Early obsolescence in the built environment is increasing the number of demolitions and hence the generation of waste, making architectural practice an unsustainable affair. However, architects still continue to design buildings for permanence, without giving much thought to their future possibilities. That being the case, this study attempts to understand the potential of ephemerality as a sustainable alternative to contemporary architecture, through a design for disassembly (dfd) model. The study further analyses the possible ways in which dfd can be incorporated in contemporary architectural practice in order to enhance the application of dfd from a sustainability perspective, thus, changing the general mindset of treating sustainable design as an auxiliary afterthought, to treating it as an important design generator in architecture.
Keywords: Design for disassembly, ephemeral architecture, circular design, sustainability
