A retrospective towards a biodegradable material concept for future Indonesian sustainable architecture

The awareness of the negative effect of the intensive usage of synthetic material has led to a significant phenomenon in recent global development. Moving forward to become a fully ready developed country, Indonesia shall move toward a more sustainable architecture for presenting a greener environment. Despite blessed with a distinctive collection of tropical material variants, reflected in its vernacular architecture, advanced material development must be invented to promote more progressive architecture in Indonesia. This research illustrates a new perspective regarding biodegradable material concepts for future Indonesian sustainable architecture. It is produced by respecting local and global development trends by using a bibliographic coupling and experimental methods in the laboratory to contribute to Indonesian sustainable architecture. A retrospective is aimed to highlight Indonesian biodegradable material and Indonesian vernacular architecture potency; it is presented as follows; (1) Understanding local–global trends in biodegradable architecture; (2) Indonesian potency on biodegradable materials; (3) A biodegradable material concept as an alternative perspective for Indonesian sustainable architecture. As a result, a new concept is proposed as an alternative for developing Indonesian biodegradable building materials. A more profound sustainable architecture is expected to engage local craftsmanship while highlighting unique biodegradable materials easily found in the surrounding environment, such as Indonesian Kombucha Tea and Indonesian Coffee. © 2021, The Author(s).