), it was stated that avoiding warming of 1.5 °C or 2.0 °C, along with associated catastrophic impacts, is only possible with massive and immediate cuts in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions before 2030. This underscores the urgent need to drastically reduce global carbon emissions within the next eight years to mitigate the direst impacts of climate change.

As we are aware, the built environment significantly contributes to climate change, from construction practices to usage patterns to end-of-life disassembly. Over time, the design and construction sector has adopted increasingly stringent “high performance” design practices to minimize these impacts, yielding progress. Since the introduction of the AIA 2030 Challenge in 2005, the building sector has reduced GHG emissions by 30% despite nearly a 20% increase in floor area. The industry is on track to achieve a 72% reduction by 2030. However, these reductions alone are insufficient, necessitating continued efforts toward faster, net positive benefits across various focus areas such as water, ecology, human health, and equity.

As a design industry, we must revolutionize our approach to design by transcending the immediate confines of our projects to embrace broader interconnected social and ecological systems. We must shift from mere sustainability to design that generates net positive benefits. Rather than merely mitigating harm, our projects should actively contribute positive impacts to both users and the local ecology.

Regenerative Design

Regenerative Design mirrors nature itself, restoring or renewing its own energy and materials. At HDR, we define regenerative design as reconnecting humans and nature through the continuous renewal of evolving socio-ecological systems. It mimics natural systems to perpetually renew societal and ecological functions. A Regenerative Design approach encompasses six core principles:

1. Net-Positive Impacts: Regenerative design achieves net-positive impacts for ecology, health, and society, establishing performance metrics in these areas to remediate harm resulting from conventional development. It incorporates leading-edge wellness design and unique, place-driven solutions addressing social equity.
2. Flexibility: It applies to all project types and sizes, accommodating projects of various scales, typologies, and performance levels.
3. Evidence-Based: Regenerative design relies on data-driven metrics, benchmarked against a pristine reference site and exceeding regulatory standards.
4. Continuous Evolution: It projects performance indicators in various categories and adapts to short- and long-term disturbances of socio-ecological systems.