As architects and designers we have the unique ability not only to understand complex systems and networks, but also to develop solutions within them, based on scalable design artefacts and processes. In this approach design becomes the method for envisioning future-oriented solutions, rather than relying on past or current knowledge frameworks. As system architects we can extend the design approach into fields such as ecological restoration, circular material flows, more-than-human communities, and regional value-chains.
As the polycrisis continues and planetary boundaries are crossed, we must radically question our position as architects and designers. Regenerative Design, pattern thinking, social weaving, and a material-driven approach lead toward bioregional architecture and design practice. A bioregional methodology in the field of architecture focuses on strengthening, extending, and creating new regenerative networks within the built environment of a bioregion by connecting the resources, people, and knowledge specific to that region. A bioregion is understood as an area whose boundaries are defined by its geological, biological, and socio-cultural characteristics.

Teaching bioregional architecture is not just about transferring knowledge — it’s about creating frameworks, in which students can think from within the landscape, learn from materials, and respond to the given realities of our time. Through direct engagement with local ecologies, stakeholders, and construction practices, students develop a practical understanding of regenerative practice. The combination of hands-on skill learning, designing artefacts, and critical reflection encourages them to work across disciplines and understand architecture as part of larger environmental and social network.
Each year our professorship defines a bioregional context. Within living labs the design studios are grounded in real-world challenges and experiences. This enables students to connect architectural thinking with broader issues like climate resilience, circular economies, and regenerative practices. Rather than offering fixed answers, the courses are built around questions — How can we design with what we have? What does building mean in a changing climate? In this way, students don’t just learn techniques, they learn how to work responsibly, collaboratively, and creatively within the complexity of a place.

Our research starts with something simple and often overlooked: agricultural leftovers. By rethinking these materials — husks, stalks, fibres — not as waste but as potential building materials, the TUM Bioregional Design Lab explores how architecture can be more closely tied to the cycles of land and farming. This research brings together agriculture, material science, and architecture to imagine new ways of building that are lighter on the planet and stronger for communities. The goal isn’t just better materials — it’s weaving better bioregional networks of making and living.
What matters most is the local connection. By working closely within specific bioregions, we aim to keep value where it’s created — supporting farmers, reducing transport, and designing with the resources at hand. These materials carry stories of place, and the process of working with them becomes a way of caring for the landscapes we’re part of. This research is not about scaling up in a conventional sense — it’s about rooting deeper, and building futures that are regenerative, grounded, and shared.