Opinion
"No-one retains a building that is not loved"
As 2021 draws to a close, RIBA president Simon Allford sets out how architects should be prioritising reuse to help fight climate change. More about "No-one retains a building that is not loved"
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Opinion
"It's time to reconsider the whole colour of the year carnival"
With its choice of a shade of purple, which it claims is blue, as colour of the year, Pantone has once again failed to use the opportunity to talk meaningfully about how colour reflects moments, says Michelle Ogundehin.
More about "It's time to reconsider the whole colour of the year carnival"
Opinion
"We're not going to profiteer our way out of climate change"
Corporations are focusing on climate change because it's a "great investment", but we're not going to profiteer our way out of the environmental crisis, argues architect Smith Mordak in the aftermath of Cop26. More about "We're not going to profiteer our way out of climate change"
Opinion
"The Charlie Munger windowless dorm is the building of our moment"
The controversial Munger Hall at University of California Santa Barbara represents the university's capitulation to "the whims of old white men" and will lead to another Greta Thunberg moment, argues UCLA architecture professor and City Lab director Dana Cuff. More about "The Charlie Munger windowless dorm is the building of our moment"
Opinion
"Cop26 only delivered incremental progress when we clearly need big breakthroughs"
This month's Cop26 climate conference in Glasgow made disappointing progress on the built environment and excluded the voices of ordinary citizens, writes attendee Hélène Chartier, head of zero-carbon development at international network C40 Cities. More about "Cop26 only delivered incremental progress when we clearly need big breakthroughs"
Opinion
"Act up, disrupt and get noisy"
Environmental protest group Insulate Britain has caused controversy by blocking roads to highlight the need for better insulation in homes. But its aims are correct and direct action is "pretty much the only effective democratic way" to achieve change, argues architect Duncan Baker-Brown. More about "Act up, disrupt and get noisy"
Opinion
"The annual quest for a national Best in Show seems increasingly problematic"
It was the right choice to give Grafton Architects' Kingston University London this year's Stirling Prize, says Catherine Slessor, but the award is still struggling to find its purpose. More about "The annual quest for a national Best in Show seems increasingly problematic"
Architecture
"If we act together now, we change the world"
Architects can prevent the worst effects of climate change by deciding to design and build to net-zero carbon standards, argues Edward Mazria, architect and founder of non-profit organisation Architecture 2030. More about "If we act together now, we change the world"
Architecture
"There is a lot somebody working in the built environment can do to make a difference"
Following the release of the latest IPCC climate report, Joe Giddings of Architects Climate Action Network explains how architects and designers can help prevent catastrophic climate change. More about "There is a lot somebody working in the built environment can do to make a difference"
Opinion
"Carbon washing is the new greenwashing"
The global push to reduce atmospheric carbon is being compromised by confusing terminology and misleading claims, argues Dezeen founder and editor-in-chief Marcus Fairs. More about "Carbon washing is the new greenwashing"
Carbon revolution
"Great design isn't enough. We need homes that will get us to net-zero"
To reduce carbon emissions, architects and designers need to change the way they design homes, writes Geraldine de Boisse, vice president of innovation at renewable-energy supplier Bulb. More about "Great design isn't enough. We need homes that will get us to net-zero"
Opinion
"Remove the word 'design' and the first thing you notice is that the alternative words help clarify things"
Many "graphic designers" are graphic artists, while "design thinkers" behave like neoliberal business consultants, writes Michèle Champagne. More about "Remove the word 'design' and the first thing you notice is that the alternative words help clarify things"
Design
"It is not acceptable for designers to be unaware of the carbon impact of their creations"
Designers should design with carbon in mind according to environmental consultant Sophie Thomas, who sets out ten steps they can take to help eliminate emissions in the products they create. More about "It is not acceptable for designers to be unaware of the carbon impact of their creations"
Carbon revolution
"Planet-wide regeneration could result in a safer climate after a few hundred years"
Instead of being forced to retreat from the impacts of climate change, humanity could undergo a managed retreat to Planet City, a single, purpose-built metropolis, while carbon removal takes place on a planetary scale, suggests Holly Jean Buck. More about "Planet-wide regeneration could result in a safer climate after a few hundred years"
Carbon revolution
"The Race to Zero is neither highly ambitious nor providing the leadership needed at this critical time"
Last week, UN climate champion Nigel Topping claimed that architects have been slow to sign up to its net-zero carbon emissions programme. This "unfairly presented architects and top firms in a negative light," writes 2021 AIA Gold Medal winner Edward Mazria. More about "The Race to Zero is neither highly ambitious nor providing the leadership needed at this critical time"
Carbon revolution
"Taking credit for trees planted elsewhere is a whole lot of embodied irony"
Architecture firm Perkins&Will has gone too far with claims that a luxury timber home on a Canadian mountain removes more atmospheric carbon than it emits, argues Fred A Bernstein. More about "Taking credit for trees planted elsewhere is a whole lot of embodied irony"
Opinion
"Tadao Ando's equivalent of what a dog does to a lamppost"
The redesign of Paris' Bourse de Commerce in Paris by architect Tadao Ando is a "complete disaster" of sterile concrete that turns the building into a monument to French colonial violence, says Aaron Betsky. More about "Tadao Ando's equivalent of what a dog does to a lamppost"
Carbon revolution
"Carbon can be an ally in a regenerative future"
By understanding the carbon cycle, designers can work hand in hand with nature to develop sustainable new materials, writes Sebastian Cox. More about "Carbon can be an ally in a regenerative future"
Carbon revolution
"The carbon revolution treats the miracle material as the saviour of our civilisation rather than its nemesis"
A carbon revolution is underway. In a major new series starting today, Dezeen explores how this incredible material could be removed from the atmosphere and put to use on earth, writes founder and editor-in-chief Marcus Fairs. More about "The carbon revolution treats the miracle material as the saviour of our civilisation rather than its nemesis"
Comments
"Cyclists are making cities worse for pedestrians" says commenter
In this week's comments update, readers are debating architecture critic Aaron Betsky's claim that riding a bicycle is the best way to experience a city. More about "Cyclists are making cities worse for pedestrians" says commenter