Architecture Matters is an international conference on the future of architecture and cities. The Focus Sessions consist of several parallel roundtables featuring short keynote impulses and discussions in smaller groups. They provide space to explore a topic in greater depth and to exchange ideas directly: How do you respond to the crisis? What does the future of building look like to you? What do you expect from — or wish for — from the people you collaborate with?
Places for each Focus Session are limited and will be allocated after ticket purchase.
Focus Session 1: Radical Thinking
Focus Session 2: Focus Finance
Focus Session 3: Focus AI
Focus Session 4: Central Station District – Goethestraße
Focus Session 5: Female Focus
Focus Session 6: Speed Dating
How can we achieve faster and more effective planning procedures? What framework conditions are needed for innovative and experimental architectural projects? How can we move from experimentation to everyday practice? Taking responsibility – what does that mean in concrete terms for the different stakeholders involved? And what kind of mindset and skills are needed for leadership, project and process management in times of transformation?
Impulses, Q&A and discussion with, among others:
Kristiaan Borret, City Architect of Brussels
Alessandro Gess, l’AUC
Jörn Walter, Former Chief Planning Director of Hamburg
Moderation: Jan Friedrich, Bauwelt
Anneke von Holst, Communication & Concepts for Architecture and the City
Where is capital flowing – and where are the smartest investments? How does future-oriented construction fit into the equation?
Is the move towards climate neutrality an irreversible long-term trend? Or is economic growth more important than reducing CO2 emissions for most nations – especially as countries like the US, India, and China expand both fossil and renewable energy sources? What does this mean for the real estate sector? Is it still common sense to invest primarily in sustainable buildings? How do institutional investors define future-proof, sustainable construction? Which standards matter most – and who sets them? What can we afford?
input and discussion with, among others:
Jürgen Michels, Chefvolkswirt und Leiter Research, BayernLB
Christoph Zapp, PAMERA Real Estate
Andreas Rauch, Commerz Real
moderation:
Matthias Alexander, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
Christian Meister, Hines und Board Architecture Matters
The British architect Cedric Price once asked: “If technology is the answer, what was the question?” Stanislas Chaillou is co-founder of Paris-based start-up Rayon. And he is convinced that browser-based design tools are the new and ideal answer to the “underserved” 90 per cent of architecture. For offices, retail, shopping centres, housing – the mundane beyond the spectacular. It’s about speed over complexity, collaboration over power, open over siloed.
The session will provide a comprehensive insight into a deep tech startup – the immediate application and the big idea. But also the bigger context: How is the contech startup scene developing in Europe? What does the much-criticised over-regulation at European level mean? Do we need to think bigger here?
Stanislas Chaillou is an architect and ML engineer. He was a Fulbright scholar,an Arthur Sachs Fellow and Jean Gaillard Fellow at Harvard University.
input and discussion with, among others:
Stanislas Chaillou, Rayon
moderation:
David Basulto, Founder ArchDaily
Nadin Heinich, plan A
The redesign of Munich Central Station, set for completion in the 2030s, is a key city infrastructure project. Munich is already southern Germany’s main transport hub and the “number one commuter city,” with 450,000 people on the move daily. Projections suggest this number will double, with commuters, tourists, and businesspeople driving the transformation of the area into the city’s new central business district.
How do we shape this transformation? Beyond the headlines – how can streets once again become vibrant places of arrival, transit, and local attraction? Specifically: How can we reimagine Goethestrasse as a new, welcoming space – not just Instagrammable but where people genuinely enjoy spending time? We are seeking outstanding concepts for implementation from summer 2025!
With contributions by:
FAKT, Berlin
COMMON AGENCY, Berlin
Baukunst Dynamites, Stuttgart-Berlin
Die Urbanauten, Munich
Opposite Office, Rome (Munich)
ON/OFF, Berlin
Jury:
Michael Bacherl, LH München
Jennifer Becker, Thea Kulturklub
Benoît Blaser, Vorsitzender Bezirksausschuss Stadtbezirk 2
Filipe De Sá Pessoa, AXA Investment Managers Deutschland GmbH
moderation: Eva Herrmann
host & moderation: Regula Lüscher, Die Stadtmacherin
As traditional gender roles are being reinforced around the world, Female Focus aims to strengthen the network of women in architecture and real estate. There’s still much to do!
From awareness to action: In this session, host and moderator Regula Lüscher will address both overt and latent forms of discrimination, shifting the focus from individual experiences and reactions to the broader societal, political, and economic systems that enable them. Participants are encouraged to bring their own examples. In small groups, we will discuss personal experiences of discrimination, identify systemic and institutional issues, and develop practical ideas for change. “The less discrimination, the better.”
Regula Lüscher served as Berlin’s Senate Building Director from 2007 to 2021. Since 2022, she has been active as Die Stadtmacherin (The City Maker), advising on complex urban development and architectural projects. She also chairs numerous juries, holds an honorary professorship, and is a dedicated mentor.
A central focus of Architecture Matters is stronger networking between the architecture and real estate industries – fostering dialogue at eye level. Our speed dating sessions bring ambitious (young) architects and potential clients into direct contact. Fresh, contemporary ideas shake up conventional planning approaches to open up new possibilities.
moderation: Michael Schuster, DBZ
