Dezeen Magazine

UK architecture practices declare climate and biodiversity emergency

This week, UK architects confronted the climate emergency

This week on Dezeen, leading UK architects called on practices across the country to address the climate and biodiversity emergencies, and Foster + Partners led the charge by pledging to make all its buildings carbon-neutral by 2030.

Foster + Partners became the first architecture practice to sign up to the Net Zero Carbon Buildings Commitment this week, promising that all its new buildings will be designed carbon-neutral by 2030.

The studio joins 23 cities in signing the commitment, including New York, London and Tokyo, in a bid to reduce the built environment's contribution to climate change..

Foster + Partners wins RIBA Stirling Prize 2018
Foster + Partners pledges to make its buildings carbon-neutral by 2030, like Bloomberg Headquarters

Shortly after the studio joined a whole host of Stirling Prize winning firms – including Zaha Hadid Architects, AL_A and David Chipperfield Architects – in declaring a climate and biodiversity emergency.

Under the name of Architects Declare, the studios called on all UK architects to adopt a "shift in behaviour", and join them in designing buildings, cities and infrastructure with a more positive impact on the environment.

Salk Institute Ideal plant
Salk Institute develops a plant that offers a solution to climate change

Climate change was also in the spotlight in the technology world, in the form of a plant developed by the Salk Institute in California, which could help reduce the warming of the earth if implemented on a global scale.

The head of Norway's switch to electric planes also told Dezeen how airport group Avinor plans to make aviation "more sustainable than road and rail" by 2040.

Notre-Dame restoration bill
Notre-Dame must be restored to "last known visual state" says French Senate

Notre-Dame hit the headlines again, as the French Senate passed a bill stating that the gothic cathedral must be restored to its "last known visual state" in the aftermath of the fire.

It wants any new materials to be justified, challenging French president Emmanuel Macron's call for an inventive reconstruction of the spire.

Canada's Earth Tower by Delta Land Development and Perkins+Will in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Perkins+Will designs "world's tallest hybrid wood tower" for Vancouver

Other architecture news this week included the reveal of Perkins+Will's design for a 120-metre-high skyscraper for Vancouver, which is billed to become the "world's tallest hybrid wood tower".

OMA completed its first ground-up structure in New York City – a black apartment block that is designed to be as unique as possible, thanks to a corner of faceted windows.

 

Kvanting rainbow bag by IKEA for LGBT Pride Month
IKEA celebrates LGBT Pride Month with rainbow version of its classic shopping bag

In the design world, IKEA revealed its rainbow-coloured Frakta shopping bag in support of LGBT Pride Month this June.

Dezeen also reported on the 3 Days of Design fair in Copenhagen. It saw Japanese furniture manufacturer Karimoku launch a sister brand, Karimoku Case Study, which will offer pared-back furniture pieces designed by architects. Hay also launched its latest furniture and homeware range at the event.

Dezeen Awards 2019 extended entry deadline
Dezeen Awards 2019 deadline extended to 3 June

Following an unprecedented volume of last-minute entries, this year's Dezeen Awards entrants were given an extra four days to submit their entries.

The new deadline is 23:59 UK time on Monday 3 June. Enter STUDIO50 at the payment stage to receive a 50 per cent discount on your last-minute studio category entry.

House in a Park by Think Architecture
Think Architecture creates minimal hilltop house in Zurich

Projects that sparked readers imaginations this week includes a minimalist hilltop house in Zurich, a museum in China that doubles as a pedestrian bridge, and the transformation of a Belgian bottling house into family home.