This free event is aimed at 15 to 19 year olds with an array of exciting presentations given by top architects exploring sustainability and what architects are doing to address the climate crisis.
There will also be a range of practical and hands-on activities led by artists and built environment professionals. During the event, young people will be able to meet and network with like-minded peers, professionals, creatives, and academics.
Architect presentations
Urban mining and material passports with Orms
In a sustainable world, we need to minimise the number of natural resources that we use, but we still need lots of materials to make new buildings or improve our existing ones. The concept of urban mining offers us an opportunity to reuse materials that we already have, but no longer need. This can be very challenging, and so we have developed an approach to produce ‘passports’ for all materials that can help make this happen.
Jarvis Hall, 4pm to 4.25pm
Design for sustainable cities with Buro Happold
The increasing social and environmental crises we face demonstrate just how important it is that we view sustainable design as the new normal and not only as a progressive edge or specialism. This talk will explore what it really means to design sustainable cities, looking at five core principles that change the way we see built environments and good design.
Jarvis Hall, 4.30pm to 4.55pm
Design in the age of emergency: employing closed-loop, circular systems to the built environment with Baker Brown
We mine and harvest our planet’s raw materials to make goods, which we use for moments, and for the most part, then throw away, but there is no ‘away,’ and as we now know the rubbish that humans make is having a negative effect on our beautiful planet, whether that is plastic in our oceans or vast rubbish dumps and landfill sites.
Applying ‘circular systems’ to the design and manufacture of things means that waste from one system becomes a useful resource for another: just like the natural world. In other words, future architects will ‘design out waste’ from their projects, so that, for example, new buildings will one day become ‘material stores’ for future buildings rather than just rubble.
Jarvis Hall, 5pm to 5.25pm
Embodied carbon – What’s the point?, van Heyningen and Haward Architects
In the UK, the response to climate change has focused on the energy consumption of buildings. We will look at how the energy used to create, maintain and demolish buildings is as important, and why it is essential to consider embodied carbon. This should make us think about how we can reuse buildings, and build less, build new ones more intelligently, and use natural materials where possible.
Jarvis Hall, 5.30pm to 5.55pm
Museum of London – A case study in adaptive reuse of existing buildings, Stanton Williams
Working in collaboration with Asif Khan Studio and Conservation Architect Julian Harrap, Stanton Williams are leading the transformation of parts of West Smithfield Market into an exciting new home for the Museum of London.
In this talk, Stanton Williams’ Anne Fehrenbach will present the complex strategies adopted to breathe new life into this historic part of the city, whilst striving to reuse/repair most of its existing fabric and to recycle as many construction materials as possible.
Jarvis Hall, 6pm to 6.25pm
Low carbon research laboratory in rural Scotland, Jestico + Whiles
The project has been designed to carry out transformative research to decarbonise the dairy industry, moving it towards a circular bio-economy. The low carbon building will house state of the art research and development facilities alongside a co-innovation hub, combining hybrid workspace, meeting facilities, café and learning spaces. The building aims to represent an exemplar for sustainable construction.
Jarvis Hall, 7.25pm to 8pm
Passivhaus and retrofit, Levitt Bernstein
In the face of climate emergency, Levitt Bernstein shares a recent history of working with others in campaigning for change in the built environment to achieve a zero-carbon future. The practice believes some of the first steps towards this are to create an ultra-efficient building design and to prolong the lifespans of existing buildings. This presentation will share some fundamentals of how this can be achieved using low energy design, looking at retrofit and Passivhaus principles in practice.
Jarvis Hall, 7.25pm to 8pm
Practical workshops
Modular trees and protest leaves
Join U-Build to explore the potential of modular timber construction and build a huge tree to express your views on climate change.
Florence Hall, 4pm to 8pm
Build a BRICC (Biodiverse, Renewable, Immersive, Climate, Community)
From orange peel to coffee granules, experiment with creating eco-friendly building materials of the future. With artist Alex Hirtzel.
Clore Learning Studio, 4pm to 8pm
Stixx in the city
Sticks and stones may break your bones, but these stixx are made for building. Join artist Katie Kennedy to roll recycled newspapers into stixx and rods that you can use to build your own cityscape.
Florence Hall, 4pm to 8pm
Revive alive
Reuse old furniture to create a new life. With architects Sahiba Chadha and Marcela Escobar.
Lutyens Room, 5.30pm to 7pm
Eco-friendly expression
Explore the beauty of natural inks and create posters that are not only visually stunning but also environmentally conscious. Join artist Harriet Hill to embrace your creativity and make a statement with eco-friendly expression.
Clore Learning Studio, 4pm to 8pm
Future proof
Join the Building Centre to investigate eco-friendly building materials of the future.
Florence Hall, 4pm to 8pm
Crinkle crankle walls
Investigate the unique qualities of the K-briq and enjoy building a crinkle cranckle wall.
Florence Hall, 4pm to 8pm
EcoFix – a radical retrofit challenge
Join Grimshaw, Mace, and MOBIE to discover more about the 2023 EcoFix Student Design Challenge and how you can participate. Take part in hands-on activities exploring sustainable design strategies.
Florence Hall, 4pm to 8pm
Unlock the vault: Explore our vault of contemporary art project in VR
In this interactive workshop, you'll have the opportunity to explore Make’s vault of contemporary art projects in virtual reality. Through the use of cutting-edge technology, Make have created a fully immersive experience that allows you to step inside the artwork and experience it in a whole new way. Make will provide a unique learning experience that combines art, technology, and creativity, all in one workshop.
Aston Webb Room, 4pm to 8pm
Closing the loop: the circular construction game with Re-Fabricate Collective
Come and meet the Re-Fabricate team to play their specially designed and interactive game to learn about the circular economy. Participants will play out the life of a building by working through the various challenges of the modern age as they strive to reduce the building’s carbon footprint, increase a home’s energy efficiency and reduce day-to-day bills.
Florence Hall, 4pm to 8pm
To find out more about the programme, and to get involved, email sophie.draper@riba.org.
