Our Domaine has undertaken an ambitious renovation to align its infrastructure with its agroecological mission. Because the construction sector is one of the main contributors to global greenhouse gas emissions, every choice in a construction or renovation process matters.

According to the Global Status Report for Buildings and Construction by the United Nations Environment Programme, buildings and their construction account for 37% of global CO₂ emissions related to energy. In other words, every decision to build, demolish, insulate, or choose a material involves much more than a budget – it carries a long-term environmental impact.

Renovation thus emerges as a major strategic lever: it preserves the carbon already invested in an existing building, limits the extraction of new resources, and allows heritage to be reinterpreted in light of contemporary requirements.

From this perspective, every architectural decision becomes a sustainable commitment. This is precisely the approach that guided the transformation of Domaine de Graux. In this article, we explain how these reflections were concretely applied in the work.

A Conversion Serving a Vision

Our renovation works at the Domaine were undertaken primarily to rethink our infrastructure in line with our mission: to share the principles of agroecology and inspire everyone to take part in the transition.

The renovation aims to make the Domaine a true place of immersion, training, and inspiration, where architecture, materials, usage, and landscape fully embody our vision.

Concretely, this transformation includes the creation of:

• An educational hub of 200 m² to welcome children and immersive workshops dedicated to sustainable agriculture.
• A flexible event space, with a large hall accommodating up to 500 people.
• On-site lodging with 35 rooms, welcoming up to 70 people in full immersion.
• Two independent cottages, allowing self-contained stays with private kitchens and living areas.
• An ultra-local restaurant, reserved for guests, offering responsible cuisine based on farm products and local suppliers.
• Two immersive culinary workshop spaces focused on fermentation, natural preservation, and living cuisine.
• A local food processing workshop producing herbal teas, jams, and preserves through a 100% local and artisanal supply chain.
• An agricultural museum to explore the history of farming practices and the potential of agroecology.
• An artistic and educational path combining nature, art, and transmission to delight both children and adults.

Given the Domaine’s mission, these works could only be approached through a sustainable and coherent methodology.

“Our goal is to aim for exemplary standards. We do not claim to be perfect, but we wanted to integrate as many sustainable choices as possible at each stage of the project while remaining aligned with our values,”

explains Marie Delvaulx, General Manager of Domaine de Graux.

Renovation: A Technical and Strategic Challenge

While renovation is a strong ecological act, paradoxically, it is often more complex than building anew. As the architectural firm OOO notes, “Renovation involves working with an existing structure whose full technical, structural, or material constraints are not always known. Integrating sustainable solutions while respecting the existing requires a delicate balance between performance, comfort, and heritage preservation.”

Unlike new construction, where the most ambitious energy and environmental standards can be integrated from the start, renovation requires working with existing walls, old structures, regulatory constraints, and sometimes unexpected technical issues.

This complexity led us to structure our approach rigorously: prior analyses, prioritization, clear distinction between “must-have” and “nice-to-have,” linked to budget, schedule, and ecological requirements. In other words, we had to constantly balance environmental ambition, technical feasibility, and economic viability

This decision-making framework allowed us to stay the course. In the final phase of completion, 78% of the materials used meet ecological criteria.

Some bio-based or repurposed solutions could not be used due to fire safety standards or specific regulations. Other choices involved excessive additional costs. This was not a project with unlimited resources, but a real construction site where every euro invested had to remain coherent.

A key lesson lies precisely here: sustainability cannot simply be declared, it is built over time through structured and responsible decisions. For example, better insulation reduces the size of technical installations and, in the long term, energy costs. Some ecological options may require higher initial investment but generate significant savings over time. The question is therefore no longer just the initial cost of the work, but the overall cost of the building over its entire lifecycle.

Challenging the Value Chain

Another important lesson concerns the value chain. The sustainable construction market is in transition, and not all companies naturally align with high ecological standards. “Without constant questioning and verification, many actors would have naturally proposed the usual solutions, often the simplest or least expensive in the short term,” notes Marie Delvaulx.

The role of the project owner and architects is thus central: challenge, request material origins, check certifications, favor European supply chains, prioritize local companies, explore reuse possibilities, compare materials for carbon impact and real durability. A proactive stance that transforms the site into a collective learning space and gradually helps evolve practices.

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This article opens a series dedicated to the renovation of Domaine de Graux. In upcoming articles, we will document in more detail the choices made, constraints faced, technical solutions adopted, and trade-offs performed.

Our dual goal is to share our process transparently and inspire any company, organization, or individual wishing to undertake more sustainable renovation work. Beyond our own project, we are convinced that every construction site can become a lever for transformation.