Overcoming friction to build regenerative cities with Eric Corey Freed

If we know how to build healthier, more sustainable and regenerative buildings, why do so few of them actually get built?This conversation focuses on the execution gap holding cities, developers, and institutions back from delivering better places for people. Despite decades of innovation in materials, design strategies, and performance data, progress often stalls when good ideas collide with risk-averse systems, outdated assumptions, and institutional friction.Our guest is Eric Corey Freed, an architect and longtime leader in regenerative design. Drawing on his experience working at Eco Districts, the Living Future Institute, and now with Cannon Design, Eric introduces a powerful reframing: innovation doesn’t fail because we lack creativity — it fails because friction makes “no” easier than “yes.”Together, host Kate Gasparro and Eric explore how fear, habit, and misaligned incentives prevent sustainability practices and what it looks like when buildings move beyond being “less bad” to becoming truly regenerative. From healthier materials and biophilic design to performance metrics that prioritize human well-being, this episode offers practical insight into how cities can create places that actively improve health, resilience, and community outcomes.If we want cities that are genuinely better for people, the challenge isn’t imagining better buildings — it’s removing what’s standing in the way of building them.Resources:Nature Becomes Architect: Growing our next generation of buildings (TEDx)Creating zero-carbon buildings for a regenerative built world (Reuters)What if we grew our buildings? (Treehugger)Net zero buildings for people and planet (Cannon Design)The Design Firm Making Net-Zero Emissions Buildings a Reality (Time)Send us Fan MailThanks for listening to Building Better Cities! If you'd like to stay connected, don't forget to Subscribe and Follow. You can find all our archived newsletters and podcasts right here. Want to get in touch? Just email the team at [email protected].