Berlin Chamber of Architects: Roswag-Klinge focuses on climate-friendly construction!

Berlin Chamber of Architects: Roswag-Klinge focuses on climate-friendly construction!

On June 5, 2025, Eike Roswag-Klinge was elected as the new President of the Berlin Chamber of Architects. This election took place during the 12th representative meeting. Roswag-Klinge is not only a freelance architect, but also a professor at the Technical University of Berlin, where he has headed the Natural Building Lab since 2017. His election brings a breath of fresh air to the chamber, which has around 10,500 members from various areas of architecture, such as interior design and urban planning.

In his new role, Roswag-Klinge plans to actively support the construction transition. He emphasizes the challenges that affect both research and practice. A central concern of his term of office is the promotion of young talent and the implementation of high-quality training and further education. Roswag-Klinge would like to strengthen the social recognition of architects and their contribution to sustainable development.

Focus on sustainability

According to Roswag-Klinge, climate justice, resource conservation and social responsibility will shape the guiding principles of his professional policy work. It stands for climate-friendly and resource-saving architecture. At the TU Berlin he is intensively involved in constructive design and climate-adaptive construction. His Natural Building Lab specializes in developing sustainable concepts using natural building materials such as clay, wood and natural fibers.

The Berlin Chamber of Architects has also dedicated itself to the topic of sustainable building. A collection of central ideas and terms for sustainable planning has been put together here. Loud ak-berlin.de Four key sustainability strategies were identified: sufficiency, efficiency, resilience and consistency. These strategies are intended to help significantly reduce resource consumption.

Strategies for sustainable building

The strategy of sufficiency focuses on sufficiency by reducing needs in order to reduce resource consumption. Efficiency involves maximizing output with minimal input. Resilience addresses the ability of buildings to withstand changing living conditions, such as climate change. Consistency strives for closed material cycles to avoid waste and promote the use of renewable energy.

An example of circular construction, which is considered the key to greater sustainability, is the “Woodscraper” research project. In an interview with dbu.de Sabine Djahanschah explains that it's about designing components so that they can be reused to a high quality when dismantled. Currently, 55% of waste in Germany comes from demolition materials, which highlights the need for a rethink in the planning processes.

Effective implementation of circular construction requires optimized planning tools and holistic thinking, which begins in the early planning phase. The focus should be on further developing the existing building stock through renovation and additions, rather than concentrating exclusively on new buildings. This is the only way the construction industry can make a real contribution to sustainable development.

The election of Eike Roswag-Klinge as President of the Berlin Chamber of Architects is not only a personnel change, but also signals a paradigmatic shift towards more responsible and sustainable architecture.