– Norway is demolishing buildings blindly

When European PhD students were challenged to look at the city's building stock, the answer was clear: – We lack an overview of what is actually being demolished, both nationally and locally. If we are to reach climate goals, we must stop viewing buildings as waste and instead treat them as digital material banks.

What can PhD students from various European countries teach Stavanger about the reuse of buildings? Through an intensive work week, researchers have looked at how the municipality can bridge the gap between ambitious climate goals and current construction practices.

The project is part of the EU-funded PhD network SUNSET, where candidates research the interaction between cities and universities to promote sustainability.

How do cities translate climate goals into systemic change? Panel discussion with Helene Gram, Program Manager , Cities Mission in Stavanger Municipality; Niki Frantzeskaki, Professor of Regional and Metropolitan Governance and Planning at Utrecht University; Markku Markkula, Vice President of the European Committee of the Regions; and Marte Cecilie Wilhelmsen Solheim, Pro-rector for Innovation and Society at the University of Stavanger. Photo: Nordic Edge.

The week began at Innoasis with the event Mission Cities: From Hope to Action? as a prelude to the Nordic Edge Expo in May. Here, Markku Markkula, Vice President of the European Committee of the Regions, set the framework for how European cities can realize the vision of becoming smart and climate neutral. The message was clear: Hope must be replaced by concrete action..

Reuse over demolition

The assignment given to the students was presented in light of Stavanger receiving the EU’s Mission Label last year – a mark of quality for the city's work toward becoming climate-neutral by 2030.

As a result of this initiative, several working groups have been established to find practical ways to work toward climate neutrality. One of these groups specifically focuses on the reuse of existing building stock, where City Architect Henrik Lundberg plays a central role.

The challenge for the students was formulated by the City Architect: How can innovation policy and framework conditions make it easier to choose reuse over demolition?

 “The most effective way to cut emissions is to stop demolishing buildings. Therefore, we must figure out how to make it easier to reuse them. That is precisely why this challenge was given to the SUNSET students,” Lundberg explains.

PhD students Christina N. Larsen, Tommy Galliver, Grace Zhou, and Fasih Munir discuss solutions for the reuse of buildings with City Architect Henrik Lundberg.

The municipality as a "one-stop-shop"

Throughout an intensive work week, the students used experiences from their home countries to look at Stavanger with fresh eyes. When the week concluded, the results from the group were presented alongside five other challenges hosted by the SUNSET network.

They pointed out that the main challenge regarding the reuse of buildings is not necessarily technical, but rather a lack of good political frameworks and digital tools that make reuse practically possible.

The group presented three key recommendations to address the challenge:

• Better data for safer choices: The students pointed out that today, there is a lack of national and local overview regarding how many buildings are demolished and what materials they contain. Digitalization is therefore the key. By implementing digital "material passports," one gains a concrete overview of what buildings consist of. This makes it safer and more predictable for developers to choose to reuse instead of "demolishing blindly."

• From paper to practice: The group believes that current Norwegian regulations (TEK17) often turn reuse mapping into a passive paper exercise without real requirements for action. They suggested looking to countries like Denmark, which set stricter requirements for documentation, selective dismantling, and the use of authorized companies.

• The municipality as a door opener: A central proposal was the creation of a dedicated guidance team within the municipality – a "one-stop shop." This is intended to lower the threshold for private actors by providing clear answers regarding approval processes and support schemes at the very start of a project.

The group concluded that halting arbitrary demolition requires better statistics and systems that promote preservation.

"The students hit the nail on the head. Their analysis confirms that we must stop viewing buildings as waste and instead treat them as valuable material banks," says Lundberg.

The need for system innovation

Although the students only had five days, their interdisciplinary backgrounds provided new input for Stavanger’s own working group on reuse.

Lundberg says that the students' work highlights the exact need for better data and clearer political incentives.

“The students analysis confirms that we must stop viewing buildings as waste and instead treat them as valuable material banks. The proposals for digital material passports and a 'one-stop-shop' in the municipality are exactly the kind of system innovation we need to make reuse the easiest choice. We will take these fresh perspectives directly into our further work with the Mission initiative,” says City Architect Henrik Lundberg.