by: Annie Kurtin
During the Global Emergency Teach-in, Architecture2030 issued the 2030 Challenge and the 2010 Imperative — strategies to transform the built environment, stabilize emissions, and ultimately achieve acceptable levels over the next 10 years. The event was broadcast on the Internet on February 20, and is available on the website.
Since buildings are responsible for almost half (48%) of all annual energy consumption, immediate action within the building industry as well as a concentrated global effort are essential to avoid hazardous climate change.
The 2010 Imperative includes the following objectives:
·Beginning in 2007 all design studios should “engage the environment in a way that dramatically reduces or eliminates the need for fossil fuel.”
·By 2010 achieve complete ecological literacy in design education, including: design/studio; history/theory; materials/technology; structures/construction; professional practice/ethics.
·By 2010 achieve a carbon-neutral design school campus by: implementing sustainable design strategies; generating on-site renewable power; purchasing green renewable energy and/or certified renewable energy credits.
Sponsors of the event included:
Platinum: American Institute of Architects; The Home Depot Foundation; U.S. Green Building Council; New York Academy of Sciences. Gold: Rockefeller Brothers Fund; Silver: AIA Large Firm Roundtable; Supporters: AIA New York; AIA Committee on the Environment; Skidmore, Owings & Merrill; Metropolis; AIA Students; Society of Building Science Educators; Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture; Union Internationale des Architectes; Royal Architecture Institute of Canada; American Solar Energy Society; Jonathan Rose Companies; Turner Construction; National Wildlife Federation; BuildingGreen, Inc.; D+Arquitectos.