The Pattern Book for Regenerative Design is a practice guide for engineers (and other humans) who want to shift the construction industry, one project at a time.
Start where you are.
The Pattern Book for Regenerative Design is for engineers (and other humans) who want to help shift the construction industry toward a thriving future — one project at a time. It supports people who imagine a better future but are working within the constraints of today’s systems.
The book picks up where The Regenerative Structural Engineer left off — moving from theory and case studies into practice. It’s a guide to repeatable patterns of regenerative practice: ways of seeing, working and talking that help us navigate the complexity of real projects while keeping the goal of thriving in view.
Developed through three years of work in the Regenerative Design Lab and grounded in Oliver Broadbent’s research as an 1851 Fellow in Regenerative Design, The Pattern Book for Regenerative Design brings together design education, systems thinking and lived practice.
Rather than launching with a bang, we’re building a community of users over time. We invite you to join us — to try the patterns, adapt the motifs, and help shape what this project becomes.
What’s inside the book?
The Pattern Book for Regenerative Design is made up of:
- 12 patterns – each one a structure for working regeneratively in a specific context (projects, teams, strategy, policy and more)
- Over 50 motifs – reusable tools, models, questions, or metaphors you can adapt to your own context
- Six core threads – principles like feedback, adaptability and circularity that connect ideas across the book
It’s not a linear manual. It’s a reference book. A pick-your-own-adventure. A toolkit you can grow into.
Collected together here, underpinning it all, is much of Oliver’s wisdom and the insight from his teaching and research career. Those who have seen his work in creative design thinking and critical thinking will recognise it, I am sure. In shorthand pattern form, collected together, it’s just wonderfully useful
Chris Wise FREng RDI
Who is the Pattern Book for Regenerative Design for?
- Engineers (and other humans) working on live projects
- Educators and facilitators
- Clients, consultants and collaborators
- Policy and strategy teams
- Students and self-directed learners
- Anyone trying to shift built-environment systems from within
How to get involved
We’re releasing The Pattern Book for Regenerative Design in waves.
- 7 May 2025 – First copies go to Regenerative Design Lab participants
- 12 May – Pre-orders open for mailing list subscribers
- 11 June – General release begins
- September – Digital edition available
This phased launch is part of a wider strategy at Constructivist to support regenerative thinkers with training, tools and community over the long term.
What makes this book different?
This is not a textbook. It’s not a one-size-fits-all methodology.
It’s a book to work with, return to, sketch in and adapt. It’s an invitation to practice.
Using the content
The exercises and motifs in this book are shared under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence (CC BY-SA 4.0).
You are welcome to use them in your own commercial or educational work — as long as you credit the source and share any adaptations under the same licence.
Stay in the loop
Join the mailing list For Engineers and Other Humans to:
- Be the first to hear about new patterns and print runs
- Receive field notes from other practitioners
- Access tools to support your regenerative work
Sign up to the mailing list here.