EDP PROTUGAL OFFICE BUILDING, LISBON, PORTUGAL ARCHITECT: ALEJANDRO ARAVENA Located on the heterogeneous, redeveloping Tagus riverfront in Lisbon, the second phase of the EDP headquarters by Alejandro Aravena's firm, ELEMENTAL, presents a powerful exercise in civic and environmental responsibility. Standing in dialogue with the project's first phase by Aires Mateus, this new office building adopts the established perpendicular-to-the-river site plan but reinterprets it with a profound focus on the public realm. Manifesting a dual-character structure: a transparent, glazed facade houses the workspaces, while a heavy, monolithic concrete mass confronts the city, sculpted to function as a piece of urban topography. This robust, rock-like form, conceived as infrastructure akin to ancient city walls, defines a new sloping public space that invites the city's lively circulation inward and culminates in a cantilevered viewpoint over the river. The building’s massive concrete structure acts as a thermal mass for passive cooling, while the interiors contrast the stark exterior with warm use of wood. The project is thus a complex architectural statement that is both a sculptural object and an integrated piece of the urban fabric, designed to prioritize public life and social interaction.