Annual summit of Open House Europe, hosted by the Irish Architecture Foundation
January 30–31, 2025
Dublin Castle
Dublin 2
Ireland
The Irish Architecture Foundation will host the second Annual Summit of Open House Europe. Taking place in Dublin, Ireland, on January 30–31, 2025, the summit will present a public programme exploring how accessibility and inclusion can transform cities into vibrant, welcoming spaces for everyone.
The summit’s title, The City Invites, captures its essence—a call to action and a challenge to imagine cities as places that embrace diversity, celebrate inclusion, and thrive on collective creativity. By exploring themes such as participatory democracy, the creative reuse of existing structures, and universal design homes, the summit will delve into how urban spaces can evolve to promote inclusion, foster connections, and unlock their full potential for all inhabitants.
Thursday, 30 January
6–7pm: Open House Europe Visual Stories Exhibition launch reception
The summit will open with an exhibition featuring 36 Visual Stories by attendees of 14 Open House festivals across Europe, created in response to the theme “Accessibility and Inclusion”.
7-8:30pm: This City Imagined—A discussion on Dublin, thirty years in the making
It has been said that in Ireland architecture only became understood as a social, cultural and political force in 1991 when a young group of architects, Group 91, won the competition to transform a run down part of Dublin city, Temple Bar. Thirty years later, what can we learn from that project and from the reflections of the architects who, after Temple Bar, went on to achieve national and international acclaim?
We will be joined by architects John Tuomey, Shane O’Toole, Siobhán Ní Éanaigh, Valerie Mulvin, Yvonne Farrell, and Shay Cleary, who were all part of Group 91.
The conversation will be chaired by Christele Harrouk, Editor-in-Chief of ArchDaily, and Emmett Scanlon, Director of the Irish Architecture Foundation.
Friday, 31 January
9:45-11:30am: The City Belongs—Participatory democracy in city design and planning
This conversation will explore how community involvement in decision-making creates more inclusive, equitable, and sustainable places.
The panel will be joined by Aliénor Saint-Cast, Head of Studies at Plateau Urbain; Marta Ribera Carbó, European Project Director of The Shift; Ailbhe Cunningham, Architect and Founder of Ample Space; Akil Scafe-Smith and Seth Scafe-Smith, Directors of Resolve Collective.
Moderated by Manijeh Verghese, CEO of Open City.
12–1:30pm: The City Reused—Unlocking potential in the city that is already built
The discussion will highlight creative solutions to urban challenges, accessible innovations, and the impact on climate action, civic and cultural pride, and community resilience.
This panel will be joined by Barbora Ponešová and Marie Joja, Architects and Placemakers in Archipop; Timo Hauge, Head of the Industrial Heritage Team at Department for Culture, Sports and Industrial Heritage at Regionalverband Ruhr; Matthew Griffin and Britta Jürgens, Co-Founders of Deadline Architects; and Daniel Bell, Architect at Atelier LUMA.
Moderated by Cormac Murray, Architect, Lecturer at TU Dublin, and Series Editor at TYPE.
3–4:30pm: The City Includes—Housing for a city, accessible to all
This panel will explore how best to ensure that the principles of universal design are applied to design and construction and how to ensure that services and support are there for people with disabilities to live independently in their communities.
This discussion will be joined by Fíonnadh McGonigle, Standards & Monitoring Officer at the National Disability Authority and Centre for Excellence in Universal Design; Nicola Ryan, Co-Director of Studio Red Architects; Jack Kavanagh, Director of Move the Needle; John Fulham, Public Engagement Manager at the Irish Wheelchair Association; and Felix Hemmers, Project Manager and Curator at Baukultur Nordrhein-Westfalen.
Moderated by Louise Bruton, freelance journalist, disability rights activist, DJ, and playwright.
About Open House Europe
Open House Europe is a cooperation project that unfolds a multi-layered view of quality architecture and joins Open House festivals across the continent for collaboration and knowledge exchange. Project partners hold festivals in Athens, Barcelona, Bilbao, Brno, Dublin, Essen, Lisbon, Milan, Prague, Rome, Stockholm, Slovenia, Tallinn, Thessaloniki, Valencia, and Vilnius. The project is coordinated by Architektūros fondas.
