Connecting Architectural Research, Pedagogy, and Practice
27 November 2025 | 14:00–16:00 (Paris/CET)
The UIA Architectural Education Commission is pleased to announce its 4th International Webinar, titled Connecting Architectural Research, Pedagogy, and Practice, to be held on 27 November 2025 at 14:00–16:00 (Paris/CET).
Chaired by Professor Ashraf M. Salama and Dr Selma Harrington, this webinar brings together international experts to examine how architectural education and professional practice must evolve in response to today’s most urgent environmental and social challenges. Through diverse perspectives and case studies, the event explores new ways to integrate research, studio teaching, and practice-based knowledge, providing insights into how architecture can play a more effective and transformative role in shaping sustainable futures.
About the Webinar
Architectural education is undergoing rapid transformation. Pressures stemming from the climate crisis, resource scarcity, urban inequalities, and technological disruptions demand renewed approaches that strengthen the relationship between theory, design research, and real-world practice. This webinar presents three complementary contributions that:
- Highlight the value of practice-based research as a cost-efficient and impactful driver of sustainable innovation;
- Propose circular pedagogy as a model for student-centred, community-engaged, and cross-disciplinary architectural education;
- Examine urban peripheries as critical sites for rethinking design and imagination in the Anthropocene.
- Together, these perspectives articulate a compelling call for architectural education and practice to work more cohesively, ensuring relevance, resilience, and meaningful impact.
Speakers
Dr. Anna-Johanna Klasander (Sweden)
More for less? Practice-based Research as a Cost-Efficient Way to Sustainable Architecture
Dr. Klasander, architect and PhD in Urban Design and Planning, draws from her work at White Arkitekter—an employee-owned practice with five decades of investment in research and development. She will share examples demonstrating how small and large research projects alike contribute significantly to professional practice, and how state aid frameworks shape opportunities for architects to drive industry-wide innovation.
Mr. Patrick Flynn (Republic of Ireland)
Circular Pedagogy in the Architecture Studio
As Head of the School of Architecture, Building and Environment at TU Dublin and elected council member of the EAAE, Patrick Flynn examines the challenges facing architectural education—from rapid technological change to shifting societal expectations. His talk introduces the concept of circular pedagogy, emphasising lifelong learning, community engagement, multidisciplinary collaboration, and co-creation of knowledge as essential elements of a transformative curriculum.
Dr. Cameron McEwan (United Kingdom)
Learning from the Periphery: Towards a Critical Practice for the Anthropocene
Dr. McEwan, Associate Professor at Northumbria University, reflects on his ongoing teaching and research into urban peripheries and the Anthropocene. Presenting work from his initiatives The Periphery as a Critical Project and Peripheries–Peripherocene (The Journal of Architecture), he considers the climate crisis as both a spatial and imaginative challenge. His talk highlights the potential of design research as a critical practice connecting theory, pedagogy, and urban realities.
The webinar is free and open to all.
To register, please click here.