Atut 2026 – 18th Annual Symposium of Architectural Research in Finland

Annual Symposium of Architectural Research in Finland ATUT

• 22–23 November 2026
• University of Oulu, Linnanmaa campus (get-together at the architects' guild house in Pikisaari on 22 November)
• Abstract submission deadline: 14.08.2026
• Registration opens 01.09.2026
• Program and the keynote speakers will be published soon!

About

Architectural research is at a pivotal moment in time where a host of crises relating to, for example, sustainability, digitalization, economics, geopolitics, and demographics are occurring simultaneously. This polycrisis, as it is sometimes termed, is posing significant challenges to modes of planning, design, and inquiry.

The ATUT2026 conference invites practitioners and researchers in the field of architecture and urban planning to examine the past histories, current landscapes, and potential future trajectories of architectural research. We ask, where does architectural research stand today in Finland and the world, and where is it going? How can architectural research respond to the plethora of challenges emerging in the world today? What are the modes of inquiry that shape current and future architectural research? How can architectural researchers benefit from interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary approaches? How can we ethically apply novel digital tools such as applications of artificial intelligence? How does architectural education respond to these challenges and changes in pedagogical understanding? What is the role of new construction techniques on architectural forms? How is landscape architecture connected to these changes? And is our understanding of our architectural past changing due to changes during this moment of coinciding crises?

ATUT2026 welcomes abstracts for presentations that address the conference’s theme. Contributions may be connected but need not be limited to the following topics:

ATUT 01 Architectural theory building:

What is the future of architectural theory, including aesthetics and ethics, in the age of changing climate, demographics, and notions of nonhuman authorship? What novel theory could help architecture traverse these challenges? How can we critique and build upon existing theories of the built environment, (re)conceptualise planning and design processes, and create transdisciplinary theory to respond to the various contemporary crises?

ATUT 02 Built Heritage, Change and Continuity:

Perspectives related to built heritage, restoration and adaptive reuse; the significance of the existing building stock as an ecological and cultural resource, as well as the consideration of buildings’ histories and temporal layering in design, including environmental integration and the management of change as part of continuity.

ATUT 03 Practices and processes of architectural design:

Research relating to the practices of design, production and building processes, for example: In what ways are industrial building production methods challenging and changing architectural and urban design? How should post-occupancy and quality evaluation be conducted? How are the roles of new builds, restoration and repair evolving in this age of crises, such as climate change, demographic change, and economic boom-and-busts cycles?

ATUT 04 Urban and regional planning and design:

Presenting evidence-based and / or theoretical studies concerning both human-centric and multi-species wellbeing, for example: How do urban, suburban and rural environments enable or deter psychological restoration, everyday exercise, sociality, and positive microbial exposure? How may planning processes be altered in response to emerging evidence regarding, e.g., climate change, or in response to geopolitical turmoil? What is the role of urban aesthetics in an era of climate change, demographic change and urbanization? How might diverse urban, suburban and rural inhabitants be affected by these changes and how might they be supported by planning and design?

ATUT 05 Architectural pedagogy:

Examining past, current and future pedagogies and practices in architectural education, for example: How are design skills, concepts and theories passed on and developed in architectural education? What is the state of the art of both studio and seminar teaching? How are curricula built to respond to the polycrisis of the 21st century? How will architectural pedagogy respond to the challenge of generative AI?

ATUT 06 Participatory methods and practices in design and research processes:

Developing and examining novel principles, strategies and tactics for participatory and collaborative planning and design, in various contexts that concern the built environment; scrutinising and conceptualising the ethics of participatory design and design; the future and significance of participatory planning and design in an age of polycrisis.

Abstract submission guidelines

The ATUT2026 abstract is 250-300 words and includes: a title for the abstract submission; 3-5 keywords; the subtheme (ATUT 01-06, see descriptions above) your abstract falls under; a conceptual or theoretical framework; the intended methodology; and the expected outcomes.

Abstracts are accepted in both English and Finnish. Presentations can also be given in either of these languages.

Please send your abstract to atut2026(at)oulu.fi by the submission deadline of 14 August 2026.

The abstracts will be reviewed by the members of the scientific committee and the decisions will be made by 1st of September 2026.