CONFERENCE CALL: Reframing Vernacular Architecture for a Decolonised World

Location: CEPT University, Ahmedabad, India
Dates: 26-28 February 2026

• 26–27 February 2026: Reframing Vernacular Architecture for a Decolonised World – A two-day conference organised by CEPT
• 28 February 2026: EWAP Conference

Reframing Vernacular Architecture for a Decolonised World

Call for papers: DEADLINE 15 October 2025

Vernacular architecture is broadly defined as encompassing dwellings and structures built by a community, using local materials and traditional techniques, to meet their specific needs and reflect their environment and way of life. It is often, quite uncritically, described as architecture produced by ‘natives’, or emerging from the practical needs and traditions of a community, rather than being a result of a systematic design thinking process. However, examples of ‘vernacular architecture’ from across the world have demonstrated that this kind of built environment is often the result of the amalgamation of various cultural influences and emerges from the sophisticated understanding of materials, structure, and craft. The domestic nature of much of this architecture, coupled with a colonial gaze, has historically Othered it and overlooked the valuable lessons it may provide in the fragile and unpredictable world we live in.

This conference, jointly hosted by Oxford Brookes University, UK, and CEPT University, Ahmedabad, India, seeks to explore and rethink the meaning of vernacular architecture in a decolonised world.

The conference is expected to produce a critical publication on the subject that will be edited by experts appointed by both organising institutions.

Thematic areas:

1. Language and Meaning: Ranging from the meaning of the term ‘vernacular’ to the terminologies within the architectural language, and the meanings embedded within the architectural language itself, this thematic area invites scholars from various backgrounds to reflect and position their research in the broad context of this conference. Within this thematic area, scholars could deep-dive into linguistic and etymological studies that may reveal the geographical and architectural relationships of terms used for spaces, elements and building processes. Papers presenting architectural studies analysing the language of structure and ornamentation are also included under this thematic area, especially when uncovering meanings related to the life-worlds they are situated in.
2. Production and Use: The question of colonial gaze towards the notion of ‘vernacular architecture’ is most pronounced in the way its production (spontaneous, uncritical) and use are understood and reiterated through various scholarly studies. As a part of this thematic area, studies by practitioners, researchers, and scholars that specifically look into the processes of ‘making’, either as typologies, materials, structural systems, craft practices, resource systems, knowledge systems, financial mechanisms, or as experiments in modern adaptations, are invited.
3. Documenting and Archiving: In calling to imagine a decolonised world, it is important to reflect upon the core foundations of the discipline that records, documents and archives the built environment as objects for research or valorisation. On the one hand, a digital future with open-access databases promises better accessibility to research records, but on the other hand, it raises ethical issues of authorship. Papers in this thematic area ask fundamental as well as methodological questions about this ambivalence.
4. Valuing, Conserving and Adapting: ‘Vernacular architecture’, when valued, is seen as a repository of ‘traditional wisdom’ that may be useful for a sustainable future, and potentially a challenge (or an alternative) to the architecture produced by the modern, industrialised world. Papers and presentations in this thematic area are expected to be critical views of practitioners and experts on the philosophical and technical positions taken while conserving the architecture broadly catagorised as ‘vernacular’. Critical feedback on doctrines and dogmas established around conservation and adaptation of ‘vernacular architecture’ for future generations, through case studies, or by presenting a deep reading of the doctrinal text, is also welcome.

Submission Details

Abstract submission: A 250-word abstract with supporting 1 image (optional) must be submitted along with a two-line biography and a link to the CV that includes a bibliography of previously authored content. Links to three publications must also be provided. The selection of the abstract will be done on the basis of the quality of writing and research, and relevance to the theme. Profile of the author and previous works may be considered at the discretion of the selection committee.

Find out more details and submit your abstracts here

EWAP Conference

The Endangered Wooden Architecture Programme (EWAP) conference brings together an international community working on the preservation of wooden architecture. Focused on EWAP’s open access database, the one-day event will be packed full of interesting presentations from the EWAP grantees concentrated on wooden architecture, heritage and recording techniques. It will discuss the scope and nature of endangerment of the world’s wooden architectural heritage; issues of ethics and community engagement; and the merits and limits of various recording techniques.

1. Timber Traditions in a Changing World: This session explores the rich and varied traditions of building with wood, emphasizing their deep cultural significance and the diverse communities that sustain them. Contributions will examine the transmission, adaptation, and resilience of wooden building techniques in the face of contemporary challenges, from environmental pressures and economic change to the loss of traditional knowledge. Presenters are invited to reflect on how these living building cultures are being supported, transformed, or endangered in different parts of the world.
2. Community-centred approaches to Wooden Architecture: Wooden buildings are more than architectural forms, they are lived-in spaces, vessels of memory, and cultural anchors. This session highlights the importance of ethical engagement with the communities that inhabit and care for these structures. Contributions will explore how community knowledge and participation enrich documentation projects and strengthen preservation outcomes. Case studies will showcase best practices in collaborative work and strategies for respectful dissemination, while also addressing the complexities and sensitivities involved in engaging communities as partners.
3. Methodological Reflections in Surveying Wooden Buildings: This session focuses on the diverse methods used to document and survey wooden architecture, from high-tech tools such as 3D scanning and photogrammetry to low-tech, analogue, and hybrid approaches. Contributions are invited to explore the strengths and limitations of different methods in capturing the distinctive materiality, construction techniques, and cultural context of wooden buildings. Presenters are encouraged to reflect on how choices in methodology influence what is recorded, represented, and ultimately preserved.