Future Climate Souvenirs of Chicago – Chicago Architecture Biennial 2025 (ExhibitionsFeaturedFutures)
Overview
Future Climate Souvenirs is a platform for creating engaging, imaginative artifacts that spark conversation about the climate crisis through humor and speculation rather than doomsday scenarios. In this edition, Future Climate Souvenirs of Chicago, Chicagoans imagine how the city might adapt its infrastructure—cultivating new nature reserves, regenerative schemes, and eco-tourist sites—in response to predicted atmospheric changes and ecological shifts.
At the center of the project is a mobile kiosk that displays playful, speculative souvenirs from these envisioned future nature reserves and eco-tourist destinations. Using humor and creativity, the project raises awareness about climate change by imagining how the city might evolve under rising temperatures and transforming ecosystems. The stand displays patches, hats, and an artist book alongside an interactive panel inspired by scientific climate research. Rather than focusing on disaster, the project encourages hope and curiosity. By making complex climate data visual and tangible, it invites visitors to think about resilience, adaptation, and the role design can play in shaping positive environmental futures. The kiosk is located in the Ecologies section of the Biennial at 840 North Michigan Avenue, Chicago, Illinois.
This humorous satirical souvenir collection blends early-80s UK children’s TV energy (for those who remember Chockablock) with the earnest charm of 1970s Open University broadcasts. This new Chicago collection follows the debut of Future Climate Souvenirs of New York at NYCXDESIGN.
Commissioned for the 6th Chicago Architecture Biennial (CAB), Shift: Architecture in Times of Radical Change, the project appears within a citywide program running September 19, 2025 – January 31, 2026. Under the artistic direction of Florencia Rodriguez, SHIFT gathers more than 100 architects, designers, and creative practitioners whose exhibitions, films, podcasts, dialogues, publications, and public events explore the profound cultural, social, and ecological transformations reshaping our world.
Check out the website Future Climate Souvenirs for more information about each nature reserve
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