Retrofit Reimagined: Community-focused exploration of retrofit on the neighbourhood scale

On November 11th we had the honour of hosting the final event in the UK wide Retrofit Reimagined 2023 festival organised collectively by ACAN, Anthropocene Architecture School, BE-ST, CIVIC SQUARE, Dark Matter Labs, Home Energy Action Lab (HEAL), WeCanMake and zero carbon house. It was a celebration of ideas, practices, and the collective vision to redefine our relationship with the planet.

Photo by Angela Grabowska

The event brought together varied organisation and community-led groups fostering immersive learning experiences and conversations about the future of public-civic settlements. From practical insights to big-picture dialogues, the diversity of sectors, practices, and ideas showcased the potential for new combinations that can drive impactful change. The immediate impact of these principles in neighbourhoods was strikingly evident through contributions by groups such as Fuel Poverty Action, the Wyndford Residents Union, Govanhill Baths Community Trust and Just Transition Torry. It was a privilege for us to speak on a panel with these groups and share our learning from the PassivHaus retrofit of Civic House.

Photo by Angela Grabowska

Across the day there were workshops, panel discussions, talks, reading rooms and retrofit garden building – exploring our relationships with land, material and each other. Across all of these activities was a call to action, an invitation to reimagine, rebuild, and redefine our relationship with the world. To close out the day and the festival in style we hosted a dinner and ceilidh for attendees.

Photo by Angela Grabowska

We extend our gratitude to all who participated, contributed, and engaged in the day and look forward to the future of collaboration and reimagining which this event has initiated.

You can read more about the festival and the many ideas and outcomes via the following link here.

Photo by Angela Grabowska