ABSTRACT
Global initiatives to achieve net-zero carbon emissions such as the target for 2050 set by the European Union have become increasingly crucial aspect of the built environment. This paper first outlines the importance of sustainable structural design, followed by a discussion on the main existing strategies for sustainable structural design and identifies the need of a systematic approach to reuse entire load-bearing structures. As design methodologies on the reuse and potential of entire load-bearing structures are lacking, the authors introduce the concepts of Generality and Adaptability as a way to open up the perspective and discussion on the matter and to think about strategies to develop design methodologies to reuse entire structures for future scenarios. Starting from the structural interpretation of these concepts, potential approaches to address the generality and adaptability of load-bearing structures are presented.
