Future Generations

FUTURE AND GLOBAL RESPONSIBILITY

Recorded by Sofie Pelsmakers, images by Essi Nisonen

KEY READINGS 

• Fitz, A. & Krasny, E. (Eds), Critical Care: Architecture and Urbanism for a Broken Planet by), MIT Press

• Tronto, J.C & Fisher, B. in E.K. Abel, M.K Nelson (Eds.). , Towards A Feminist Theory of Caring, Circles of Care, SUNY Press.

• Nawratek, K., Hope in the Burning World (pp. 87-98) in Pelsmakers, S., Newman, N., 2021. (Volume Guest Editors). RIBA Design Studio, Volume 1: Architecture and the Climate Emergency: Everything Needs to Change', RIBA Publishing.

• Pelsmakers, S., Donovan, E., Hoggard, A., Kozminska, U., Designing for the Climate Emergency, a Guide for Architecture Students, RIBA

INSPIRATIONAL BUILT EXAMPLES

• Atelier Architecture Autogeree, R-Urban, Paris

• Mirjami Myllymäki, On How To Reimagine Lost Spaces Through The Concept Of A Table, Masters thesis https://trepo.tuni.fi/handle/10024/131395

• RAW Architecture – Alfa Omega School, Tangerang, Indonesia

FUTURE GENERATIONS

Designing for vague ‘future generations’ mainly focuses on the use of resources and the environmental impact of our actions and does not clarify who we design for today, in the present, nor who will be impacted in the future. In your project, you need to unfold why you design and who for. This includes: the local user, the public, the non-human and nature but also a global responsibility towards people, non-humans and nature further away, and ultimately our planet. We introduce the concept of ‘care’ which recognises and embraces our (inter)dependence, connection and responsibility towards others at its heart, including the non-human. This profoundly challenges the (modernist) ideal of an independent, visionary architect who only designs for themselves. But without this care, empathy and solidarity towards the user we cannot have truly sustainable architecture.