Forumtag 2025: Speakers

© Caroline Dethier

Java is an architecture studio based in Paris, founded in 2014 by Alma Bali, Florian Levy and Laurent Sanz. The three architects met at the ENSA Paris-Belleville school of architecture where they graduated in 2008 under the guidance of Pierre-Louis Faloci. 

Java’s approach is rooted in pragmatism, with the aim of creating sustainable architecture. Their designs integrate living spaces with their surroundings while addressing the needs of their users. 

The studio’s notable projects include the elevation of a townhouse rue du Commerce in Paris (2020), the extension of a country house in Normandy (2022), and the renovation of a seaside villa in les Landes (2024).

© Helin Bereket

Prof. Xaver Egger studied architecture in Munich after training as a carpenter. Founded in 1996, his office Sehw is now a registered brand with currently around 60 employees at several locations. In addition to its original architectural activities, Sehw is active in the fields of general planning, project development and brand strategy consulting. The focus is on buildings for public use, usually as a result of preliminary architectural competitions, and buildings for the real estate industry as well as own project initiations. 

Xaver Egger has held a professorship at Bochum University of Applied Sciences since 2010 and has been teaching at the German University of Technology in Muscat, Oman, since 2017. The Master's program he heads has developed into an Urban Lab, which focuses on innovative answers to the issues of our time. Xaver Egger is a member of the BDA, the NAX, the ZIA as the umbrella organization of the real estate industry and the Urban Development and Design Advisory Board of the City of Bonn.

© Fabienne Roth

Sandra Gnigler (*1981) is an architect in Linz. After studying architecture at the University of Art and Design in Linz, she began working with Gunar Wilhelm in 2010, followed by the founding of their joint architectural practice mia2 Architektur in 2013. With their team, the two develop projects on different scales with a particular focus on building on existing buildings. They understand their responsibility not only towards their clients, but also in the further development of our building culture - the maintenance of grown and inherited structures. In addition to her architectural practice, Sandra Gnigler is a lecturer at the University of Art and Design Linz and is involved in various advisory boards and jury committees.

© pk odessa photography

For Markus Krauss, it is a passion to realize net-zero emission buildings in the design team. To this end, he emphasizes their sustainability through life cycle analyses that also take into account the materials used. What Markus Krauß particularly loves is developing creative ideas and concepts in the design team at the table, because this process is essential for a project. He emphasizes the importance of the ecological footprint, including materials and resource use, and integrates CO₂ accounting into the design process. People and teamwork are his key elements that allow sustainable projects of all sizes, individual concept ideas and strategies to flourish.

© Janine Kyofsky Fotografie

Max Mannschreck studied architecture and landscape architecture in Stuttgart, Nürtingen, Denpasar and Hong Kong. He works as an architect and landscape architect at Werner Sobek with the aim of making the building of the future more sustainable, environmentally friendly and efficient. He focuses on modular timber construction for buildings that generate more energy from sustainable sources than they need, produce no emissions of carbon dioxide or other substances harmful to people and the environment and can be fully recycled.

© Moritz Hoffmann Photography

Kerstin Müller is an architect and Managing Director of Zirkular GmbH. Since 2022, she has held a visiting professorship at the Faculty of Architecture at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) with a focus on circular construction and component reuse. In 2023, she co-developed the CAS study module Circular Construction in Switzerland and has been co-leading it ever since. Since 2024, she has been developing the “Circular Building Qualification Program” in cooperation with the LUBW and AKBW. Müller represents the German Chamber of Architects on the climate advisory board of the city of Lörrach and is a member of the design advisory board of the city of Friedrichshafen.

© atelier schmidt

Architect Werner Schmidt founded the architecture firm Atelier Schmidt GmbH in Trun in 1988. In 2017, his son Paul Schmidt, architect FH B. Sc. (HTW Chur), took over the office. Sustainability is the central element of each of their building projects. The company philosophy is as follows: “The use of natural building materials such as wood, clay, straw and lime helps us to keep the primary energy required to construct buildings as low as possible. At the same time, we try to solve every construction task in such a way that a building appears useful to its occupants in the future.

© Barbra Verbij

The ‘VR’ of MVRDV, founding partner and principal architect Jacob van Rijs (Amsterdam, NL - 1964) is renowned for his dedication to bold concepts combining daring ideas with a humane and user-friendly approach. Van Rijs has developed this approach over the past 30 years in practice, leading to a wide range of the office’s most notable projects, from cultural and civic buildings to transformations, and from residential buildings and social housing to interiors. As a testament to his strong leadership skills, van Rijs led a rapidly growing MVRDV office through the financial crisis, and successfully led the firm into a new era as Managing Director from 2016 to 2018. 

During this time, the office expanded to many times its previous size, achieving recognition numerous times in industry awards. Current projects that van Rijs is leading include high-rise projects such as the Modernist and the Sax, in Rotterdam, and the Pixel in Abu Dhabi. Van Rijs works extensively in Germany, where his projects include Atelier Gardens in Berlin, recognised by the MIPIM Awards 2023 as best urban regeneration project, and WERK12 in Munich, which was named the best new building in Germany when it won the DAM Preis in 2021. Van Rijs combines this practice with a position as Professor of Architectural Design at the Technical University of Berlin, Germany. In addition to academia, van Rijs is also engaged in the profession on a broader scale, in juror assignments, and board memberships, including the Dutch Trade and Investment Board.