Unfinished Lisbon Mall Converted into Oriente Green Innovation Campus

The Oriente Green Campus represents a bold transformation of Lisbon’s urban fabric. An unfinished, block-sized shopping mall near Moscavide has been reimagined by KPF and Saraiva+Associados into a 42,000-square-metre workspace and university campus.

This project sits at the heart of Lisbon’s Parque das Nações regeneration. It turns a stalled destination into a multi-level, garden-forward hub for learning and work.

Adaptive reuse in Lisbon’s Parque das Nações

The project repurposes an abandoned structure that halted construction in 2012. It is reconfigured into a flexible campus-and-office complex.

The design breaks down the mall’s monolithic volume, creating stepped terraces, rooftop gardens, and planted courtyards. These features soften the building’s scale and connect it to the surrounding neighborhood.

Inside, the original deep floor plates are reworked into adaptable teaching and office spaces. Architectural legibility is preserved through coffered concrete floors.

Communal areas, such as a café and auditorium, are lined in timber. This offers warm, human-scale experiences within the large framework.

Spatial strategy and architectural form

Designers reduced the mass of the unfinished mall to reveal terraces and gardens across levels. The stepped terraces and planted courtyards create intimate outdoor rooms and foster social interaction.

A slim rooftop pavilion, topped with an undulating timber roof and glazed walls, offers views across Lisbon. This reinforces the project’s aim to blend indoor and outdoor spaces.

Externally, the building is wrapped in locally produced terracotta tiles glazed in glossy white. This choice connects the project to local craft traditions and provides a contemporary, low-maintenance exterior suited to the Mediterranean climate.

Materiality, structure, and daylight

The design respects the building’s concrete core and coffers. This allows for flexible layouts for classrooms, research spaces, and offices.

The alignment of internal and external spaces supports natural daylighting and a permeable feel. The architecture emphasizes clear structure and honest materials, blending industrial heritage with a modern campus identity.

Landscape, ventilation, and public realm

Landscape studio JL Group designed nine external spaces at the project’s heart. These include public event areas, courtyards, and private terraces, all linked by winding paths, spiral white-painted steel staircases, and glass lift shafts.

These spaces create varied spatial conditions and enable natural ventilation of adjacent workspaces through openable windows. This reduces reliance on mechanical systems and improves environmental performance.

The roof and terrace environments form a multi-level garden roofscape. The landscape becomes central to campus life, inviting exploration and social interaction across levels.

Sustainability and embodied carbon

John Bushell, KPF principal, described the project as an “ultimate reuse of embodied carbon.” Repurposing the unfinished structure creates a granular urban extension with a multi-level garden roofscape.

The adaptive reuse approach minimizes new material production and extends the life of the existing structure.

Key sustainability outcomes include:

• Local materiality: terracotta tiles glazed in glossy white reflect regional craft and climate considerations.
• Timber detailing in communal spaces to enhance acoustics and warmth.
• Ventilated external spaces and operable openings to boost natural ventilation.
• A compact, legible footprint that concentrates energy use and maintenance needs.

Public life and photography

The project’s photographic narrative was captured by Fernando Guerra. His work highlights how daylight, landscapes, and the redesigned interiors work together.

These elements help create a campus that is both productive and welcoming. The Oriente Green Campus serves as an example of how cities can transform abandoned malls into lively, sustainable spaces for education and work.

This transformation supports Lisbon’s reputation as a center for innovative and responsible design.

 
Here is the source article for this story: Unfinished Lisbon shopping mall “hulk” turned into innovation campus