How Tomorrow Is Built Today

As Europe continues to battle economic and environmental gloom and doom, nations across the continent are re-evaluating how to build the cities of tomorrow with tight budgets and green mindsets. “We are at a key moment, where we as architects must become activists. We must innovate and help to find new solutions for how people can live well and do well,” says Enric Ruiz-Geli, founding principal of Cloud9 architects in Barcelona.

To get a glimpse of what’s being built around Europe, we took a look at four cities known for their architectural relevance—London, Copenhagen, Amsterdam and Barcelona—and spoke to four firms making waves in their cities and beyond. Some are shaping new landmarks, others are just making their mark, but each is seeking to create buildings that impact how we live. From the residential to the commercial, concrete to conceptual, key figures behind these firms talk about where European architecture stands today, where they’d like to see it go and how they plan to help it get there.

Continue reading at The Wall Street Journal