Building the Future – Circular Construction

Circular Construction – How Can Sustainable Materials Like Japanese Knotweed, Moss, Hemp, and Clay Become Market-Ready?

One hundred years ago, the Bauhaus moved from Weimar to Dessau. From September 2025 to December 2026, the Bauhaus Dessau Foundation will celebrate this anniversary under the motto “To the Substance.” The focus is on the role of design and architecture on material, economic, technological, and societal levels.

In line with this anniversary theme, the C4 thinking and discussion format of the Forum Rathenau will also highlight material innovations in the context of the building transition. Building is more than a purely technical process – it is a societal one. It raises questions about how we want to live together, how we use resources responsibly, and how we understand the built environment as a cultural, social, and ecological space. The New European Bauhaus and the RZZ Real Laboratory ZEKIWA exemplify how this process can be shaped collaboratively by citizens, science, politics, and industry.

To reduce CO₂ emissions, it is essential to focus on the construction sector and implement sustainable improvements that keep materials within an equivalent circular cycle.
At this C4 event, experts will present building materials such as Japanese Knotweed, clay, moss, and hemp – all recyclable and climate-neutral substances that also have a positive effect on indoor climates. Whether these materials can truly drive the building transition will be explored together with the panel guests.

Panel participants include:

Martin Wiesner, Visiting Professor, Department of Design, Anhalt University of Applied Sciences, and Freelance Designer
Alexander Bieß, Research Associate, Anhalt University of Applied Sciences, and Managing Director / Innovation Manager of DIVER(C)ITY
Dr. Barbara Steiner, Director and Executive Board Member, Bauhaus Dessau Foundation
Dr. Franziska Knoll, Archaeologist and Alliance Coordinator, GOLEHM
Dipl.-Ing. Heinrich Rennebaum, Institute of Agricultural and Nutritional Sciences, University of Halle

Moderation: Professor Ralf Wehrspohn, Chairman of the Board, Forum Rathenau

Please register for C4 by 28 October.
For an overview and registration forms, visit the Forum Rathenau website:
www.forum-rathenau.de/veranstaltung/zirkulaeres-bauen/