The IPPC report on climate change is an eye-opener. To survive we need to change. The 1.5˚C temperature increase limit, set by the Paris Agreement, is likely to be breached by 2030, a decade earlier than previously predicted.
The report sets out five scenarios. The most optimistic sees the global temperature overshooting the 1.5˚C target but dropping back to 1.4˚C by 2100. The worst-case scenario sees the world becoming 3.3˚C hotter than now by the end of the century.
“What are we going to do about it, who is going to do it and when,” Ambassador Michael Zammit Cutajar asked (Times of Malta, August 10).
The answer lies in the reduction of carbon emissions. It is high time that an ambitious plan be agreed at the international level to phase out fossil fuels by 2050 at the latest.
Otherwise, we are heading for higher temperatures, more natural disasters, extreme weather conditions, flooding, rising sea levels, ocean warming and further destruction of our natural habitats. Hopefully, the forthcoming COP26 in Glasgow will produce some answers.
The construction industry is one major contributor to global carbon emissions. Directly and indirectly it contributes to 40 per cent of such emissions.
Does this suggest that the design of buildings and the planning of cities can contribute to counter climate change? Yes, this represents an opportunity for those designing and building to be part of the solution to the climate crisis.
By 2030, three billion people (UN-Habitat and World Bank estimate) will need new housing and basic infrastructure. This huge demand for construction will affect the availability of building resources besides having an impact on the health of people, communities and the planet.
We need to develop design and building patterns to improve the quality of life for mankind and learn from and advance the local knowledge and traditional methods that have been adapted to climate and context over generations.
Is our building stock sustainable? Do we have the necessary data and knowledge to make the much-needed changes? Are the experts – the architects who design our buildings and who contribute to our quality of life – available, willing and trained to lead such a change?
In 2018, I had recommended to the Commonwealth Association of Architects (CAA), as its president, to undertake a survey of the built environment profession within the Commonwealth.
The survey revealed a critical lack of capacity in many Commonwealth countries that are urbanising rapidly and are among the most vulnerable; a weakness in educational and institutional capacity; a weakness in built environment policy, including planning policy and building codes.
The findings of the survey have serious implications for Commonwealth countries, which together are projected to host an additional one billion urban dwellers in the next 30 years.
In its quest to elevate ‘sustainable urbanisation’ on the agenda of CHOGM 2020, scheduled to have taken place in June, the CAA, at the World Urban Forum (February 2020), organised a workshop in preparation for the launch of a ‘Call to Action’ on sustainable cities. Together with other Commonwealth associations and support, from the government of Rwanda and The Prince’s Foundation, it eventually developed a ‘Call to Action on Sustainable Urbanisation in the Commonwealth’, addressed to heads of government in advance of the next CHOGM.
By 2030, three billion people will need new housing and basic infrastructure. This huge demand for construction will affect the availability of building resources besides having an impact on the health of people- Vincent Cassar
With 65 per cent of the 169 targets underpinning the 17 SDGs linked to urban and territorial development, the Call to Action seeks to engage member states in a collaborative mission to tackle the combined challenges of climate change, rapid urbanisation and the impact of COVID-19.
During 2021, an online programme which sought to inform and strengthen the Call to Action and, in the face of the after-effects of COVID-19, to advocate for the centrality of ‘SDG 11’ in reviewing the targets and achievements of the SDGs was organised.
In parallel, a CPD programme, aimed to promote knowledge sharing and continuous learning to help promote climate literacy together with greater awareness about the importance of sustainable urbanisation, was also held.
Faced with the combined threats of climate change, rapid urbanisation, the impact of COVID-19 and the lack of mandatory CPDs in many Commonwealth countries, the CAA was keen to understand the ways in which it can best support the profession across the Commonwealth.
The CPD programme consisted of seven lectures designed to appeal to built environment professionals and covered a wide range of topics, commencing with an overview of the policy context and ending with a detailed examination of the metrics necessary to achieve climate change commitments.
Consideration, if any, is primarily given to the ‘in-use’ costs of a building – heating, ventilation, lighting, water, waste – and measures to reduce these costs.
However, there are also the ‘embodied energy’ costs that go into construction and demolition – quarrying, cement production, transporting materials to site, putting them in place, taking them down again and disposing of them.
Most building regulations, including those in Malta, set reasonably high standards for the performance of buildings but are silent on embodied energy.
It is good if a building performs brilliantly in use but not so good if it takes decades to pay back the expenditure of energy that went into its construction.
Cement, for example, the basic ingredient of concrete, single-handedly accounts for eight per cent of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions.
The word ‘sustainability’ assumes different forms and meanings depending on the context in which it is used. Sustainable design should not be considered as just a one-off technical exercise – making sure the building ticks enough boxes or buying the most eco-friendly cooling technology. It should rather be integrated into the architectural design itself.
Ideally, it should help buildings be all round better and longer lasting. It could mean more natural stone, less concrete, more eco-friendly materials. This is why the Cork House and the Illford Community Market appeal.
Architects tend to get more glory for designing a singular new building than they get if they conceive a good way of insulating old houses.
Yet, as most of the building stock of the future is already with us, its retrofitting is also equally important.
Drastic times call for drastic actions. The IPPC report said that there are only a few years left to limit a climate change catastrophe.
We have a duty to act now before it is too late. We owe this to future generations.
The above is only food for thought. However, we need to act now. The clock is ticking fast and we have to act faster as, otherwise, we will be caught out napping.