Within the framework of the workshop The Elephant in the Room, led by Fosbury Architecture, Scuola Piccola Zattere presents a public screening of To Build Law on 11 March at 6.00 pm. Produced by the Canadian Centre for Architecture (CCA Montreal), the film will be introduced remotely by Francesco Garutti, Associate Director of Programs at the CCA.

According to a 2020 report by the UN Environment Programme, the construction industry is responsible for at least 38 per cent of carbon emissions globally, driven largely by profit-oriented models. Buildings are held as assets — torn down, and redeveloped, with limited consideration of community and environmental impacts — while housing crises intensify.

To Build Law (2024), directed by Joushua Frank, follows bplus.xyz (b+) and station.plus (s+) as they establish HouseEurope!, a policy lab advocating for renovation over demolition through a European Citizens’ Initiative. The film traces this bottom-up legal tool, where architecture becomes an open process of establishing partners, drafting legislation, filming stories, strategizing communications, coordinating campaigns, collecting votes, and building a movement.
The film is the second chapter of Groundwork, a three-part series exploring how contemporary architects develop and test alternative approaches to engaging with new project sites.