Collaboration to strengthen the architects' toolbox

Charlie Gullström is Research and Innovation Strategist at Sweco, architect and PhD from KTH. Now she is also formally linked to Chalmers and the Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering, where she has recently been installed as an adjunct professor, a role that will make an impact in both education and research activities and be able to add experience in strategic issues connected to the organization.

 – I hope to contribute to building more bridges between practice and academia because it is needed in the time of change we are in. Parallel to the climate challenges, digitisation and AI are areas of technology that fundamentally change the way architects work, and what I wanted to highlight in my promotion lecture is that circular economy can be a strategic tool to take us to the next level. We architects need to develop our toolbox to be at the forefront of development and at the same time can contribute with creative and critical approaches that are needed and for which our education has created the conditions for, says Charlie Gullström.

– Today we face an enormous challenge where we have to rethink the architect's work. Our professional role has long been focused on new construction, but as architects we have to become sharper at identifying values in the existing and here there are methods to draw from other disciplines. We simply need to turn the design process around and use digital support and data to support design in the early stages, says Paula Femenias, Professor and head of the Division of Building Design.

Full text available in the Swedish language version

Charlie Gullström held her promotion lecture on December 19 2023, titled “Rethinking what’s new: Circular economy in architecture and urban planning.”