Living Off-Grid: Self-sufficiency towards A New Cultural Model

The Architecture Division of the Athens Institute is organizing a Microsymposium on “Living Off-Grid: Self-sufficiency towards A New Cultural Model” as part of the 15^th Annual International Conference on Architecture, 7-10 July 2025, Athens, Greece sponsored by the Athens Journal of Architecture.

The microsymposium reflects on the significance of detachment from the vast distribution network, which represents not only the fossil fuel system but also a particular cultural model, a specific way of knowing and designing that has shaped the territory over the last century. Self-sufficiency is not a new idea; rather, it is the way in which all architectural heritage has been constructed over the millennia, connecting to the landscape in

various ways across different latitudes and altitudes, awakening the deeper laws of building and generating unique places, where the network operates through abstract space. Autarky is an ancient tactic that is now relevant for future needs, ranging from climate change to the fragility of the geopolitical landscape and the vulnerabilities of the network itself. The call focuses on the ecological transition of the European Green Deal, addressing the intrinsic challenges of a program whose standards are required to function from the North Sea to the Ionian Sea. A distance that encompasses hundreds of different building types, the result of centuries of internal codifications and refinements, a constructive and thermophysical acuity that cannot be ignored today but rather needs to be recovered and valued. This is crucial for a new form of territorialization, countering the processes of de-territorialization carried out by technological capital over the last century. The micro symposium, which arises from a study conducted on the built residential landscape of northeastern Italy based on local energy, water, and food resources, as well as the thermophysical properties of the buildings themselves, seeks a similar dialogue with other European territories to bring forth a heritage that cannot be neutralized and treated according to standards, but that, in each case and in different ways, constitutes the fundamental starting point on the path of transforming the territory in response to climate change.

Please submit an abstract (email only) to: atiner@atiner.gr, using the abstract submission form by 25 March 2025 to: Dr. Susanna Pisciella, Assistant Professor, University IUAV of Venice, Italy.

Abstracts should include the following: Title of Paper, Full Name (s), Affiliation, Current Position, an email address, and at least 3 keywords that best describe the subject of your submission. Decisions are reached within 4 weeks.

Fee structure information is available on www.atiner.gr/fees.

Special arrangements will be made with a local hotel for a limited number of rooms at a special conference rate (please book in advance, at least 2 months before). In addition, a number of special events will be organized which give a great opportunity to further discuss the issues presented at the microsymposium. From the Athens Institute’s long experience these events bring together scholars from different countries and disciplines which may result to research collaborations and joint publications. These events include a pragmatic symposium (as organized in Ancient Athens but fine-tuned to synchronous ethics), a special one-day educational island tour, a Mycenae and island of Poros visit, an Athens educational walking tour, a day trip to Delphi, and an ancient Corinth and Cape Sounion visit. Details of the social program are available here.