Citation: Grobman, Y.J.; Weisser, W.; Shwartz, A.; Ludwig, F.; Kozlovsky, R.; Ferdman, A.; Perini, K.; Hauck, T.E.; Selvan, S.U.; Saroglou, S.; et al. Architectural Multispecies Building Design: Concepts, Challenges, and Design Process. Sustainability 2023, 15, 15480. https://doi.org/10.3390/ su152115480 Academic Editor: Marc A. Rosen Received: 10 August 2023 Revised: 25 September 2023 Accepted: 16 October 2023 Published: 31 October 2023 Copyright: © 2023 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ 4.0/). sustainability Perspective Architectural Multispecies Building Design: Concepts, Challenges, and Design Process Yasha J. Grobman 1, * , Wolfgang Weisser 2 , Assaf Shwartz 1 , Ferdinand Ludwig 3 , Roy Kozlovsky 4 , Avigail Ferdman 5 , Katia Perini 6 , Thomas E. Hauck 7 , Surayyn Uthaya Selvan 1 , Soultana (Tanya) Saroglou 1 , Shany Barath 1 , Michael Schloter 2 and Laura Windorfer 2 1 Faculty of Architecture and Town Planning, Technion Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 3200003, Israel; shwartza@tx.technion.ac.il (A.S.); surayyn@campus.technion.ac.il (S.U.S.); saroglou@campus.technion.ac.il (S.S.); barathshany@technion.ac.il (S.B.) 2 School of Life Sciences, Technical University of Munich, 85354 Freising, Germany; wolfgang.weisser@tum.de (W.W.); schloter@tum.de (M.S.); laura.windorfer@tum.de (L.W.) 3 School of Engineering and Design, Technical University of Munich, 85354 Freising, Germany; ferdinand.ludwig@tum.de 4 School of Architecture, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel; rkozlov@tauex.tau.ac.il 5 The Department of Humanities and Arts, Technion Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 3200003, Israel; avigailf@technion.ac.il 6 Department of Architecture and Design, University of Genoa, 16148 Genoa, Italy; katia.perini@unige.it 7 Institute of Urban Design and Landscape Architecture, Vienna University of Technology, 1040 Vienna, Austria; thomas.hauck@tuwien.ac.at * Correspondence: yasha@technion.ac.il Abstract: This perspective paper explores the concept of multispecies design in architecture, focusing on the building scale. Historically, architects have prioritized human needs, neglecting nature’s integration in urban settings, leading to environmental and social challenges. To address these issues, a new multispecies approach that promotes the integration of ecological knowledge into architectural design has evolved. This paper aims to map existing concepts, challenges, and gaps in this novel multispecies approach, focusing on the building scale design process and suggests a roadmap for its implementation. This paper analyzes the existing literature and current architectural practices. This analysis is complemented by the findings from an architectural design studio that have highlighted real-world challenges not readily apparent in the literature. By promoting a multispecies architectural paradigm, this research not only underscores a transformative approach to building design but also positions multispecies design as an essential strategy in combatting the challenges of declining biodiversity and escalating climate change. Keywords: multispecies design; building envelope; architecture and ecology; sustainability; nature-based solutions; architectural design process; non-anthropocentric design; greenery systems 1. Introduction In recent decades, the global human population has experienced rapid expansion, rising from six billion individuals in 1999 to nearly eight billion in 2022. While some projections indicate a decline in growth rates, the urban population is projected to grow by 2.5 billion people by the middle of this century, resulting in rapid and substantial urban expansion [1]. Global analyses have shown that this rise has already occurred and is expected to cause further significant impacts on biodiversity, especially in vulnerable ecoregions of high endemism [2–4]. While cities have become thriving centers of economic growth, innovation, and knowledge production, they also generate a myriad of complex social challenges [5,6]. An urban lifestyle is associated with detachment from nature, rising allergies and respiratory system problems, chronic stress, and mental fatigue, leading to Sustainability 2023, 15, 15480. https://doi.org/10.3390/su152115480 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainability