Committee on the Environment

AIA's Architecture & Design Materials Pledge is the result of years of conversation between members, manufacturers, and mindfulMaterials, and remains rooted in the Common Materials Framework (CMF). The CMF was co-created to support all those interested in holistically better materials, how to learn more about them, and specify them in projects. In 2017, AIA spun up a distinct Materials Working Group to address concerns from designers and begin developing solutions by calling attention to what goes into building materials and how designers can educate themselves, their firms, and clients about selecting more durable and holistically healthier materials. A few years later, the official Materials Pledge was created, originating with 56 signatories and focusing on five distinct Pledge impact categories: 

• Human health  
• Social health and equity  
• Ecosystem health
• Climate health  
• A circular economy 

For full impact category explanations, please see the Materials Pledge website > 

The Circular Economy impact category's mission statement is "reusing and improving buildings and by designing for resiliency, adaptability, disassembly, and reuse, aspiring to a zero-waste goal for global construction activities." It is intended to change attitudes towards building design by encouraging teams to 1: prioritize reusing existing building stock and improving their performance over new construction; and 2: when reutilization is not possible, select reusable, recycled, or recyclable new materials. These circular materials articles seek to unpack the importance of reducing the consumption of materials and learning to select more circular materials, while providing resources for designers to use in this quest. 

Defining circularity 

The term 'circular economy' was popularized by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and defined as: "A systems solution framework that tackles global challenges like climate change, biodiversity loss, waste, and pollution. It is based on three principles, driven by design: 1: eliminate waste and pollution, 2: circulate products and materials (at their highest value), and 3: regenerate nature." By AIA's own account, in late 2025, the Architectural Billing Index showed that almost half of design billings were from reconstruction projects. Reconstruction projects undertaken in 2025 included basic updating and modernization of the building interiors (cited by 74% of firms), upgrades to basic building systems (HVAC, lighting) (63%), upgrades to building shell (roof, facade, windows/doors, entrances) (63%), adaptive reuse or building conversion (61%), and tenant fit-outs (54%).