2026 World Congress of Architects announce Tres Ximeneies and DHub as main venues

The 2026 edition of the World Congress of Architects (UIABCNWC26) will be held in Barcelona from June 28 to July 2.

On Monday, it was announced that the main venues will be the Tres Ximeneies in Sant Adrià de Besòs and the Disseny Hub Barcelona (DHub) in Glòries.

Other parts of the congress will be held in other locations across Barcelona and its metropolitan area, such as the Sagrada Família Temple, the Maria Wharf, and the Montjuïc Castle, as organizers wish to remain “integrated into the fabric of the city.”

Many of the events around Barcelona will be open to the public. 

“Barcelona will radiate architecture from all its corners,” said the Dean of the College of Architects of Catalonia (COAC), Guillem Costa. 

The theme of next year’s congress, which is set to be attended by more than 10,000 professionals, was also revealed on Monday and will be ‘Becoming. Architectures for a planet in transition’.

It will focus on the “speculative, qualitative inquiries to explore material, political, ecological, and poetic interrelations,” and discuss architecture’s role in the “most urgent and necessary” coming transitions, according to the organizers.

The event is organized by the International Union of Architects (UIA), an NGO that brings together national architects’ associations from over 100 countries, representing more than one million architects.

The event takes place every three years in a different city, and it is the second time that it will come to Barcelona.

The last time was in 1996, making Barcelona the first city to host the event twice.

Housing a “growing challenge”

During the presentation, both the Catalan territory minister, Sílvia Paneque, and, Barcelona’s deputy mayor, Laia Bonet, mentioned housing as a “growing challenge.”

“Housing in particular is one of the most urgent issues that we have to solve as politicians,” said Paneque.

Bonet also acknowledged that “access to housing is the main challenge” in Barcelona, adding that “we need bold, sustainable and fair solutions.”

Both lawmakers also described the UIABCNWC26 as a “motor for change.”

Call for participation

Next year’s congress will be structured around six “open and interconnected” research themes, including ecological coexistence, circularity, or the analysis of space and how its design shapes interpersonal relationships.

To “activate” participation in the event, the organizers have opened an international call for participation to present projects in three submission formats: Critical Design, Critical Essay, and Critical Image.

The idea is to “critically explore how architecture connects with the six research topics.”

The call is open until May 23.

In the coming weeks, organizers will also open an International Students Competition for architecture students.

Barcelona World Capital of Architecture 2026

The World Congress of Architects in Barcelona will coincide with the year the Catalan capital becomes the World Capital of Architecture, a title awarded by UNESCO.

According to UNESCO, every three years, "the city designated as World Capital of Architecture becomes a global forum at the forefront of discussions on contemporary urban planning and architectural issues."

When it was announced in 2021, then-Mayor Ada Colau said that the city was "a benchmark and is leading some of the answers to the great challenges of the 21st century,” adding that it was an “exciting” opportunity to “promote many of the transformations that are taking place."