New Common Grounds 2026

Organised since 2019, the New (-) Grounds forums aim to foster camaraderie between architecture students across seven Southeast Asian countries as well as Taiwan, and to generate critical discussion about key topics related to academia and the profession.  Previous themes include New Creative Grounds (2019), New Resilient Grounds (2020), New Public Grounds (2021), New Vernacular Grounds (2022), and New Interpretive Grounds (2023).

The theme for our 2026 forum is “New Common Grounds”.  As it is the commencement of a new series, the choice of the adjective “common” reinstates the similar convictions and aspirations of participating institutions and people involved from prior forums.  The term “commons” and its corollary “commoning” are also gaining acceptance and activation for a movement to graduate top-down and bottom-up initiatives and actions, so that better social and physical environments may be achieved and perpetuated for different stakeholders.  For this forum, the abovementioned manifestations of “common” offer a central theme to convene the series of lectures by academics and experts, guide development of student projects, and serve as selection criteria for exhibition projects at the physical event.

The forum consists of five main components:

Online Lecture Series

A series of online lectures featuring invited academics and practitioners exploring the conference theme from diverse disciplinary and regional perspectives.  The online lectures are taking place in the months preceding the in-person conference.

Exhibition

An international exhibition showcasing student projects from 18 participating schools of architecture, presenting a broad range of design approaches and pedagogical positions.

Design Campuran

A collaborative initiative bringing together students from different universities to work collectively across institutional and national boundaries, discussing and presenting their group work with reference to thematic aspects of New Common Grounds.

Pedagogy Roundtable

A forum for educators to discuss emerging challenges and opportunities in architectural education throughout the region.

Design Reviews

Cross-institutional design reviews encouraging dialogue between students, educators and practitioners through critical discussion of exhibited work.

Event Details

Date:

23–25 July 2026

Venue: 

Exhibition Hall, Level 1
SDE1, Department of Architecture
National University of Singapore
and
Singapore Archifest
Marina Bay Sands

Organiser:

Department of Architecture
College of Design and Engineering
National University of Singapore

Participating Institutions: 

Chiang Mai University, Thailand
Chulalongkorn University, Thailand
Chung Yuan Christian University, Taiwan
De La Salle – College of Saint Benilde, Philippines
Hanoi University of Civil Engineering, Vietnam
Institut Teknologi Bandung, Indonesia
King Mongkut’s Institute of Technology Ladkrabang, Thailand
Ming Chuan University, Taiwan
National Cheng Kung University, Taiwan
National University of Singapore, Singapore
Singapore University of Technology and Design, Singapore
Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management & Technology, Malaysia
UCSI University, Malaysia
Universitas Pelita Harapan, Indonesia
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Malaysia
University of Indonesia, Indonesia
University of San Carlos, Philippines
University of Santo Tomas, Philippines

Programme (Open to Public via RSVP or Registration)

23 July 2026 at NUS DOA SDE1

12PM-1PM:  Exhibition Opening

24 July 2026 at Singapore Archifest MBS

9AM-12PM:  Design Campuran
2PM-5PM:   Pedagogy Roundtable

25 July 2026 at NUS DOA SDE1

10AM-1PM:  Design Reviews Session 1
2PM-5PM:  Design Reviews Session 2

Registration

Exhibition Opening at NUS DOA. Please RSVP here.

Design Campuran and Pedagogy Roundtable at Singapore Archifest. Register for free tickets here.

Design Reviews at NUS DOA. Please RSVP here.

 

Organising Committee

Convenors:
Prof. Dr. Jeffrey HOU
Dr. Ar. LAI Chee Kien

Coordinators:
Assoc. Prof. Christo MEYER (Conference and Exhibition)
Assist. Prof. Dr. Saptarshi SANYAL (Design Campuran)
Assist. Prof. Peeraya SUPHASIDH (Pedagogy Roundtable)
Assist. Prof. Dr. Robin Hartanto HONGGARE (Design Reviews)

Instagram:  @newgroundsconference

Website:  https://newgroundsconference.org/