Collapse by Design

Collapse by Design confronts the reality that human activity is destabilising the biophysical systems that sustain life. The built environment is complicit—the climate and nature crises demand that architecture evolves for a rapidly changing world. With humanity exceeding vital planetary boundaries, the exhibition invites new spaces for architectural thought and action. It argues built environment professions must shift from creating objects to orchestrating networks, accelerating regenerative practices, and reducing harmful impacts on people, ecosystems and future generations. This requires architects to address broader issues like food security and material flows through living systems thinking. The program features citizens' assemblies and climate emergency roundtables to facilitate collaboration among public and professionals. By translating complex data into tangible spatial and emotive experiences, the exhibition cultivates public literacy and explores the climate and nature crisis as a cultural issue.