Holcim Forum

The Holcim Forum is a series of symposiums on various topics framed by sustainable construction conducted by the Foundation. The event is an academic platform for architects, engineers, construction professionals and specialists of all generations to exchange information on creating a sustainable built environment and thus advancing sustainable development.
 
Experts from all continents collaborate in workshops, exchange ideas in panel discussions, listen to technical lectures, and search for ways to translate current approaches and forward-thinking approaches into practice. The next Holcim Forum will be held in April 2013 at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT Bombay) in Mumbai, India.

Holcim Forum 2010 - "Re-inventing construction"
Under the theme of "Re-inventing Construction" the 3rd International Holcim Forum served as a platform for 270 experts from 39 countries to investigate the issues further. The focus of "Re-inventing Construction" was on knowledge mining and dissemination, material and product life cycle assessment, CO2 emissions and energy efficiency, considered deployment of means and economic resources, measured public and private policies, as well as on social welfare and equity.

Top-level academics down to earth
The presentations of selected experts also offered an inspiring yet practical array of ideas. Pre-eminent thinker on energy, Amory Lovins (USA) and engineer Werner Sobek (Germany) have been conducting successful research for years and developing innovations for everyday use. Luminary architects Thom Mayne (USA) and Michel Rojkind (Mexico) presented not a utopia – but proposals for bold, tangible, and above all reproducible solutions to pressing challenges of development.
 
Even the unmistakably cerebral sociologist and economist Jeremy Rifkin (USA) kept his highly-debated convictions regarding empathetic society down to earth. “There is no empathy in utopia because everything is perfect”, he says: “An empathic civilization is the exact opposite of utopia. It is based on our solidarity because we're imperfect and fragile creatures, because we're trying the best we can to flourish on this earth, and we try to show some solidarity with each other in the journey.”