Co-curated by The World Around and Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, In Focus: Landscapes brought together an incredible lineup of speakers from across Asia and beyond to ask critical questions about how architecture and landscape design can enact real change, and how to move conversations forward: out from institutions and into the world. Introduced by Beatrice Galilee from The World Around, Béatrice Grenier from the Fondation Cartier, and Gong Yan from the Power Station of Art, Kunlé Adeyemi, Minsuk Cho, Petra Blaisse, Ani Safaryan, Andra Matin, and Liu Jiakun all presented their innovative landscape-forward projects and discussed their research, and explored the role of landscapes, architecture and urbanism in shaping a more sustainable future for us all.

The theme of landscapes in architecture could not be more urgent or universal. As we all face an escalating climate crisis, from rising seas, to desertification, resource scarcity and biodiversity loss, the integration of landscape into architecture is no longer an option, it is a necessity. Architects and designers are now rethinking their roles, not only as the creators of buildings, but as the stewards of the ecological systems and mediators of the complex relationships between humans and our environments.