From Principles to Practice

The report advocates for a holistic approach to the built environment called Baukultur, which integrates human-centred design with ecological restoration. It details the Davos Baukultur Quality System's eight criteria—governance, functionality, environment, economy, diversity, context, sense of place, and beauty—as a benchmark for urban development. The document outlines specific pathways to achieve social equity through regulatory tools and economic models, climate adaptation via regenerative design and Indigenous knowledge, and sustainability through 'Phase Zero' early-stage planning and end-of-life material re-use.

• The Davos Baukultur Quality System uses eight specific criteria to assess and guide the quality of the built environment: governance, functionality, environment, economy, diversity, context, sense of place, and beauty.
• To address global housing and cost-of-living crises, the report suggests regulatory tools such as land banks, inclusionary housing policies, and the use of leasehold models where governments retain land ownership to prevent speculative resale.
• The report identifies several economic models to enhance social value, including blended finance (pooling different funding sources and return rates), shared investment cycles where public funding derisks sites for private capital, and performance-based metrics like social impact bonds.
• Regenerative design is proposed as a shift beyond sustainability to actively restore ecosystems, utilizing a framework based on three dimensions: dynamic (accommodating change), multi-scalar (transforming interrelationships from buildings to regions), and place-based (enhancing local natural and social health).
• Culture-based climate action emphasizes integrating traditional and Indigenous knowledge into modern urban planning, such as using vernacular craftsmanship and ancestral stewardship models to improve climate resilience.
• The report introduces 'Phase Zero' as a critical, non-linear preparatory stage in urban development used to embed sustainability, circularity, and community co-creation before formal planning begins.
• End-of-life re-use is presented as a primary strategy for decarbonization, noting that retrofitting and adaptive re-use can reduce carbon emissions by up to 50% compared to new construction.
• Case studies illustrate the practical application of these principles: Vienna's 'gentle urban renewal' prevents gentrification through subsidies; Bogotá's 'Care Blocks' provide integrated social services for unpaid caregivers; and the Resource Rows project in Copenhagen achieved a 29% reduction in CO2 emissions per square metre by upcycling bricks and concrete.

APA

World Economic Forum (2025). From Principles to Practice. https://reports.weforum.org/docs/From_Principles_to_Practice_DIGITAL.pdf

Chicago

World Economic Forum. From Principles to Practice. 2025. https://reports.weforum.org/docs/From_Principles_to_Practice_DIGITAL.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Economic Forum |title=From Principles to Practice |date=May 2025 |url=https://reports.weforum.org/docs/From_Principles_to_Practice_DIGITAL.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldeconomicforum2025from, author = {{World Economic Forum}}, title = {{From Principles to Practice}}, institution = {World Economic Forum}, year = {2025}, month = may, url = {https://reports.weforum.org/docs/From_Principles_to_Practice_DIGITAL.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }