Spectacular architecture coupled with sustainable building is usually at home in urban settings. But Norway’s towering mountains are now the backdrop for contemporary architecture that is a welcome retreat after a long hike. Tungestølen is found on a plateau at the foot of Jostedalsbreen, Europe’s highest mainland glacier. These mountain cabins have far more to offer than the usual food and lodgings with a dormitory full of mattresses. And so it is no coincidence that the project was designed by Snøhetta, one of the world’s most prestigious architectural firms. Their client was Luster Turlag, a local branch of the Norwegian National Trekking Association.

During his keynote address at the Thailand Tourism Forum 2020 in Bangkok on 20 January, Bill Bensley launched his open-source “Sensible Sustainability Solutions” white paper for the global Hotel Industry, incorporating over three decades of experience from designing over 200 hotels around the world and in celebration of 30 years since he created BENSLEY.

Just north of the bustling city center of Copenhagen, Norm Architects has carried out a full renovation of a private family home overlooking the water and a grand marina. With a focus on bringing out the house’s inherent modernist qualities and putting it on display, the home is now a calm refuge of clean lines and natural materials to retreat to in a busy everyday life.

Elegantly set in the beautiful East Anglian landscape, on the border of a working farm in Suffolk (UK), the Pavilion House is a real inside-out construction. The shapes and materials of the interior all carry a certain tranquillity and simplicity, while every room offers a different glimpse of the outside. There is a certain humility within the architecture, acknowledging that the big-ticket item in the setting is indeed the countryside; it doesn’t try to compete with it, but frames it instead.