In an era marked by climate change, planetary crisis and rapid urbanisation, our infrastructure must evolve beyond single-purpose designs to meet the wider demands of an ever-changing world. In her recent presentation at the NVF Road Design working group webinar, Elina Kalliala, Global Sustainability Director at Ramboll Transport, called for a fundamental shift in how we value, maintain, design and build infrastructure.
The Challenge: Infrastructure Built for a Climate That No Longer Exists
Historically, infrastructure has been constructed for specific, often singular purposes, without considering broader environmental and societal impacts and possibilities. As a result, we are left with roads, bridges, and urban structures that no longer align with current climate realities and add very narrow value to the wider system. With biodiversity and climate crisis intensifying, infrastructure must be adapted to withstand extreme and changing weather conditions and shifting environmental factors.
According to UNEP, all infrastructure sectors account for 79% of global emissions, with transport infrastructure contributing 16%. Beyond carbon emissions, infrastructure consumes over half of the world’s materials, contributing significantly to biodiversity loss. These statistics highlight the urgent need to rethink our existing and future infrastructure.
A New Approach: Infrastructure as a Living System
To address these challenges, a holistic systems approach is needed—one that shifts the focus from the visible end results to the hidden systems and values, and processes we are dealing with. Instead of simply asking how to build better roads, the discussion should start with fundamental questions:
• What needs are we addressing and what are the alternative ways to meet that need?
• How can we create infrastructure that integrates and adds wider value into ecological and social systems?
• What if roads and other infrastructure could support biodiversity, natural water cycles, and carbon sequestration?
This approach aligns with regenerative development principles, where infrastructure design aims to provide positive environmental and social impacts rather than merely minimising harm by optimizing the traditional design. The goal is to create multifunctional infrastructure that enhances ecosystem quality and resilience, mitigates climate change, and improves community well-being.
Case Studies Show the Way Forward
Infrastructure industry is still in the beginning of the journey to create fully regenerative infrastructure but we can already start implementing systems thinking and regenerative approach. Several different types of case studies demonstrate the feasibility of multifunctional and sustainable infrastructure. The Copenhagen Cloudburst Plan and it’s smaller implemented projects demonstrate how integrated and multifunctional stormwater management can add value to existing dense urban structure by enhancing climate resilience while improving city livability. Similarly, Sweden’s TSK70 highway project, systematically identified potential for multifunctional, innovative ideas, leading to several implementations and others identified for future development.
In Finland, the Luhtitie road project in Vantaa, incorporates multifunctional sustainable considerations that support local wildlife, promote active transport, and create ecological and social value through stormwater management. By preserving existing forests and vegetation, favouring meadows over lawns and utilizing existing soil and water cycles, the project enhances ecosystem health while ensuring a sustainable urban environment.
Collaboration and Systems Thinking Are Key
Rethinking infrastructure requires collaboration and co-creation across disciplines, industries, and stakeholders. The most critical and valuable discussions and rethinking happens in the early stages. How we start matters. Furthermore, investment models must evolve to support multifunctional infrastructure that delivers wider environmental, economic, and social benefits.
With climate-related damage to infrastructure expected to cost up to $13 trillions $ globally by 2100, according to the IPCC, the urgency of adaptation cannot be overstated. At the same time every project presents an opportunity to reshape our approach and thinking, ensuring that infrastructure contributes to a sustainable future rather than contributing to environmental degradation.
A Call to Action
The transition to sustainable and multifunctional infrastructure is not just a necessity but an opportunity to create more resilient, equitable, and regenerative societies. By rethinking infrastructure and traditional operational models, integrating nature-based solutions, and fostering innovative collaborations, we can turn our roads, bridges, and urban environments into assets that heal rather than harm the planet.
The change has already begun. Now, it is up to decision-makers, asset owners, engineers, designers, environmental experts and communities to embrace this shift and build a future where infrastructure is not just a tool for transport but a vital, value-adding part of the broader system, contributing to a thriving, sustainable world.
Elina Kalliala, Global Sustainability Director at Ramboll Transport, presented Rethinking Our Roads at the NVF Road Design working group webinar on 17 February 2025.
Watch the full recording here.
Explore the presentation materials here or find them on the Road Design working group’s website under Public Materials.
