Reprogramming the City: Repurposing Urban Infrastructure

Grain Silo Repurposed as Student Housing

Grünerløkka Studenthus, a repurposed grain silo that became a 226-unit student housing complex in Oslo, Norway, was converted by adding circular floor units inside the silos and cutting windows into … Read more

Reprogramming the City Book Now Available

The culmination of eight years of research, thousands of air miles, and numerous exhibitions and workshops, the Reprogramming the City book is now available. From billboards in Lima, Peru, repurposed to … Read more

Reprogramming Bus Stops to Improve Mental Health

Umeå Energi improved the mental health of the city by installing light therapy bulbs in 30 of the city’s bus stops. With the new lights in place, the bus stops … Read more

Adding a Mini Urban Park to a Stairway

The Cascade layers new functionality on top of one of the city’s countless stairways. Located next to The Centrium complex in the central business district, The Cascade is a mini … Read more

Transforming a Billboard to Provide Clean Drinking Water

The Water Billboard harvests water from the humid air, filters it, and stores it in the base of the billboard. Local residents need to simply turn on a tap at … Read more

Repurposing Bridges For Food and Energy

The design group Cloud Collective installed an algae growing system on an ordinary Geneva highway bridge, turning an uncelebrated part of the city’s grey infrastructure into a platform for future … Read more

City Busses Repurposed as Mobile Hygiene Stations

By converting city public transportation buses into mobile shower units with toilets, Lava Mae has provided over 4,000 individuals with showers and sanitation services. The repurposed buses allow the organization … Read more

A1 EV car charging station from repurposed phone booth

Converting Phone Booths into EV Charging Stations

As part of the “Green Innovation in Austria” initiative, Telekom Austria’s A1 division has been steadily replacing their phone booths with EV Charging Stations for almost a decade. Project: A1 … Read more

Sidewalk Tiles Reimagined to Mitigate Climate Change

Third Nature’s Climate Tile system makes sidewalks an active participant in mitigating climate change by harnessing and handling rainwater more efficiently, easing problems with urban flooding during severe weather, and … Read more

Reprogramming Parking Meters for Additional Benefit

Mayo Nissen’s City Tickets initiative harnesses the full potential of the technology contained in the meters to turn them into dynamic, responsive system, allowing a two-way exchange between the city … Read more