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On the occasion of the 25th World Congress of the International Union of Architects, the Architects’ Council of Europe co-signed the Declaration on the 2050 Imperative supporting the phasing-out of CO2 emissions in the built environment by the middle of the century.
At the UIA Congress, which took place in August in Durban (South Africa), UIA member organisations and the architecture councils of Europe, Asia, the Americas, and Africa, representing architects in 124 countries worldwide, unanimously adopted a Declaration committing themselves to promote environmental and social sustainability in the built environment.
The Declaration on the 2050 Imperative recalls that urban areas are responsible for over 70% of global energy consumption and CO2 emissions, mostly from buildings. Through this Declaration, the world’s community of Architects recognises the urgency of fighting climate change by setting the global building sector on a path to phase out CO2 emissions by 2050. The architectural profession also emphasises its central role in planning and designing sustainable, resilient, carbon-neutral and healthy built environments.
By supporting this initiative, the Architects’ Council of Europe, along with all signatories, commits to promote the following actions:
- Plan and design cities, towns, urban developments and new buildings to be carbon neutral,
- Renovate and rehabilitate existing cities, towns, urban redevelopments and buildings to be carbon neutral whilst respecting cultural and heritage values,
- In those cases where reaching carbon neutrality is not feasible or practical, plan and design cities, towns, urban developments, new buildings and renovations to be highly efficient with the capability to produce, or import, all of their energy from renewable energy sources in the future,
- Engage in research and setting targets towards meeting the 2050 goal,
- Advocate and promote socially responsible architecture for the community, develop and deliver equitable access to the information and tools to deliver these objectives.
Ahead of the upcoming UN Climate Summit, to be held in New York from 23 September 2014, and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) conference that will reconvene in Paris in 2015, this historic Declaration is a strong message from the architectural profession to the international community to commit to a truly sustainable and equitable future.
Read the Declaration on 2050 Imperative
