On the heels of the AIA Board historic vote on the ratification of the Climate Action Resolution in September, 2018 AIA President Carl Elefante, FAIA, testified at the U.S. Congress House Energy & Commerce Subcommittee on Energy, millions took to the streets across the world for the Global Climate Action Strike, the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released an alarming report on the state of the globe’s oceans, Presidential candidates addressed Climate Change in debates and town halls, and two important national conferences focused on carbon; the Carbon Positive Summit in Chicago and the Getting to Zero Conference in Oakland. Meanwhile our federal government rolled back important existing legislation on methane gas, energy efficient light bulbs and the Clean Water Act (see Mike Davis’s Advocacy Update for more). As a profession we must raise our voice for climate action and we applaud the recent statements by the AIA (Where We Stand: Climate Action) on this most critical global issue.
On September 20, Elefante joined a distinguished panel of experts to address the U.S. House Energy & Commerce Subcommittee on Energy on climate change. I watched Carl and his colleagues provide formidable testimony on the important role that the building sector and architects will have in providing climate solutions. “The threat posed by climate change to our homes, cities, nation, and the planet requires that we fundamentally reexamine how we develop and adapt the built world,” said Elefante. Complete details of the hearing as well as video of the testimony can be obtained on the US House Committee on Energy & Commerce website. Thank you to Carl and the AIA Government Advocacy team for their important work in asserting our voice at the table in Congress.
Also on September 20, the world came together for the Global Climate Action Strike. Many architects and COTE members were inspired by Swedish Activist Greta Thunberg to join millions across the globe to bring awareness to the urgency of Climate Action. In San Francisco, our office joined thousands of people for the Climate Strike which started at the Morphosis-designed Federal Building at UN Plaza, near the spot where the original United Nations Charter was signed in 1945. Hundreds of firms and architects across the country signed on in support of the Climate Strike through Architects Advocate and millions participated in Global Climate actions across the world.
A week later in Chicago, Architecture 2030 hosted a Carbon Positive Summit with Hanley Wood and the Large Firm Roundtable. Two days of presentations from multidisciplinary leaders from all parts of the country highlighted a diverse range of approaches, tools and solutions to address climate change. Ed Mazria concluded the conference with a Call to Action: We have 10 years to bend the curve down on carbon reduction if there is a chance to stay below 1.5 degree warming, reach Zero CO2 emissions by 2040, and achieve carbon positive by 2050. We must not be daunted by the time span of 30 years to make this critical change. Ed shared an image of a timeline that illustrated that within 30 years (1925-1955) we radically changed the world -- remaking our cities and transforming our economy with limited technology and tools (T-square and slide rule). He believes that with today’s technology and tools, we will be able to rebuild and transform the world in the next 30 years to address climate change and achieve a carbon positive world.
Later in October in Oakland, the Getting to Zero Forum brought together policy makers, architects, engineers, owners and manufacturers to discuss how to create a zero energy, zero carbon future. This is a follow up event for the building industry from the Global Climate Action Summit held in San Francisco one year ago. Next month, industry leaders will also gather in Atlanta for the Greenbuild International Conference. Many COTE leaders, and also former President Obama, will be speaking at Greenbuild on issues of resilience, sustainability, quality of life and equity in our buildings and in our communities.
This last quarter of 2019 will be a busy and productive time as we all work together towards a sustainable and regenerative future. In the next few months the AIA will be developing their Climate Action Plan with the goal to provide a draft plan to the membership in the first quarter of 2020 and to submit the final Climate Action Plan to the membership by the AIA Conference in Los Angeles in May 2020. It has been an eventful year with great progress and lots of work ahead for everyone in COTE as we head into our 30th anniversary year.