I think things are changing.
The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recently told us what we already knew, that emissions-caused global warming is increasing and that its impacts are expanding. Where does this put us, the shapers of the built environment?
When we’re given bad news, that we already sort of knew, it’s hard to find a place to put it. I was curious to know what some architects thought about this, so I asked a few who were attuned to the issue how much architects need to do, what are our obligations, and how do we act on them?
Here’s what I heard from Rand Ekman, FAIA, Principal and Chief Sustainability Officer at HKS: “Architects, and the teams we work with, are creators of the built environment. What we design is physical, has real impact on people, communities, and the broader environment. For this we are professionally and ethically responsible.
According to Angie Brooks, FAIA, of Brooks + Scarpa, it’s a global issue: “‘Leave No One Behind’… four words that perfectly encapsulate how society must function, from the global to the personal scale. When we leave someone behind, we hurt not only them, but the very social fabric that holds us together.”
Lisa Matthiessen, FAIA, is Amazon’s Sustainable Buildings Manager, Worldwide Sustainability. She says, “As architects, we have the power and the responsibility to ameliorate climate change and boost environmental justice; given the peril our planet is in, we must step up and do our best. Amazon has set the goal of reaching net zero carbon by 2040.”
Some architects have realized that as conditions in which we build are changing, our standard of care must change. According to Allison Anderson, FAIA, of unabridged Architecture, “The actions of an architect are measured against the standard of care described in the AIA Contract Documents. As more architects integrate resilience into the design process, the standard of care is shifting to adopt more stringent requirements for occupant safety and building performance. It is essential for every architect to take on issues of both climate change mitigation and climate change adaptation in thinking about the future of the built environment.”
Ekman adds, “Accountability for not addressing climate change is just around the corner. I for one, do not want to get caught up in this. This is responsible business management.”
So, what do we do about it in our practices? Many firms have ramped up their capability to not just do high-performance buildings but to seriously address climate change. Brooks says, “We let our clients know about the benefits of 100% electric buildings and we design for the poorest among us to mitigate the social inequities that exist in our society.” Anderson, whose projects are often in climate-threatened areas, finds it’s necessary to plan for climate impact. “As part of our initial project programming, we conduct a vulnerability assessment for each site: identify primary hazards, check wind and flood zones, sea level rise, etc. We then discuss what their goals are for continuity of operations.”
If our responsibility to maintain the public’s “health, safety and welfare” is changing, how can we make sure all architects can rise to the challenge? It is becoming more important than ever to gain the knowledge of how to design for carbon emissions elimination and climate adaptation, but also to share that knowledge. Both architects and their clients – for whom such measures also mean strategic advantage and risk mitigation -- need to understand the importance of the work we do in shaping the built environment for everyone. As the IPCC made clear, the urgency is to cut carbon emissions drastically and rapidly. We can rise to the challenge of protecting the health, safety, and welfare of the planet’s people.
Just before closing this issue, we learned of the sudden death of Lance Hosey, FAIA, a COTE leader, colleague and friend. This is a huge loss for the profession, and especially for the COTE community. His work had a major impact on what we do today. We will share more about plans to honor him as they unfold. You can read the obituary here and a statement from his firm here.