Leadership is often romanticized as a transformative forcethe engine that propels organizations forward, inspires teams, and drives meaningful change. Unfortunately, mediocre leaders are often the norm (and not the exception).Unsurprisingly, this brings significant cost to their performance, culture, and future growth. It leads to disengaged employees, high turnover rates, and diminished productivity, which directly impacts the bottom line.Mediocre leadership also erodes trust, stifles innovation, and creates a toxic workplace culture. Employees under mediocre leaders are less likely to feel valued or motivated, leading to a decline in creativity and collaboration.Here are nine reasons we accept leadership mediocrity and the actions that we can take to break free from mediocritys gravitational pull.1. Comfort with the status quoOrganizations frequently resist disrupting established routines, because they prefer the predictability of the status quo to the perceived risks of change. Mediocre leadership becomes acceptable because it feels safe, even if its holding the organization back.Most organizations think that their leaders lead from a place of service. The truth is, most lead from a place of status they seek to protect.Organizations with entrenched cultures can struggle to embrace transformative change, and view disruption as a threat. This reluctance leads to stagnation, which allows ineffective leaders to persist in their roles.2. The illusion of successMediocre leaders often achieve short-term results, which creates the illusion of success while masking deeper dysfunctions. A leader might hit quarterly profitability targets while neglecting employee engagement, innovation, or long-term strategy. While Driving for Success is a reasonable business value, it shouldnt come by way of driving over those people who are trying to help deliver that success to your company.3. Promoting the wrong metricsMany organizations prioritize technical expertise over leadership qualities when promoting individuals. Companies often reward skills like financial acumen or operational efficiency, assuming these abilities translate to effective leadership.However, being skilled in one area doesnt automatically translate into being skilled as a leader.The ability to inspire, guide, and connect with others requires a completely different skill setone rooted in emotional intelligence and vision.4. Lack of accountabilityMediocre leaders frequently escape scrutiny because organizations fail to define and enforce clear metrics for leadership success. Without accountability structures in place, a culture of good enough takes root, perpetuating subpar leadership practices.5. The myth that experience equals competenceOne of the most pervasive myths in leadership is that tenure or past performance in technical roles automatically translates to leadership competence. Organizations often conflate experience with capability, overlooking essential leadership traits like empathy, strategic thinking, and the ability to inspire others. This assumption leads to the promotion of individuals who might excel in their previous roles, yet struggle to lead effectively in their new positions.6. Fear of confrontationAddressing leadership shortcomings often requires difficult conversations, which many peopleemployees and leadersavoid.A study by the coaching firmBravelyshows that 70 percent of employees avoid difficult conversations. Challenging a leaders effectiveness can feel politically risky or personally uncomfortable, which leaves significant issues unaddressed.7. Siloed feedback loopsMediocre leaders are often insulated from honest feedback due to hierarchical structures or a culture of fear. Employees may hesitate to voice concerns, because they fear retaliation or believe that no one will hear their input. This lack of transparency creates blind spots, preventing organizations from addressing the root causes of ineffective leadership. At the highest levels, this phenomenon is referred to as CEO disease, which leaves chief executives only hearing what others think they want to hear.8. Underinvestment in developmentLeadership training is often treated as a luxury rather than a necessity. Many organizations expect leaders to figure it out without providing structured development programs or ongoing support. Astudypublished by Training Industry found that every dollar invested in leadership development yields a ROI ranging from $3 to $11, with an average ROI of $7. Leadership training shouldnt be seen as a superfluous cost, but rather as a critical organizational investment.9. Cultural acceptance of mediocrityA this is how weve always done it mentality allows ineffective leadership to persist. When companies see innovation and transformation as too ambitious or unattainable, organizations settle for mediocrity. This cultural inertia stifles progress and undermines efforts to attract and retain top talent, who are increasingly drawn to forward-thinking, dynamic workplaces.Breaking free from mediocrityTo overcome these challenges, organizations must take deliberate steps to raise the bar on leadership standards. Below is a simple five-step process that organizations can follow:Redefine success: Shift focus from short-term metrics to holistic measures of leadership effectiveness, including employee engagement, team performance, and long-term growth.Invest in development: Prioritize leadership training and provide ongoing support to help leaders build the skills they need to succeed.Foster a feedback culture: Encourage open communication and create safe spaces for honest dialogue about leadership performance.Hold leaders accountable: Establish clear metrics for leadership success and enforce them consistently.Embrace change: Challenge the status quo and be willing to make bold decisions to improve leadership quality.In todays dynamic workplace, the cost of mediocrity is too high to ignore. By moving beyond mediocrity and committingto excellence, organizations can unlock the full potential of their leaders and teams. Mediocre leadership might feel safe, but its a safety that lives in a house of cards.A willingness to maintain mediocrity is a risk that organizations can no longer afford to take. The future belongs to those who dare to demand moreof their leaders, their teams, and themselves.

Its a dark winter evening, and Im about to drive 10 minutes to pick up 8 over-ripe bananas from a neighbor.As I grab my coat, my husband wonders aloud whether I have lost my marbles. Youre driving 20 minutes to pick up decomposing bananas that would cost $1.60 at the store? he asks. In the car, I begin to face the reality that he might be right. Over the past few months, Id fallen into the rabbit hole of the 12,900-person strong Buy Nothing group in my Boston suburb.As a millennial, I was in the first generation to use Facebook. Today, 41% of users are between 30 and 49. But over the last decade, as Facebook became a mired in fake news and hate speech, ads got junkier, and younger users fled the site, millennials have become increasingly disenchanted with the platform. Things are likely to get uglier.Last week, Facebooks parent company Meta announced that it was abandoning its fact-checking program and would drop its restrictions around topics like gender identity and immigration, which were designed to protect vulnerable minorities. Many argue that these changes are designed to curry favor with the incoming Trump administration. It means that were going to catch less bad stuff, Zuckerberg admitted in a video about the changes.But while many millennials arent happy with Facebook, we still continue to log in regularly. One reason for this is that many of us are active members of Facebook Groups, which connect people near and far who share particular interests. This feature first launched in 2010, and by 2020, Facebook said it was hosting tens of millions of active groups and 1.8 billion people using Groups monthly. Im among them. In my thirties, when I had children and bought a house, I joined several local mom groups, a group for my gym, and a group connecting parents at my daughters school. But it was a Buy Nothing group that turned me back into a daily Facebook user.Which brings me back to the bananas. One member of my group works at a food bank that collects fresh produce from local farms and distributes it to those in need. State law prohibits donating bananas that have any black spots on them. This neighbor of mine cant bear to see enormous boxes of bananas go to waste, so she puts out a call to the group every few days to save them from the landfill. My neighbors sweep in to salvage them within minutes.On this cold, gloomy evening, I drive over and knock on her door. Shes in an apron, making dinner, but she lovingly hands over the last remaining squishy bananas. My husband chuckles at how sad they look when I bring them home. But hes not laughing two hours later, when he eats a slice of freshly baked banana breadcrispy on the crust and soft on the insidethat Ive baked with my daughters. I post a picture of the loaf on the Buy Nothing group, and I see all the other loaves my neighbors have made that very evening. We feel like weve done a good deed, creating something delicious from these bananas that would have decomposed in our local dump.The entire episode is heartwarming. Facebook has facilitated new connections between neighbors, and helps us cultivate sustainable practices. But in many ways, the values of the Buy Nothing group seems to contrast much of what the platform stands for. And as Facebook abandons its guardrails around hate speech and fake news, its worth asking whether the toxicity of the platform and its alignment with the Trump administration will prompt some users to finally quit. Even if it means abandoning beloved groups.[Screenshot: Facebook]The beginnings of Buy NothingThe dissonance between the mission of Facebook and Buy Nothing is not lost on the movements founders, Liesl Clark and Rebecca Rockefeller. As they describe in their book, they launched the movement because they were inspired by gift economies in places like Nepal where neighbors pool resources, promoting sustainability and goodwill.In 2009, the pair first experimented with the idea by creating an in-person Buy Nothing group in their Puget Sound community. In 2013, they decided to take the community online, and took advantage of Facebooks new Group functionality. The concept went viral. Buy Nothing groups began to mushroom in neighborhoods around the country; my neighborhoods group launched in 2015. Today, theres an estimated 245,000 communities, with more than 11 million people participating.[Cover Image: Simon & Schuster]It quickly became clear to Clark and Rockefeller that Facebooks values didnt align with their own. The bedrock rule of the Buy Nothing movement is that everything is given freely, with no expectation of repayment. Meanwhile, Facebooks premise is that it appears to be free, but is actually requiring us to part with our personal data so that it can monetize it. This is how Facebook generates 97.8% of its $134 billion in annual revenue. And while the Buy Nothing group is designed to foster community, Facebook has been accused of causing social unrest. In 2021, whistleblower Frances Haugen said that Facebook is tearing our society apart while optimizing for its own interests, like making money.A decade after pivoting to Facebook, Clark and Rockefeller took the bold step of publicly disavowing the social media platform. We realized very early on that it also came with some things that conflicted with our mission, Rockefeller told Wired in 2023. They encouraged their followers to abandon Facebook and join a new Buy Nothing app they created. But the app has failed to take off the way that the Facebook groups did. Wired described it as a flop. And today, Facebook continues to be the primary way that people participate in the movement Clark and Rockefeller created.It makes sense that Buy Nothing Groups have continued to thrive on Facebook. For them to be effective, there needs to be a critical mass of users willing to give and receive items. Since 70% of Americans are on Facebook, its easy to quickly build an engaged community of tens of thousands of people in a neighborhood. And thanks to volunteer moderators, who are careful about who they admit into the group and ensure posts are civil, Groups tend to operate fairly smoothly.It is currently difficult to transition members of a Facebook Group onto another platform, which keeps users locked in. In 2019, the Senate introduced a bill that would make it easier to transfer personal information from one social media platform to another. The bill has not yet passed. Until that happens, it seems like it is almost impossible to re-create my local Buy Nothing group on a different platform.Buy Nothings modern appealI got sucked into my Buy Nothing group in the fall, when I was renovating my basement. I needed to get rid of massive quantities of furniture, toys, and assorted odds and ends.Americans produce significantly more waste than any other nation thanks, in part, to the abundance of cheap consumer products. The nation accounts for 4% of the worlds population, but generates 12% of the worlds garbage. Every day, each American produces 4.9 pounds of municipal solid waste, a figure that grows every year. And the majority of wasteroughly 65%is dumped into a landfill or incinerated, which generates climate warming greenhouse emissions. Last year, that amounted to 180.7 million tons of waste.Im a sustainability journalist, so Im acutely aware of overconsumption. But my basement clean-out was a wake-up call about my own wasteful habits. It also presented a practical problem: What was I going to do with it all? I could pay a junk removal service, or I could put them on my Buy Nothing list and see if anybody would be willing to give them a second life. To my surprise, neighbors were willing to take almost anything I offered. A suitcase from the 1990s? Massive demand. Well-worn childrens toys and clothes? Taken immediately. Dozens of old shoes? People sent me follow up messages saying how lucky they felt to receive them.I got a little hit of dopamine every time someone picked something up. It gave me the satisfaction of purging, but it also felt good to know these items would get a little more life. After all, if someone was willing to take the time to drive to my house to pick up an item, they would be pretty motivated to use them.The act of giving was also oddly intimate. The whole system is designed so that the giver doesnt necessarily see the receiver in person, since you simply leave the item on your porch and give them your address. But often, we would leave the encounter as more than strangers. One time, I forgot to leave a framed print on the porch, and the receiver came all the way to find it wasnt there. I apologized profusely, but was met with so much grace. I later delivered the print to her porch instead. One person said she would take a baby blanket as a gift for her granddaughter. I decided to put it in a gift bag for her, and she wrote back later saying this small act of kindness made her day.What it will take to quit MetaIm the same age as Mark Zuckerberg, Facebooks founder, and the platform he created has shaped my life in profound ways. As a Columbia University senior in 2005, I was among the first cohort of college students to get access to Facebook. In my twenties, as Facebook grew quickly, the platform became an important part of my life. It influenced how I cultivated my image, it was the prism through which I got to know new acquaintances, it fed me news.But by my thirties, Facebook had gotten messy. My feed was dominated with older friends and relatives sharing blurry photographs of their dinner. I was repulsed by the fake news and conspiracy theories that circulated in the run-up to the 2016 election. More recently, the ads on my feed have been getting junkier, which something that many users have noticed. Experts say that shareholder pressure is driving Meta to generate revenue in any way possible, including selling lower quality ads.The decline in the Facebook user experience is in line with what is happening across many technology platforms, including Google and Amazon. Writer Cory Doctorow coined the term enshittification to describe how platforms begin by focusing on creating an engaging experience for users, but once users are hooked, the company focuses on maximizing profit, usually at the expense of user experience. Despite Facebooks flaws, my Buy Nothing group has managed to keep me tied to the platform. If there was a viable alternative that had the same functionality and user base, I would jump ship immediately, but until the Senate passes the bill on social media data portability, its unlikely to happen. For now, Im trying to figure out what it will take for me to quit Metas platforms.Historically, Meta has tried to maintain a non-partisan stance. But Zuckerberg is now clearly aligning himself with Trump and the MAGA movement. Many vulnerable people could be harmed by Metas new policies around free speech, including immigrants and LGBTQ people. And if this happens, it may be impossible to justify staying on Facebook, as much as it as fostered goodwill and eco-friendly behaviors in my neighborhood.

Have you ever had a job where you had to fake it til you make it? You walk into work each day, put on a smile, and pretend to be enthusiastic to avoid criticism or being labeled as unmotivated. Maybe youre faking it in your current job. From choosing selective engagement over fake enthusiasm to reflecting on your career, these nine unique perspectives will help you explore your options if youre wondering how to maintain professionalism without the pretense.Choose selective engagementFaking enthusiasm at work? Thats like running a marathon in dress shoesit might get you through the day, but not without blisters. Weve all been there: nodding along, feigning excitement at the all-hands meeting that couldve been an email. But heres the thingpretending to care isnt just tiring; its unsustainable. Forced enthusiasm becomes obvious, leading to burnout faster than you can say mandatory team bonding.Instead, try selective engagement. Find a single thing about your work that genuinely sparks your interest. It could be the data behind the project, the creativity it allows, or simply the coffee machine by the break room. Zero in on that part of your day, and let your enthusiasm shine through there. This focused approach is refreshingly honest, avoids fake cheer, and is actually more productive. You wont seem like the office cynic, but you wont be that over-the-top Yes! Absolutely! person either.Selective engagement is also contagious. Real enthusiasmeven if its just about a specific taskshows up as authentic and gives you an anchor, making it easier to stay motivated. Its like having your own mini-cause at work. People around you notice when you care about something real, even if its not everything.Managers and colleagues can appreciate sincerity. Instead of spreading yourself thin with performative positivity, pour your energy where it counts. You avoid burnout, keep your integrity intact, and still maintain a professional appearancewithout needing to plaster on a fake smile every Monday morning. And if youre truly honest, thats something worth being enthusiastic about.Tyler Butler, founder, Collaboration for GoodReconnect with your jobs purposeYou dont need to fake enthusiasm for your job to avoid being seen as unmotivated. Its also normal not to love your job, particularly in the current economy and job market. However, it is perfectly reasonable for employers to penalize workers who negatively impact morale, as they are running a business, and optimism can affect the bottom line.While you dont need to wear rose-colored glasses at work, you should be mindful of how your outlook toward your job impacts your colleagues. If youre struggling to stay motivated, try to reconnect with the reasons you go to work in the first place. For instance, if its to support your family, consider using this motivation to drive you in a way that wont lead your boss to label you as apathetic.Kyle Elliott, founder and tech career coach, CaffeinatedKyle.comEvaluate your roleI will preface my answer by saying that I am not a fan of being fake, and, at the same time, most people have found themselves in roles that are not ideal at one time or another.If this is a temporary, part-time, or summer job and you have an end date, that may make getting through the day a little bit easier. I recommend using this experience to take inventory of the types of tasks, the work environment, and the managerial style you would prefer moving forward. I would be professional and helpful during your time at your job. They are paying you, and sometimes, the jobs we dislike the most also teach us the most about ourselves and the type of work we would enjoy long-term.If this is a career where you, the employee, find yourself unhappy most of the time, I would recommend figuring out what you enjoy doing. Does the company offer the opportunity to do those types of tasks? If so, I would try to have a conversation with your manager and see if there is a way for you to do more of what you love. Be clear. Give examples. Most companies do not want to lose a good employee.If this is a project and you are not interested in the project and you do not have a choice about being on the project, as with the temporary job, I would recommend being helpful and professional. Do your best on the project. Explore the reason behind your lack of enthusiasm.If your job is interfering with your health, I recommend looking for a new job. If you see some long-term benefits in staying at your job, such as having certain bills you need to pay, or you will gain new skills working on a project that is out of your comfort zone, you may want to consider pivoting how you see this situation. Is there anything positive? Yes. I will be able to pay off my car if I stay here until the end of May. Or, Yes. I will learn Power BI by working on this project. Think long-term rather than short-term as you make your decision.Helen Godfrey, career and life coach, The Authentic PathFocus on the job, not enthusiasmEnthusiasm is defined as a feeling of intense interest, enjoyment, or approval for something.I definitely dont think you need to get to that level for your job. In fact, in some cases, thats not even going to be healthy for some people.You are being paid to do a jobyou might not like that job and you might be looking for another job, but this is a business arrangement. This is also a very competitive job market where the employer has the upper hand as there are only so many jobs to go around.So, I dont know if you need to care (as defined: feel concern or interest; attach importance to something), but I would recommend doing the work that you are expected to do and keep feelings out of the mix.Colleen Paulson, executive career consultant, Ageless CareersBecome a go-to problem solverMy favorite way to handle this without forcing enthusiasm is to become the go-to person for solutions. Instead of pretending to be excited, focus on being the one who consistently brings practical answers to challenges. When people see you as someone who knows how to get things done, it shifts their attention from your demeanor to the real value youre adding.It doesnt require you to act pumped up about the tasks, but it shows a proactive mindset. Managers and teammates appreciate people who make work smoother, even if theyre not cheerleading every moment.Scott Cohen, CEO, InboxArmyRecognize the impact on performance reviewsThroughout my career, Ive heard managers frame a lack of apparent enthusiasm as a lack of commitment from an employee. Whats more, poor work performance is typically attributed, at least in part, to the perceived low commitment. This means that poor performance reviews and even disciplinary actions can result indirectly from being unenthusiastic about your job.Low enthusiasm levels also manifest in behaviors like coming in late and leaving early or not volunteering for projects. These behaviors often tie directly to performance outcomes.Its not enough for you to smile and nod at work. Unless your actions align with the actions of a highly motivated employee, you may face professional consequences. So its best to either fake it til you make it or to find a job youre legitimately passionate about.Susan Snipes, head of people, Remote PeopleAssess trust and ability to drive changeAbout a year ago, I read Martha Becks The Way of Integrity, which I highly recommend to anyone assessing their alignment with their true path. A powerful exercise she encourages is to spend one week not lying. No lies at all, not even tiny white lies like when a waiter asks if you enjoyed the meal, and you politely say, Yes, absolutely, when youre planning on stopping by McDonalds on the way home. The idea here is to catch yourself in inauthentic behavior that, over time, accumulates and causes you to stray further and further from the path youre supposed to be on.I decided to start this exercise after returning to my job following a short summer break. I was horrified at the number of lies I couldnt hold back and was now grossly aware oflike, Oh, its great to be back! when it wasnt, and Youre right, our churn is just an indication of customer enablement, not product reliability, when that wasnt true.So, this brings me to the actual question at hand: Should you fake enthusiasm at work? This depends directly on the level of trust you have with your colleagues and your ability to drive change.If youre in a company where you trust your team, you can be open about what isnt working and subsequently drive meaningful changethen, absolutely, dont fake it. Faking enthusiasm would then be incredibly detrimental to the companys progressyoure doing yourself, your team, and the business a huge disservice by faking it. On the other hand, if you dont trust your colleagues and see no way to turn things around, faking it may be your only option while you look for another job and smile your way to the year-end bonus.If you find yourself faking it, take it as a serious signal that you need to either drive change or change your job. Life is too short and too precious to spend 50% of your waking hours being disingenuous with yourself and those around you.Sanks Nair, COO, RecallReflect on genuine growthFake it til you make it. Play the part. Dress for the job you want. These clichs may sound like solid career advice, but they are band-aids that dont help employees. In contrast, faking it in a job or maintaining appearances for leadership can create resentment. It can be exhausting, leaving little ability for team members to innovate, problem-solve, and contribute to the organizations growth. If your office hours self-talk includes sentences like, Just get through the day, Its not worth it to say anything, or Why would I give my feedback, no one is listening, then you want to evaluate your career aspirations . . . now. Faking it equals settling for less. Is that what you want? Is that who you are?Career reflection can be uncomfortable for some. However, when you define where you are and where you want to go next, you can choose the best actions to get you there. When reflecting on your professional situation, ask, What is happening now that I am unhappy with? What is missing from my work? What do I want? What are my personal and professional priorities? What are my non-negotiables?Once you have these answers, you can pave the way forward. Ultimately, you may have to leave to find a better opportunity and an environment that fosters growth.What do you do until then? You decide how you will feel and act at work. That could mean more of the fake it til you make it days, or you could decide what level of genuine authenticity you can give at work to be true to yourself without creating circumstances that stress you out. Decide what makes you feel safe and act accordingly.Annette Garsteck, founder and career reinvention coach, Annette Garsteck Career ConsultingUnderstand how masking helps neurodivergenceSome neurodivergent employees dont have a choice but to fake enthusiasm due to masking much of their neurodivergence in order to fit in or even get hired for a job in the first place. So, while it may not seem the most authentic on the surface, this type of self-preserving faking enthusiasm may in fact help neurodivergent employees feel safe in the workplace and secure in their jobs.Michelle Pontvert, life-first business strategist, Michelle Pontvert

Chunky columns wrap the exterior of Wood Up, an apartment block in Paris by French studio Local Architecture Network with a glued-laminated and cross-laminated timber structure.Created for developers Semapa and REI Habitat, the 14-storey building in the city's 13th arrondissement provides 132 timber-framed apartments raised on a concrete base containing commercial units.Paris-based Local Architecture Network (LAN) created the fifty-metre-tall block with timber sourced entirely from France and transported via the river Seine. It is left exposed both externally and internally.Local Architecture Network has completed Wood Up in Paris"Wood Up is one of the first buildings in France to surpass the typical height limits for timber constructions," said the studio."Generally protected and hidden, the wooden structure is instead deliberately exposed. It is entirely encapsulated in glass to make it visible. Usually matte, the wood becomes reflective thanks to its protective layer."The glued-laminated timber (glulam) and cross-laminated timber (CLT) structure is formed of Douglas fir on the exterior and beech and spruce on the interior, chosen based on the inherent properties of each.Douglas fir was used for the exterior columns. Photo by Daisy ReilletRaised on the concrete base, the wooden columns and the concrete floor plates of Wood Up form a grid that defines the exterior. It also forms a second skin that provides balconies, shade and privacy to the almost entirely glazed facades behind.On the block's eighth floor, a large cut-out contains a 300-square-metre communal terrace, with furniture made from recycled wood offcuts leftover from the building's construction.Read: Stone-clad blocks fill mixed-use Bordeaux district by LANSmaller apartments and double-height duplex units at the corners of the block are organised vertically to give the potential for future reconfiguration. The internal glulam structure is left exposed to the frame full-height windows."The 132-unit project is founded on a straightforward concept: for each large apartment on one floor, two smaller units are situated directly above on the next floor," explained LAN.The eighth floor features a communal terrace. Photo by Daisy Reillet"As a symbol of the link between the old ceiling of Paris and this new urbanism, the volume of the project opens to the city through the creation of a common floor," LAN added."Positioned as a hybrid between a covered courtyard, a loggia, and a viewing area overlooking Paris and Ivry, this versatile space accommodates both spontaneous, informal daily activities and organised events for up to 300 participants," it added.A mixture of beech and spruce was used for the interiorsOther examples of mass-timber structures in Paris include an academic building by Studio Gang, also in the 13th arrondissement, which was constructed using a hybrid structure of steel and timber.The race to construct ever-taller timber structures in an attempt to reduce the environmental impact of construction was recently explored in Dezeen's Timber Revolution Series.The photography is by Charly Broyez unless stated otherwise.The post LAN "deliberately exposes" mass-timber structure of Paris apartment block appeared first on Dezeen.

The next instalment in our 21st-Century Architecture: 25 Years 25 Buildings series is Oslo Opera House, a Snhetta-designed project that pioneered the concept of architecture as landscape.The home of the Norwegian National Opera and Ballet has become one of Oslo's most iconic buildings, primarily because of the sloping public plaza that forms its roof.The project kickstarted a wave of buildings with publicly accessible roofscapes and became the calling card for Snhetta, an emerging architecture studio with big ambitions.A sloping public plaza forms the roof of Oslo Opera House. Photo by Helge SkodvinSnhetta won the competition to design the Oslo Opera House in 2000, just as construction was completed on its first major commission, the Bibliotheca Alexandrina library in Egypt.The studio takes its name from the tallest peak in Norway's Dovrefjell mountains. Its ambition from the start was to make landscape design more integral to the architectural process.Founding partners Kjetil Trdal Thorsen and Craig Dykers saw an opportunity to push this concept even further with the opera house than they had with the library.Norwegian granite and Carrara marble clad the exterior. Photo by Helge SkodvinWhile the library was designed to merge with the landscape, the opera house was conceived as a landscape itself."We were seeing at the time that construction projects didn't have budgets for their outdoor areas," said Thorsen in an interview with Dezeen in 2019."We said this can't be the case, because we're neglecting our public space," he told Dezeen. "This is how we ended up at the Oslo Opera House, where there is no differentiation between public space, building and site."An oak "wave wall" encloses the auditorium. Photo by Erik BergThe building achieves this with a wedge-shaped form, built on the edge of the Oslofjord in the city's former docklands.Today this part of the city is home to many impressive buildings examples include the Barcode Project office blocks, the Deichman Bjrvika library and the new Munch museum but it was largely derelict at the time.Read: Zaha Hadid's Bergisel Ski Jump was the most significant building of 2002The building slopes down at its western end, allowing the groundscape to extend from the water's edge to the top of the roof. Snhetta described it as "a carpet of horizontal and sloping surfaces".These surfaces are clad with Norwegian granite and Carrara marble, enhancing the sense of a snow-covered hill.Ammonia-darkened oak covers surfaces inside the auditorium. Photo by Hlne BinetThe opera house's interior is just as impressive as its exterior. In contrast with the cool-toned exterior cladding, oak was the material of choice for the auditorium.This horseshoe-shaped concert hall resembles a giant drum, rising through the middle of the generous atrium.A powerful and beautiful statement, radiant with music and songJonathan Glancey in The GuardianBaltic oak clads the "wave wall" that wraps this drum and the walls, floors, ceilings and balcony fronts inside the auditorium. Some of this wood was treated with ammonia, which gives it a darker tone.The hall also includes a contemporary chandelier with 5,800 hand-cast glass crystals and 800 LED lights, providing a lighting spectacle overhead.The roof is a popular sledging site in winter. Photo by BirdseyepixOslo Opera House was completed in 2007, which is when the city's residents were first invited to climb the roof. It officially opened in April 2008 with a ceremony attended by King Harald.It was an instant hit with critics, who applauded the way it gave back to the city without compromising the building's primary function as a world-class concert hall."The Oslo opera house is a powerful and beautiful statement, radiant with music and song, one that announces Norway's arrival as a cultural centre," said Jonathan Glancey in The Guardian.In summer, it often hosts outdoor performances. Photo by Helge SkodvinThe opera house was awarded the biennial European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture, the Mies van der Rohe Award, in 2009. It also won the European Prize for Urban Public Space in 2010.Francis Rambert, chair of the Mies van der Rohe Award jury, described it as "more than just a building"."It is first an urban space, a gift to the city," she said. "The building can be considered a catalyst of all the energies of the city and is emblematic of the regeneration of its urban tissue."The waterfront is now popular with swimmers and sunbathers. Photo by Helge SkodvinThe true indicator of the building's success is its popularity.In the summer, the roof is usually flooded with skateboarders, swimmers and sunbathers, and often hosts outdoor performances. It's also well-used in the icy winter months when it becomes a destination for sledging.In this way, Snhetta achieved its aim of creating a truly democratic building, enjoyed by more than just those who enter inside to watch the opera.Did we get it right? Was Oslo Opera House by Snhetta the most significant building completed in 2007? Let us know in the comments. We will be running a poll once all 25 buildings are revealed to determine the most significant building of the 21st century so far.This article is part of Dezeen's21st-Century Architecture: 25 Years 25 Buildingsseries, which looks at the most significant architecture of the 21st century so far. For the series, we have selected the most influentialbuilding from each of the first 25 years of the century.The illustration is byJack Bedford.21st Century Architecture: 25 Years 25 Buildings2000: Tate Modern by Herzog & de Meuron2001: Gando Primary School by Dibdo Francis Kr2002: Bergisel Ski Jump by Zaha Hadid2003: Walt Disney Concert Hall by Frank Gehry2004: Quinta Monroy by Elemental2005: Moriyama House by Ryue Nishizawa2006: Madrid-Barajas airport by RSHP and Estudio Lamela2007: Oslo Opera House by SnhettaThis list will be updated as the series progresses.The post Snhetta's Oslo Opera House was the most significant building of 2007 appeared first on Dezeen.

Salford City Council has approved the demolition of the University of Salford's Centenary Building, which won the inaugural RIBA Stirling Prize in 1996, despite Twentieth Century Society objection.Completed by British studio Hodder+Partners in 1995, the university building will be razed as part of a major redevelopment project named Adelphi Village.Salford City Council's go-ahead comes despite efforts by campaigners and conservation group Twentieth Century Society to get the building listed, after the threat of demolition was announced in November last year. Historic England denied heritage listing in December 2024.The Centenary Building is set to be demolished. Photo by Morley von Sternberg courtesy of the Twentieth Century Society"The Twentieth Century Society is disappointed and thinks this is the wrong decision," Twentieth Century Society director Catherine Croft told Dezeen."As well as failing to recognise heritage value, the decision not to list has effectively stymied prospects of environmentally sustainable reuse of a substantial and soundly constructed building."TheRoyal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) awarded the Centenary Building the first-ever Stirling Prize in 1996, with judges praising it as a "dynamic, modern and sophisticated exercise in steel, glass and concrete".Originally designed for the University of Salford's School of Electrical Engineering department, the building was used by the Faculty of Art and Design Technology upon its completion. It has stood vacant for over eight years.Read: Cylindrical Bertrand Goldberg building at risk of demolition in IllinoisHistoric England rejected the request for the Centenary Building to be added to the National Heritage List for England in December last year.It claimed in its report that the building did not have the special interest required for listing status and that user complaints of noisy vents and poor temperature control contributed to the decision."Although certainly possessing some claims to interest, when considered against the high standard required for buildings of its age, the Centenary Building lacks the special interest in a national context required to merit listing," Historic England said in the report.The building won the inaugural Stirling Prize"Criticism of the building's functionality, even for its rather narrow original purpose, mitigates against it being considered of sufficiently good quality to merit listing for a building only just over 30 years old," it added."Although undoubtedly of some design interest, the Centenary Building was not technically innovative and has not been shown to be influential elsewhere, as was hoped when it was awarded the Stirling Prize."Croft argued the building has significant interest because of its Stirling Prize win."As the first-ever recipient of the Stirling Prize, the Centenary Building certainly has historic interest," she said."We are concerned that the report relies in part on 30-year-old hearsay, including comments about how well the services originally functioned," she continued. "This is frustrating, as is the somewhat cursory nature of the report."The proposed date for demolition to commence is 1 March 2025.Last year,the Twentieth Century Society selected 10 UK buildings turning 30that it believes should be granted listed status, including Grimshaw Architects' Waterloo International Terminal in London. The group also recently launcheda campaign to preserve a set of cooling towers following the closure of the UK's last coal-fired power station.The photography is by Hodder and Partners courtesy of the Twentieth Century Society unless otherwise stated.The post Winner of first-ever Stirling Prize to be demolished appeared first on Dezeen.

E-book readers today no longer come in the drab, uninspiring, and cheap forms of the early Amazon Kindles, though those certainly do still exist. Some are now Android tablets in disguise, bringing the versatility and, unfortunately, temptations of regular tablets to the E Ink world. Some go in the opposite direction, shrinking the size down to the palm of your hand, looking like smartphones but barely making the cut, at least by design.In other words, its a great time for the design of E Ink devices, having grown out of their shell and into more interesting shapes and use cases. This one concept, for example, suggests bringing a dual-screen phone experience to that already niche market, and it seems to have taken a page out of LGs book to recreate one of the brands more interesting devices in a few shades of gray.Designer: Mechanical PixelHalf a decade ago, LG introduced a rather intriguing design that tried to offer a more sensible and more practical alternative to the still non-existent foldable phone back then. Instead of a phone with a foldable screen or even two screens, the LG G8X ThinQ, and later, the LG Velvet and V60 ThinQ, had a folio smartphone case that added what is practically a second external screen beside the phones make screen. The execution left much to be desired, but the idea of being able to switch between different modes as needed definitely held merit.This is exactly the same principle behind the inkReader duo concept, a phone-sized E Ink device that, at first glance, looks like a dual-screen E Ink phone joined by a 360-degree hinge. Well, it does function as one, but you can apparently take out the right half of the duo and use the single-screen device on its own. Given how the second screen case draws its power and data from the main device via pogo pins, it pretty much becomes useless except for displaying a static image like a photo or a note.The technologies required for making this concept real are all more less already available today. Though as LG proved, its quite tricky to keep the two halves in sync, especially if the operating system was never designed with a second external display in mind. With a simpler custom OS, however, it might certainly be possible, especially if expectations are low to begin with, which is often the case for e-book readers.The real question is whether such a design makes sense beyond the novelty of the experience. You could lay out an e-book in two pages like an actual book, or write notes on one side while reading text on the other. You could even turn the device horizontally to read the whole page in a single view, although with a wide gap in the middle. It could be a solution to the compact but still tablet-sized 7-inch E Ink readers in the market, one that can quickly fold in half and slip into your pocket.The post Phone-sized dual-screen E Ink reader concept offers a different way to be productive first appeared on Yanko Design.

The US government has announced a radical plan to control exports of cutting-edge AI technology to most nations.

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