ARCHITECTS IN A CHANGING CLIMATE - Collective action, education reform and cultural transformation

ARCHITECTS IN A CHANGING CLIMATE

COLLECTIVE ACTION, EDUCATION REFORM AND CULTURAL TRANSFORMATION

BY LIZ BROGDEN

2022 CHURCHILL FELLOW

THE AV JENNINGS CHURCHILL FELLOWSHIP TO CONNECT GLOBAL EFFORTS FOR CLIMATE ACTION AND LITERACY ACROSS THE ARCHITECTURE PROFESSION

This Churchill Fellowship investigates how international climate action has been translated into institutional change within architectural practice and education, drawing on insights from 36 interviews conducted across the United Kingdom and Europe in late 2023. The research shows that sustained progress in climate action requires both collective action and reforms to architectural education and training.

Importantly, the research also shows that to embed emerging forms of climate literacy into practice, transformative change to the profession itself is needed. This change is being driven by the next generation of architects who are calling for greater inclusivity, diversity, and authentic engagement with the pressing issues of our time.

Background

As the global climate action movement gathered momentum in late 2018, a portion of the architectural profession mobilised to form committees and climate action groups that bridged academia, practice, and professional bodies. Through these cross-cutting initiatives, an aligned response to climate change was forged, and alliances were formed between previously disconnected parts of the profession. Through interviews across five European countries with architects, academics, students, and members of both collective action groups and professional bodies, a compelling story about a once-in-a- generation uprising emerged.

Findings

The narrative begins with the release of the IPCC Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C in late 2018, which helped ignite a global climate movement that quickly took hold in the architectural profession. Early participation in climate protests—championed mainly by architecture graduates and students—was consolidated through collective action as an expanding network of established architects, academics, graduates, and students responded to the climate crisis through education and training reform.

As awareness grew of the interconnected nature of climate and (in)justice issues, a second youth-led movement emerged from 2021, in which emerging architects began protesting structural barriers to change and cultural issues in the profession. The story culminates in a generational cultural shift that was exemplified in the successful 2022 campaign to elect Muyiwa Oki as the Royal Institute of British Architects’ (RIBA) first worker, first Black, and youngest-ever president, at age 31.

The five-year account of climate action outlined in this report draws to a close in September 2023, as the UK Architects Registration Board (ARB) confirmed the full extent of demand for cultural transformation. In the same month that Oki commenced his presidential term, the ARB endorsed the most significant changes to architecture education and training in 50 years, approving a more inclusive framework that supports diversity in the profession and opens the way for strengthened alignment between grassroots advocacy and institutional reform.

Objectives

Through this research, key events and initiatives have been mapped as a chronological timeline of climate action, demonstrating how initial calls for climate literacy in architecture evolved into a just transitions movement, alongside growing demand for cultural transformation in the profession.

The five-year account detailed in the main body of this report is summarised in a graphic timeline of key events, with accompanying web links, provided in the appendix (see p. 93).

By illustrating the interconnected nature of collective action across architecture education, practice, and professional bodies, Australian architects can gain valuable insights into the barriers and enablers of climate action. However, in mapping these initiatives, the extent to which our national context limits collective action is also revealed.

Conclusions

Architects in the countries visited benefit from proximity to major cities, extensive transport infrastructure, and larger numbers practising and knowledge-sharing about similar climatic conditions, construction methods, and materials. In contrast, Australian architects are scattered across vast areas and varied climate zones. Observations of international climate action in architecture highlight how the “tyranny of distance” is preventing a comparatively small profession in Australia from establishing a coordinated approach to climate action.

There are excellent examples of climate expertise and advocacy across the Australian architectural profession occurring at national, state, regional, and local levels. However, these initiatives lack the connectedness that is required for basic awareness, let alone collaboration and coordination. Efforts are further fragmented by a federated system of separate state and territory registration boards, each operating within distinct regulatory frameworks and statutory environments. These layers of governance also obscure a comprehensive view of the profession itself.

For these reasons, the recommendations aim to connect climate action across the Australian architectural profession in line with international progress in education and practice. Each is linked to key findings that illustrate how capacity-building across the profession depends on the combined impact of collective action, education reform, and cultural transformation.

You can download the Report here: Architects in a Changing Climate – Collective Action, Education Reform and Cultural Transformation

You can download the Fact Sheet here: Fact Sheet - Architects in a Changing Climate Churchill Fellowship

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