Lebanon's Pavilion at Venice Architecture Biennale Calls for Environmental Regeneration

The Land Remembers, curated by CAL – Collective for Architecture Lebanon, is Lebanon's project for the 2025 Venice Architecture Biennale, running until November 23. The pavilion urges architects to prioritize regeneration of Lebanese territory before new construction or reconstruction, addressing war, uncontrolled urbanization, and political instability that have devastated Lebanon's cultural and environmental essence over the past half-century. The curators describe environmental degradation as catastrophic, accelerated by conflict and deliberate destruction of nature, with soil and water contaminated by heavy metals, incendiary weapons, and debris. The pavilion functions as a space for action and activism, featuring a petition to ban white phosphorus in munitions, developed with Green Southerners, aiming to present it to the Geneva Convention. Visitors can sign via QR code on Change.org. The project also proposes alternative land remediation methods, with exhibitors mapping environmental attacks and testing contamination in southern Lebanon, while collaborating with the American University of Beirut on research into earth brick materiality for ecological rehabilitation.