White Arkitekter - Climate-neutral, regenerative architecture via bio-based construction, circular design and nature-based solutions
Sweden · White Arkitekter AB — founded Gothenburg 1951, employee-owned, ~600 staff in Sweden, Germany, UK, Canada.
White Arkitekter's impact operates on two levels. At the project level, climate-neutral and regenerative architecture demonstrates how buildings, neighbourhoods and public spaces can significantly reduce climate impact while strengthening biodiversity, climate resilience and quality of life. Through bio-based construction, adaptive reuse, circular design and nature-based solutions, projects show that ambitious environmental performance can be achieved without compromising architectural quality, functionality or long-term value. At the systemic level, White contributes to the transition towards climate-neutral and regenerative cities by developing methods that can be replicated across projects, sectors and markets. Through interdisciplinary practice, research, international collaboration and knowledge sharing, it helps accelerate the adoption of bio-based construction, circular architecture, nature-based solutions and evidence-based design, guided by its commitment to make all architecture climate neutral and regenerative by 2030.
Highlight
The Scandinavian practice pioneering mass timber, with a vision that by 2030 all its architecture will be regenerative and climate neutral.
Extended description
Cities must simultaneously reduce greenhouse gas emissions, adapt to climate change, restore biodiversity and create places that support human health and quality of life. White Arkitekter addresses these challenges through climate-neutral and regenerative architecture — an integrated design methodology that combines bio-based construction, circular design, adaptive reuse, nature-based solutions, evidence-based design and community-centred urban development.
Rather than relying on a single technology or material, each project is developed through a whole-life perspective. Life-cycle assessment (LCA), circular material flows and climate impact are considered from the earliest design stages. Bio-based materials, particularly timber, play a central role because of their low embodied carbon and carbon storage potential, applied where they create the greatest environmental value alongside adaptive reuse, low-carbon materials and resource-efficient design.
Climate performance and social value are integrated throughout the design process, recognising that places people value, use and care for are essential for long-term climate-neutral outcomes. The approach extends beyond individual buildings to neighbourhoods and cities, where green-blue infrastructure, biodiversity, climate adaptation, sustainable mobility and public life are developed together.
Research and innovation are embedded throughout the practice. Via White Research Lab, Innovation Lab and international collaborations such as the EU-funded Wood for Health programme, new knowledge becomes practical methods for circular architecture, healthy environments, digital design, climate adaptation and bio-based materials in complex building types.
The methodology spans scales and typologies. Sara Cultural Centre, one of the world's tallest timber buildings, applied engineered timber to a complex cultural building while significantly reducing embodied carbon. Magasin X, Sweden's largest timber office, combined low embodied carbon, innovative energy systems, adaptability and high architectural quality; Nodi shows how exposed timber can create healthy, low-carbon workplaces. At neighbourhood scale, Stockholm Wood City and The Erven (Netherlands) shape mixed-use districts through bio-based construction, circular design and nature-based solutions. In healthcare, Lindesberg Health Centre, Karlstad Central Hospital (Sweden's first timber-frame hospital) and Velindre Cancer Centre (Cardiff) integrate bio-based materials and evidence-based design. For climate adaptation, the Slussen transformation in Stockholm integrates flood protection, stormwater management, biodiversity and public space; Exercisfältet (Uppsala), Broparken (Linköping) and the forthcoming St. Pauli Hafenkante park (Hamburg) combine blue-green infrastructure, biodiversity and community participation.
Demonstrated metrics
Sara Cultural Centre (Skellefteå): one of the world's tallest timber buildings (~75 m); ~50% lower embodied carbon than conventional construction (incl. long-distance transport); over a 50-year period, 5,631 tCO₂e emitted vs 10,190 tCO₂e balanced via timber sequestration + on-site renewables (climate-positive).
Magasin X (Uppsala): structural-frame embodied carbon cut ~80% (~130 → 28 kg CO₂e/m² GFA) using timber vs concrete; 40% lower overall climate impact; operational energy ~60% below Swedish BBR; LEED Platinum (highest score in Northern Europe at the time); fully leased before completion.
Slussen (Stockholm): discharge capacity raised from ~300 to 1,400 m³/s, cutting flood risk in the Lake Mälaren region and safeguarding drinking water for ~2 million people; ~100-year service life; adapted to ~1 m sea-level rise.
The Erven (Hoofddorp, NL): 519 homes; ≥80% of the area with nature-based solutions for climate adaptation, stormwater and biodiversity.
Real impact
White Arkitekter's impact operates on two levels. At the project level, climate-neutral and regenerative architecture demonstrates how buildings, neighbourhoods and public spaces can significantly reduce climate impact while strengthening biodiversity, climate resilience and quality of life. Through bio-based construction, adaptive reuse, circular design and nature-based solutions, projects show that ambitious environmental performance can be achieved without compromising architectural quality, functionality or long-term value.
At the systemic level, White contributes to the transition towards climate-neutral and regenerative cities by developing methods that can be replicated across projects, sectors and markets. Through interdisciplinary practice, research, international collaboration and knowledge sharing, it helps accelerate the adoption of bio-based construction, circular architecture, nature-based solutions and evidence-based design, guided by its commitment to make all architecture climate neutral and regenerative by 2030.
Implementation location & date
Methodology refined over decades of research and practice; applied across the Nordics and internationally — healthcare, housing, workplaces, cultural buildings, public spaces and large-scale urban development.
Sources
White Arkitekter (official): http://whitearkitekter.com
Sara Cultural Centre: http://whitearkitekter.com/project/sara-cultural-centre/
Magasin X: http://whitearkitekter.com/project/magasin-x-uppsala/