Structures & Architecture - Joining forces?

The Journal Architecture, Structures and Construction, was launched in 2021 motivated by the need to provide a hitherto nonexistent international platform for nurturing the synergetic potentials of the disciplines of architecture, building and structural engineering.

Today, the severity of the intertwined nature of the social, economic, and environmental challenges facing us obviously require of us to change our behavior as well as our consumption rapidly. This makes the quest to expand the synergetic potentials of architecture, structure, and construction with reference to their commitment and responsibility as social drivers of a viable urban development a pressing issue. We need to reduce the environmental impact of construction as such, while simultaneously advancing its positive socio-economic potential to nurture sustainable behavior and strong communities. For the disciplines of architecture, building and structural engineering, this means that we need to further each of our core-competencies in addressing these challenges while simultaneously improving our ability to engage collaboration. Not only do we need to equip ourselves with improved methods to engage collaboration with each other, but also with disciplines way outside of our related fields of knowledge.

This special issue of Architecture, Structures and Construction searches the contours of these collaborative efforts, asking how and with whom we must join forces in addressing these challenges. The special issue contains selected papers initially submitted in abstract form for the Fifth International Conference on Structures & Architecture (ICSA2022) held at the Department of Architecture, Design & Media Technology, Aalborg University, Denmark 6–8 July 2022. Of the over 400 abstracts initially reviewed by the ICSA2022 International Scientific Committee, approximately 50 authors were invited to submit the corresponding full papers through the Journal's Editorial Manager system following the journal’s peer-review process. The 22 papers contained within this volume are the second and final group of a total of 33 papers that have finally been accepted for publication in the journal after having completed this process. Each of the 22 papers present a unique direction for how to join forces across structures and architecture in addressing the intertwined challenges facing us. Yet, we are able to identify a series of common themes across the 22 papers that we hope can be useful in deducing a set of complementary strategies for collaboration resulting from the large span that they cover.