Atlas. Global Architecture circa 2000 proposes a critical assessment of world architecture in our global times: both a “state of the art” and a “state of the planet” in the years from 1990 to 2007, that is, circa 2000. It stands out from others covering the same general ground in avoiding the frequent and fruitless opposition between tradition and modernity; in its determination to explore both singular events and established patterns; and in lending the same attention to buildings reflective of particular circumstances and those that could be easily transplanted to other sites. After an introduction on Spain as a laboratory of global architecture, ten long chapters written by prominent experts explore different regions of Western Europe; Russia and Eastern Europe; the United States and Canada; Latin America; the Islamic world; Sub-Saharan Africa; India; China and East Asia; Japan; and Australia and the Pacific. Each chapter comprises an article exploring the architectural and urban development of the region in question, rounded off by a description of three outstanding works that in some sense transcend their purely cultural or geographical context.Although organized along geographical lines, this book declines to assume that cultural or religious differences outweigh the homogeneity that is a product of globalization. It thus takes a global approach that lends the same importance to common trends and regional variations, continuity and innovation, trying to see beyond the usual clichés. Descriptive rather than normative, it also reflects on what is meant by the collective memory and collective identity, expressed through the medium of architecture.