Thinking Holistically, Building Sustainably

Over the past few years, the climate crisis has led to a radical course correction in archi­tecture. Building sustainably no longer primarily means constructing energy-optimized buildings, but rather building as little as possible and reusing existing structures. The role educational buildings can play in this context is discussed by Renate Hammer (architectural research), Matthias Hein (architecture), Klaus Juen (regional planning), Renate Stuefer (architecture education through art), and Armin Wabl (energy planning).

Moderated by: Christian Kühn

Christian Kühn I’d like to begin with my favorite definition of sustainability: Sustainability means leaving our children a world that is better than—or at least as good as—the one passed to us. On a global scale, we’ve already exceeded the 1.5-degree target. All that remains is to hope for resilience. Mr. Wabl, what is your definition?

Armin Wabl I agree with you. Sustainability was a topic as early as the seventeenth century, when people realized that trees regrow more slowly than the amount of wood needed. We need to implement measures to protect the climate in school construction, to set an example for our children. 

CK Ms. Hammer, how has the interpretation of sustainability changed since 2010?

Renate Hammer Initially, there was often a focus on forest sustainability; later, the question of a “common future”—the future of the next generation—was added. Today, the sustain­ability debate is seen as being “worn out.” Issues like climate change have slipped further down priority lists; climate change denial is no longer stigmatized, and key topics of the past 20 years, including energy efficiency and emissions, are increasingly provoking aggression or meeting with indifference. That is a step backwards. The crucial question now is how we respond to this shift and how we can continue to discuss sustainability in a constructive way.

Renate Stuefer I definitely see global warming as an opportunity to reorder our hierarchy of values and social needs. There is great potential to make the world better and more livable.

Matthias Hain A lot of people don’t understand what a warming of 1.5 to 1.6 degrees really means, or that many of our current events are already the direct consequences of global warming. This understanding is completely lacking. The real issue here is time delay: Political cycles are short, but the consequences of CO₂ emissions are long-term. It’s crucial to convey this to people—an enormous challenge. 

CK A positive example of using school architecture as a medium for awareness is a school in Vorarlberg, designed in 1998 by Baumschlager Eberle. A large clock was installed in the school’s foyer, showing the amount of CO₂ saved over the years compared to a conventional school building.

AW Tremendous progress has been made over the past decades in federal school con­struc­tion. Energy records from the last 40 years and an energy performance index clearly show improvements in efficiency. Federal schools play a pioneering role here, for example through greening and photovoltaic systems, that are also made tangible for students and teachers, for example by the placement of monitors in the school building.

MH Temperature records clearly show an increase—there’s no doubt about that. My comment refers more to the indirect consequences, such as wars, water scarcity, land loss, or epidemics, all of which evoke fear. In 2009, with support from the BIG, we built the first Austrian secondary school in Bregenz featuring mechan­ical ventilation with heat recovery. The focus was on maintaining consistently high air quality, which is essential in a tightly sealed school building. This required compromises in the façade design: The glazing was designed as non‑openable to ensure exceptional indoor air quality. That, of course, sparked criticism.

RH There’s a certain fatigue about focusing solely on the technical qualities of sustainability in individual buildings. Typological aspects should be given more attention, such as the role of schools and kindergartens in stabilizing rural areas. Many mayors report that when a school closes, it often signals the eventual decline of the entire municipality. How can educational institutions be used to effectively promote sustainable development in small communities? 

Klaus Juen We’ve observed that committed mayors in municipalities facing depopulation actively promote childcare measures. They know that parents are willing to accept longer commutes if they know their children are well cared for in the community. As a result, many municipalities have invested in and implemented innovative projects.

RH From the perspective of a small child, it could feel alienating to not attend school in their own home community and instead have to commute. Learning then no longer takes place in a familiar environment but in a new place. Even just the additional time spent commuting leaves children with less time to pursue other interests.

RS The problem is less about time than about children's lack of ability to judge distances. Children who are driven to school often only see the back of their parents’ heads and know nothing about the route to school. This creates perceptual gaps, and as a result, they lose their connection to and awareness of their environment, which is formative to develop­ment. Especially in rural areas, these connections are crucial for understanding what is worth protecting and where one can engage and form friendships. Educational institutions could play a role in sensitizing children to their natural surroundings and encouraging them to bring sustainable practices home. A child’s own sense of reach is key to developing such awareness and self-learning processes.

KJ The State of Tyrol and its municipalities place great importance on maintaining small school locations, especially primary schools, within the village. In recent years, an increasing number of small schools have been revitalized, often at modest cost, resulting in outstanding outcomes.

CK Sustainable school renovation is not just a technical matter; it’s also a matter of acceptance. How do you get users on board? 

AW For school renovations, we work closely with BIG, Austria’s largest owner of school buildings. Renovations follow the klimaaktiv Silver Standard, and new constructions the klimaaktiv Gold Standard—one of the highest benchmarks of all. In addition to construction measures such as thermal insulation, attention is also given to mobility connections, greenery, bicycle parking, and e-charging stations. Although many of the approximately 560 Austrian federal schools are still in need of renovation, overall we are on the right track in terms of building physics and services. In the federal sector, strict regulations apply, such as the Action Plan for Sustainable Public Procurement (naBe) and the ÖISS guidelines addressing aspects like indoor air quality and energy efficiency. These standards are rigorously adhered to and supplemented by BIG’s own sustainability management system. 

KJ One key aspect for school locations is accessibility: How well connected is the site? Is the school centrally located? Could traffic problems arise? Especially for smaller schools, it should be possible to walk to school. Unfortunately, this aspect is often neglected, and impressive (timber) school buildings are not always built in the right locations. 

RH For me, the interplay between new usage concepts and existing building fabric is the ultimate challenge in sustainability. Working with what already exists often conflicts with rigid standards such as prescribed room sizes. On the other hand, school autonomy offers significant freedom to define how and what is taught. So why not embrace this flexibility to adapt existing buildings sustainably and to question rigid requirements? An interesting example is the school conversion in Feldkirchen an der Donau planned by the fasch&fuchs architecture firm. (→ Project 7) During the renovation, classes were temporarily relocated to the old rectory, the town hall, and other non‑school buildings. Despite the challenges, children, teachers, and the local community experienced this time as enriching, as the children were closer to everyday life and the people around them. This approach of using what’s available and of developing creative solutions through school autonomy deserves far greater consideration. 

CK Vorarlberg has radically simplified its school building guidelines. For the past two years, a new performance-based regulation has been in place, specifying only a few requirements: a room height of over three meters, effective sun protection, and a crucifix on the wall. Instead of prescribing solutions, only the performance that a building must deliver is defined. This openness allows for intelligent, flexible, and sustainable designs.

RS Children don’t need a perfectly sustainable school building in order to understand the curriculum. What is far more important is that the school fulfills its educational mission. Making problems visible instead of hiding them creates learning potential. For instance, since the introduction of the sugar tax in the UK in 2018 and greater transparency about sugar content in beverages, consumption has significantly declined. Similarly, schools with photovoltaic systems and monitoring displays could show how much energy is being generated or how much rainwater is being reused. Only when such processes are visible can the school community act consciously and sustainably. 

MH As architects, we shouldn’t overestimate our influence on the quality of learning. The architecture of a school or kindergarten is just one piece of the puzzle—the decisive factor is the people who work there. Our task is to engage users and create a sense of identity. The way a building is talked about shapes how it’s perceived by families and the wider community. Sustainability emerges when buildings are designed not only to function well but also to be human-centered and identity-forming. 

CK A central concept here is appropriation: Things that aren’t completely finished are easier to make one’s own. Identity emerges from the actions of people, not from the specifications of architects. 

KJ This tends to work well in primary schools, where structures are manageable and teachers are more receptive to flexible spatial concepts. In secondary schools, with their more complex structures and rigid 50‑minute schedules, however, this openness is often lacking. Such processes are sustainable neither for children nor for education.  

RS Children love stories, and they want to leave traces—to identify with their surroundings. Spaces must allow for that. Circular construction is especially important in school buildings: Locally sourced materials create identity and strengthen the community. Especially in rural areas, when materials from the local region flow back into the building, students—and indeed the entire community—develop a completely different sense of ownership.

MH In 2012/13 we planned a kindergarten project with the municipality of Zwischenwasser. The municipality had high ambitions, including, for example, laying a clay floor instead of using concrete screed. While the materials for a clay floor are relatively inexpensive, the immense labor involved makes it almost unaffordable. To reduce costs, volunteers from the village were invited to help. The response was enthusiastic, and the participation strengthened the community and fostered acceptance, even of critical aspects: that a clay floor isn’t perfectly level, that children’s trousers might get holes faster, or that a table might wobble. Sustainable architecture arises from involving people early on, not through top-down regulations.

RH What I think is often neglected in the discussion of schools, partly due to historical reasons, is the outdoor space. Examples of having open-air classrooms address the socio-educational and health aspects of sustainability and show how natural environments can enrich learning. This is especially essential in urban areas, where direct experiences of nature are increasingly being replaced by digital perception. It is essential to consider outdoor spaces as part of sustainability development and education.

RS Outdoor spaces are rarely understood as edu­cational spaces. Even in the new school campuses, where there are plenty of outdoor greenspaces, the open space is not yet being considered as a learning environment. It would be wonderful, for instance, to have gardeners who plant vegetables together with the children. Such experiences are deeply valuable and should be integrated.

KJ Outdoor space must be experienced, not just designed. It would actually be a great opportunity for our schools, because children need space for projects and experiences in nature. We were able to achieve this, for example, in a kindergarten project where a green area with old trees was protected from construction. Now the children use it every day.

AW New school projects are increasingly trying to integrate outdoor areas into everyday school life. But architecture alone isn’t enough, it’s about acting together. In container classrooms, for instance, we have observed that limited space fosters stronger social interaction. It’s something we might know from tougher times: When things are challenging, the sense of community is much greater, which is something the students naturally notice and feel.

RS In Vienna, there are now so-called climate officers—teachers working toward climate-conscious and future-ready schools, and developing frameworks for climate education—who are active and communicate with each other. Since greenspace is limited in Vienna, streets in front of schools are increasingly being converted into traffic-calmed zones and used as urban school laboratories. For socially disadvantaged groups, this also lowers barriers to engaging with school and creates informal learning spaces. 

CK To conclude, a look to the future: What challenges must we meet, and how can we succeed? 

MH Sustainable buildings, both architecturally and technically, are achievable. It is even more important to strengthen social connections locally. School quality must be widespread in order to prevent segre­gation and strengthen communities. Globally as well, we need to find common ground in communities, and that requires early social contact. 

KJ Good architecture, good materials, and good systems matter—but it is also very much about binding young people to a place, networking in the region, and building communities. Schools should be places of shared growth where children can develop their strengths. This requires political and structural reform. Comprehensive schools and integrated daily schedules are needed in order to provide enough time for teaching and learning. A reorganization of the school system is essential to enable learning for the future. 

AW At the federal level, a school development program for 2020–2030 addresses the challenges of global warming and implements solutions continuously. The federal government is committed to circularity and to avoiding land sealing, prioritizing existing buildings, making the renovation of existing buildings an essential factor. Sustainability only works when all actors—from politicians to school communities—work together. 

RS Schools, education, and educational buildings must be understood as ecosystems where transparent self-learning processes can take place. This creates identity and motivates children and young people to take responsibility.

RH It is important to be aware of where we are on our journey. If you consider the limits of our planet, we are living in a high-risk setting. This raises the question: How can schools contribute to creating security? Because schools will be central to building societal resilience.