RIBA declares state of climate emergency urging
architects to standardise sustainable practices
The Royal Institute of British Archi-
tects (RIBA) has announced a five-year
plan of action to tackle climate change
after declaring a state of climate
emergency.
“The climate emergency is the big-
gest challenge facing our planet and
our profession,” said RIBA president
Ben Derbyshire.
“But to have a significant impact we
need to do more than make symbolic
statements – we need to turn warm
words into impactful actions.”
The five year plan aims to standard-
ise sustainable practices within the
architecture industry in Britain by im-
proving government policies through
lobbying and reducing the organisa-
tion’s own carbon footprint.
The RIBA has also pledged to support
the UK government’s drive to make
the country carbon neutral by 2050.
Derbyshire added: “Architects need
to transform the way we practice and
along with our fellow professionals
around the world, make changes that
will impact at a global level.”
A number of international archi-
tecture firms have already declared a
climate and biodiversity emergency,
including Foster + Partners, Zaha
Hadid Architects, David Chipperfield
Architects, as well as AL _ A, Rogers
Stirk Harbour + Partners, and Alison
Brooks Architects.
These architecture firms have called
on others to follow suit and join their
campaign group called Architects De-clare, which encourages clients to com-
mission more sustainable buildings.
This year the United Nations warned
that humanity has just 12 years to limit
global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius,
or risk catastrophic effects on climate.
Many architects across the Middle
East have also expressed a sense of
urgency in creating responsible
architecture.
“The city of Dubai has now matured
to a stage where architects should
demonstrate their sense of responsi-
bility to produce responsible architec-
ture, notwithstanding the absence of
the governance of a local professional
body,” said Samir Serope Daoud, chair-
man and principal design architect at
Diar Consult.8 / NEWS HIGHLIGHTS