Wooden skyscrapers, next-level recycling: How Aarhus wants to become one of the most sustainable cities in the world

Anders Lendager is contemplating the practicalities of a new 20-story skyscraper in Aarhus, Denmark.

And this one is all about practicality. It’s not just any skyscraper. This one, built last year in the port district of Sydhavnen, is made of wood and recycled material. In fact, it is Denmark’s tallest wooden building.

TRÆ is Lendager’s creation, inspired by the climate crisis and years of pushing the limits of what you can, and can’t, reuse in a building.

“We wanted to show what is possible,” says Lendager, who runs his eponymous Danish-Icelandic architecture firm.

Lendager’s creation, and indeed, Aarhus itself, is a powerful reminder that the world we live in is a finite resource.

Denmark’s second city has moved beyond aspirational climate goals. It has internalized the Nordic sensibility that security, safety, and high quality of life are inseparable from environmental integrity.

How Aarhus is becoming a sustainable tourist destination

Here are some of the city’s sustainability highlights:

But to really see how sustainable Aarhus has become, you have to visit. This region offers everything from climate-change-proof streets to back-to-nature accommodations. And its sustainability leaders have an important message for anyone who will listen.

Integrating history and climate adaptation in Randers

An artificial lake in Randers, part of the city’s ambitious rainwater management system. (Photo by Aren Elliott.)

It turns out the Aarhus region has a rich history of sustainability. In nearby Randers, a town that showcases 400-year-old half-timbered houses, cobblestone streets and factories turned into cafés, sustainability has been built directly into the streets.

“Randers has developed sophisticated rainwater management systems,” explains Kristiina Hansen-Götze, a city guide.

Why? Randers has adapted to climate change, which projects more intense rainfall and rising sea levels. The new systems, built over the last decade, are designed to work with, not against, the rising tide.

Hansen-Götze emphasized that they intentionally designed them so that the solutions don’t look like something made to prevent flooding. She says so far, the new drainage system, which is still being tested, has worked well by protecting the town from potentially devastating floods even during heavy rains.

For visitors, this means they can enjoy Randers’ gift shops, restaurants and cafés without having to wade through puddles. In the long term, it will also ensure the city doesn’t wash away.

“And the system looks beautiful, like it was always meant to be here,” she adds.

That sense of form and function extends to the region’s hotels.

The premium of Nordic wellness and culture

Jesper Buus, a district director for Scandic Hotels, on the construction site of Bassin Seven, his newest hotel. (Photo by Aren Elliott.)

This focus on core values like safety, health, and the environment has become the foundation of the local tourism and hospitality sector, allowing it to command a premium internationally. Anne Hübner, a spokeswoman for Visit Aarhus, says the city’s quality of life is driven by security, safety, and trust, values that score highly on the happiest citizens index.

“It’s one of the reasons people want to visit Aarhus, to experience this for themselves,” she says.

Scandic Hotels, one of the largest hotel chains in the region, is capitalizing on this expectation. Jesper Buus, a district director of Scandic, says that the chain, including the Scandic Aarhus City, has doubled down on the service and amenities people expect from a Nordic hotel. Almost all Scandic hotels meet the Nordic Swan Ecolabel’s standards for energy efficiency, water consumption and waste management.

“Sustainability is such an integrated part of Scandic that we sometimes take what we do for granted," he admits. Recycling, solar panels, and even on-site beehives were all incorporated into the hotel’s design.

Buus says one of the misconceptions about sustainability is that it means guests have to sacrifice service or amenities. But they don’t here, and there may be no better answer than Scandic’s latest project, a new Signature-branded hotel called Bassin Seven currently under construction near Aarhus’ port.

Buus says the new hotel structure reflects the changing demands of travelers who want a wellness experience, and will feature a large spa that, true to Scandic’s other hotels, will be true to its Nordic values.

He says the understated experience, modern architecture with light wood and a minimalist sensibility along with a line of authentic local experiences, is in high demand. It is just one part of the sustainability puzzle in Aarhus. But to get another perspective from the hospitality industry, you have to drive into one of Denmark’s famous national parks.

Authentic disconnection in Mols Bjerge

A yurt in Mols Bjerge National Park. (Photo by Aren Elliott.)

The dedication to authentic environmental practice reaches deep into the idyllic Danish countryside. In the rural setting of Mols Bjerge National Park, Bjørn Haugum operates a glamping site using yurts that capture the concept of friluftsliv, or living outdoors.

Haugum's philosophy emphasizes simple living, returning to the “basics of life” by focusing on sleeping, physical activity, foraging for food, and keeping warm. But to ensure guests truly disconnect and reflect, Haugum has introduced deliberate friction.

Guests have to park in a public parking spot about a half mile away and walk to their yurt, packing only necessary supplies. This enforced slowdown ensures they are prepared for an outdoor adventure and pack only what they need.

The actual accommodations are simple yurts with open fireplaces that push guests to disconnect from their electronic devices and reconnect with each other, and nature itself.

“We actually don’t use terms like carbon-neutral when we describe what we do, because there’s been so much greenwashing,” Haugum adds. “We’d rather walk the walk. We want to inspire people, not lecture to them about their environmental commitments.”

The operation supports local communities by sourcing from nearby producers, such as buying fruit wines from local vendors. Haugum and his wife say they want to keep this project small and exclusive, focusing on guests who share their vision of living outdoors.

But Haugum says he wants to add one more thing to his property. The rolling hills of northern Denmark may have inspired J.R.R. Tolkien when he wrote The Hobbit, and Haugum would like to build a Hobbit house on his property. He hopes to reach the Tolkien tourists who come to this area with his message of friluftsliv.

“We probably won’t be able to call it a Hobbit house, because of copyright issues,” he says. “But it will be great.”

One thing is certain: A Hobbit house will be the ultimate green accommodation. But it won’t be the only one.

The architect who made trash a commodity

Lendager, the architect who built the wooden high-rise in Aarhus, is on a mission to change the way people build in Denmark. He says architects must learn to design within their limits, and that means viewing discarded materials as valuable assets. He hopes TRÆ can show others that this philosophy is financially robust, scalable, and, most importantly, sustainable.

Lendager recalls that the client, a large pension fund, initially sought to compensate tenants for the risk associated with innovation by reducing rent to 1.5 percent below the market rate.

The project drew so much attention that the client instead went the other way, adding 25 percent to the rent prices.

“It’s priced like a premium product,” he says.

Demand was overwhelming.

“Everything was leased out before we started building,” he says.

What’s the appeal? Well, almost everything is sustainable. Lendager collected the aluminum panels cladding the exterior from several sources, including farms, old mailboxes and the roof of a demolished building.

Lendager detailed the startling economic impact: The panels cost just $10,000 for the whole building, which he estimated was approximately dramatically cheaper than using traditional materials.

The hardest part of the project was the solar shades for the building, which are made from the fiberglass of discarded wind turbine blades. Upon reaching the end of their service life, these blades typically end up in landfills. By developing a process to cut these composites into building elements, Lendager’s company slashed the project’s carbon dioxide footprint when compared to using an aluminum or motorized system.

For Lendager, this innovative sourcing means that design should follow availability, not form.

“Architecture is moving away from temples that manifest man’s dominance over nature and toward structures that are more cooperative and show gratitude to Earth,” he says.

A long-term investment in sustainability

The sustainable narrative emerging from Aarhus isn’t one of sacrifice or mandated austerity. It’s a pragmatic recognition that high quality of life, from the integrity of the architecture you inhabit to the water you drink and the nature you enjoy, is a premium product that requires long-term investment.

The goal here isn’t simply to avoid environmental disaster; it's to build a desirable, higher-value reality.

It is not an easy path, and it is not cheap. Denmark’s sustainability investments are supported by the country’s high taxes, and Aarhus is by no means a bargain destination. But if you want to see a region that is transforming itself into a truly sustainable destination, there may be no better place in the world to visit. For other destinations, a sustainable path may be an attractive way forward, but for Aarhus, it is the only way.

Elliott Report

This story was originally published May 22, 2026 at 5:30 AM.