Rachel Armstrong, Ph.D., is a professor of Design-Driven Construction for Regenerative Architecture at KU Leuven, Belgium. Trained in medicine (University of Oxford) and developmental genetics (University of Cambridge, First Class Honours), Armstrong holds a Ph.D. from University College London's Bartlett School of Architecture.

Armstrong incorporates microbes directly into design solutions as living components of surfaces, walls and metabolic systems, regarding them as functional regenerative agents. Her research establishes an architectural ontology that incorporates living processes into the fabric of the built environment, grounding their applications in origins-of-life science and artificial life. Armstrong engineers buildable ecologies: bioreceptive scaffolds (clay, wood), bioelectrochemical reactors and dynamic biocomposites that host microbial communities to process household waste and generate energy, water and nutrients. These living systems turn building envelopes from inert barriers into co-evolving, regenerative interfaces.

Armstrong is a coordinator and PI in design for EU projects, including Living Architecture (FET Open), the Active Living Infrastructure: Controlled Environment (ALICE) prototype (Innovation Award) and Microbial Hydroponics (EIC Pathfinder). Her installations include SPIKA at Milan Triennale and XENO at CIVA, Brussels, all demonstrating microbially-powered architecture. Armstrong is a TED senior fellow, fellow of the European Academy of Microbiology and EIC Ambassador. She received the STRAND Special Award for innovation in architecture. Her 6 books include Safe as Houses and Liquid Life. Armstrong envisions a future where buildings are life-promoting systems that enhance the life-bearing qualities of their host sites.