Chapter 18
Sustainability
The concept of sustainable development, and associated
practices such as sustainable construction, lend them-
selves to investigation via the sketchbook. It is possible to
use freehand drawing to explore aspects of modern green
design, be it the use of solar energy, wind power or
natural ventilation. Conversely, most of the buildings
constructed before the Industrial Revolution utilised local
renewable energy sources, building materials were from
the immediate locality, transport and farming practices
relied on human and horse power, and cities were located
where natural resources demanded. There was little or no
importation of energy, food, water or materials, and since
there was scarcity all round, there was a great deal of re-
use and recycling. In this there are lessons for the future,
which can be recorded and understood through freehand
drawing. So sketching can help reveal best green
practice, whether old buildings or more recent examples
are employed.
The resources available also shaped the technologies
and design practices employed. Here again the
sketchbook can be used to study the crafts as well as the
buildings and cities produced. In this there is no
difference in principle between practice in the eighteenth
century and that in the twenty-first. In both cases, science
and technology seek to achieve the maximum benefit
from the minimum of resource consumption, using
design to mediate between resources and uses. Hence,
as in all sustainable practice, design and technology are
intimately related. The function of drawing is to record
this relationship so that lessons can be learned that may
have relevance for future design practice.
Sustainable development, defined as development
which meets the needs of the present without com-
promising the ability of future generations to meet their
own needs, is essentially concerned with development,
i.e. what architects do. Sustainable development is about
cities and large-scale decisions that act upon global
players, such as politicians. The architect is involved in
this, but more commonly at the level of sustainable
design and sustainable construction. Hence the subject of
sustainability is best explored through freehand drawing
at all three levels – urban, building and construction.
There are different green practices in different regions
of the world as a result of variations in climate or cultural
practices. The sketchbook can be used to explore these
differences and in the process gain some insight into the
subject of sustainable development. Since there are
marked inequalities in the global distribution of resources,
from water to agricultural land and energy supplies, the
subject has considerable educational benefit if sketching152 Understanding architecture through drawing