© Lenny Oosterwijk
Architecture | Sustainability | Entrepreneur
Césare Peeren
Césare Peeren is a passionate architect, entrepreneur and idealist on a mission to transform current human culture into a more resourceful and sustainable one.
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Keynote Speaker
Employability:
Keynote Speaker,
About Césare Peeren
Césare is a passionate architect, entrepreneur and idealist on a mission to transform current human culture to a more resourceful and sustainable one.
22 years ago and starting with the observation that in nature the outputs of one system are not waste, but rather the inputs for another system, Césare’s architectural graduation project incorporated many themes and concepts that are now termed ‘sustainable’ and ‘circular’ design. Shortly thereafter, in 1997, he and Jan Jongert co-founded 2012Architecten (now Superuse) with a vision to further develop and realise those themes. Their many realised designs are unique and have become icons of waste design/passive architecture. Their efforts and realised projects have seen Superuse recognised as the pioneers, path makers, and continued frontrunners in waste architecture and circular design. In 2021 Superuse won the ARC 21 OEUVRE award in recognition of their body of work in paving the way for circular design and construction.
From their beginnings investigating and experimenting with the creative re-use potentials of discarded materials for design and architectural purposes, Césare and Jan and their growing team have gone on to develop concepts and processes such as ‘superuse’, ‘harvest mapping’, ‘recyclicity’ and ‘cyclifying’. Their aim being to smooth the pathway for optimal (re)use and repurposing in architecture of not only physical waste materials, but of the many discarded and under-utilised resource and energy outputs within a design system. They now work with 14 frequently wasted or underutilised resource flows including: materials, food, water, people, heat, sound, knowledge, money, and culture.
From the outset Césare has been integral in all aspects of Superuse, as idealist, visionary, designer, builder, teacher and managing-director. In 2010 he set up Eetbaar Rotterdam (Edible Rotterdam), an organisation to stimulate inner city food production. And since 2009 with the Wikado playground made from discarded wind turbine blades, has delved deeply into the superuse potential of waste wind blades and set up Blade Made, an international organisation offering a worldwide adoptable design solution for the growing waste problem of the wind industry.
Césare remains director of Superuse, but in 2016 withdrew from management functions to set up Superuse on site to focus more fully on designing architecture which integrates and incorporates as many as possible of the explored themes and resource flows he has been investigating and experimenting with over the previous 22 years: re-use/superuse, circular design, lightness, passive energy, passive ventilation, community living and urban agriculture. Although many of these themes have been applied separately in different projects over his first 19 years as Superuse, he focuses now on integrating as many themes as possible within each given project. Superuse on site is the mobile laboratory of Superuse that develops ideas in practice and generally works on site. In each project knowledge gained is readily shared on a diversity of platforms.
Césare sincerely believes in what he talks about, he is real, inspiring, and has real life practical experience walking the talk. The audience can feel that. He is able to answer questions, is open to critique and does not mind admitting if things in the work did not turn out as ecological as hoped for. He considers his work to be under constant development, and a way to provide open-source learning opportunities to develop a sustainable society.
Specialist Subjects
Stanley K.
It's easy to get impatient on your quest to be the best. After reading Great to Cool and visiting René’s keynote, I felt pumped up and ready for action! And then you wake up the next morning and things are pretty much the same! Until you feel the sweet brain candy is doing its work again (and again). When you're impatient and want to shake things up, you simply read it again and you start to change your business life! Thank you René, Great to Cool is an attitude!
Reid Miami Summit
References
I absolutely trust his expertise in this field.
“Césare did a wonderful speech on our see-Conference in Germany. In front of 800 people he presented his projects and methods in an inspiring and exciting way. I recently recommended him as a consultant on re-use to one of my dearest clients, I absolutely trust his expertise in this field.”
Césare has been an inspiration to so many of us over the last 15 years or so.
"Césare has been an inspiration to so many of us over the last 15 years or so. He has a great skill in describing complicated ideas and systems in an original and accessible way, which of course is exactly what we need to get an understanding of what needs to be done with the built environment."
He is a very inspiring and convincing speaker driven by personal engagement and idealism.
“Césare Peeren has been lecturing worldwide about architecture and urbanism, with a strong focus on innovation, environmentalism and reuse. He is a very inspiring and convincing speaker driven by personal engagement and idealism. Césare’s vision on architecture, the urban environment and related human behaviour and interaction is very interesting for a professional audience as well as the general public.”
Césare beheerst de materie als geen ander, vanuit helikopter niveau tot in de details van inspirerende voorbeelden.
“Vol passie neemt Césare je mee in de wereld van circulaire architectuur. Hij beheerst de materie als geen ander, vanuit helikopter niveau tot in de details van inspirerende voorbeelden. Na afloop zit je vol energie om zelf aan de slag te gaan én heb je de praktische tools in handen om dat te kunnen!”