Protect and Prevent. Circularity in Defence through Adaptive Reuse of Soviet-Era Buildings in Lithuania.

Abstract

This graduation project investigates how circularity can facilitate civilian protection and defence in times of hybrid warfare. In the context of increasing militarisation in Europe and the ongoing war in Ukraine, the project questions whether higher defence spending must automatically lead to large-scale new construction. Using Lithuania as a case study, it proposes that abandoned Soviet-era buildings can become part of a decentralised defence network based on adaptive reuse, preparedness, and continuity of life.

The project works across macro, meso, and micro scales. On the macro scale, vacant buildings across Lithuania are understood as a country-level defence network. On the meso scale, Soviet-era typologies are matched with new defence-related functions according to their spatial qualities. On the micro scale, two complementary routes are developed: a top-down approach of planned adaptive reuse and a bottom-up approach inspired by squatting and rapid inhabitation.

The project approaches Soviet-era heritage with historical sensitivity while recognising its spatial and typological potential. Through retrofit, kit-of-parts interventions, microgrids, emergency medical facilities, and communal shelter spaces, the project imagines defence infrastructure not as hostile enclosed structures, but as spaces of care, resilience, and collective protection.

Ultimately, the project argues that protection can be both planned and improvised, It seeks to oppose the narrative of aggression and militarisation by proposing an architecture that protects civilian life, supports continuity during crisis, and remains valuable beyond conflict.