Thursday 16 June, 2011, 18:00-21:00, Canadian Centre for Architecture, Montreal. The Good Cause exhibition runs between 16 June-4 September, 2011. Organized by the Netherlands Architecture Institute and Archis in collaboration with the CCA. Click here for more information.

How can construction be an instrument of peace? Post-conflict cities share many problems such as spontaneous construction and a lack of strong civil governance, thus even well-intended projects under these conditions risk fixing inequalities permanently or introducing new ones in the built environment. Can architecture, beyond solving a direct need or problem, add to stability and peace? The Good Cause: Architecture of Peace considers cases that suggest how peace can be materialized.

Complementing the exhibition ‘Architecture in Uniform: Designing and Building for the Second World War’, NAi, the Netherlands Architecture Institute, presents The Good Cause, an experimental research lab that explores the possibilities for architecture to strengthen the transformation of post-conflict urban areas. Gathering statistical data, graphics, maps, movies, publications, fragments of real life, pictures and interviews this temporary experimental space will survey the controversial thin line between the architecture of war and the architecture of peace within the unstable condition of ‘reconstruction’.

Launch Architecture of Peace Website

Complementing the exhibition, the official Architecture of Peace website has launched today. The website is a treasure trove of information regarding the Architecture of Peace topic, and showcases case studies, videos, the ethical code for architects and more. It is set up in order to be as open as possible, so the website only consists of a menu, linking to all kinds of external sources. The site can be visited at architectureofpeace.org.