This post is part of the ArchiTalks series where a group of us (architects who also blog) all post on the same day and promote each other’s blogs. The Topic ‘Leader’ for this post ‘House or Home’ is Lora Teagarden (https://twitter.com/L2DesignLLC).

Architecture of Change

What’s really great about doing these blog posts is that you generally have to do a bit of research and thinking before putting fingers to keyboard.

The choice of this topic by Lora was partly due to “Architecture” of change is also the theme for the national (AIA) convention this year – Anticipating a better tomorrow. The ArchiTalks bloggers are mostly US based but for those on the other side of the pond AIA (https://twitter.com/AIANational )is the American Institute of Architects. The AIA is the US equivalent of the RIAI (Ireland) and the RIBA (Great Britain).

So as part of the research for this post I went to see what the AIA, RIAI and RIBA were up to regarding the AIA conference and The Architecture of Change; and I had no idea how big this topic was; Angela Brady (https://twitter.com/angelabradyRIBA): Past President Royal Institute of British Architects (2011-2013) was elected president of RIBA in 2011, the first non British person (yay Ireland – Angela is active in the RIAI and is a past chairperson of the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland (RIAI) London Forum and is only the second woman to hold the position.

Angela was also the founder of the RIBA Group: Architects for Change (AfC) where the aim is:

• The improvement of equality and diversity in the education and practice of architecture and specifically:

– Education: To encourage a diverse entry into architectural education, based upon ability and potential, and reflecting the diversity of the society architects serve; to reduce dropout rates; and improve diversity in the curriculum, and studio teaching cultures.

– Profession: To identify inequalities in pay and career progression opportunities that undermine, in particular, the career development of women and BME professionals; improve working conditions and pay for students; to demonstrate that family friendly working and humane working hours can make business sense.

There is also a Linked-In group you can join HERE

The three coordinating groups central to the committee of AoC are Women in Architecture (WIA) (championing the roles of women in architecture and in the built-environment professions), The Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust (founded in 1998 to provide support and bursaries to young people from disadvantaged backgrounds who wanted to become architects) and the Architecture Student Network (ASN) (an independent network of student representatives from schools of architecture within the United Kingdom).

I then went to see what the RIAI were up to regarding this principle of creating change; and the number one Google result was… Angela Brady discussing ‘Architects can create Change’. You can read the full RIAI news item HERE but a few key excerpts are:

“Architects foresee, create and build – we can create change”, said Dublin-born architect Angela Brady in an inspiring address on the occasion of her inauguration as the 74th President of RIBA on 9 September

“empower them [the public] to rebuild their communities and demand better design, as a basic human need”

The AoC group was founded in 2000 – where are we now?

• The UK have decided in their wisdom to leave the European Union; one of the principle reasons was to control immigration. Doesn’t sound too inclusive does it?

• The US have elected a president with an isolationist, anti-immigration policy – inclusive?

I think the world is in change but unfortunately I don’t think it’s for the better – I’m confident there will be those that disagree with me but what I am sure about is that architects have a reputation for forward thinking with the goal of making the world a better place for all – let’s strive forth with that as our aim.

To read how the other ‘blogging architects’ have interpreted this theme click the links below – I’ve posted mine early due to time differences and I’ll update this list as they come on line:

Enoch Sears – Business of Architecture (@businessofarch)

Bob Borson – Life of An Architect (@bobborson)

Matthew Stanfield – FiELD9: architecture (@FiELD9arch)

Marica McKeel – Studio MM (@ArchitectMM)
ArchiTalks : Architecture of Change

Jeff Echols – Architect Of The Internet (@Jeff_Echols)

Lee Calisti, AIA – Think Architect (@LeeCalisti)
architecture for change

Mark R. LePage – EntreArchitect (@EntreArchitect)

Evan Troxel – Archispeak Podcast / TRXL (@etroxel)

Lora Teagarden – L² Design, LLC (@L2DesignLLC)
Architect(ure) of Change

Collier Ward – One More Story (@BuildingContent)
Architecture of Change

Cormac Phalen – Cormac Phalen (@archy_type)

Nicholas Renard – Renard Architecture (@dig-arch)

Andrew Hawkins, AIA – Hawkins Architecture, Inc. (@hawkinsarch)

Jeremiah Russell, AIA – ROGUE Architecture (@rogue_architect)
architecture of change: #architalks

Jes Stafford – MODwelling (@modarchitect)

Cindy Black – Rick & Cindy Black Architects (*)

Eric T. Faulkner – Rock Talk (@wishingrockhome)
Change — The Document Evolution

Rosa Sheng – EquitybyDesign [EQxD] (@EquityxDesign)

Michele Grace Hottel – Michele Grace Hottel, Architect (@mghottel)
architecture of change

Meghana Joshi – IRA Consultants, LLC (@MeghanaIRA)

Amy Kalar – ArchiMom (@AmyKalar)

Michael Riscica – Young Architect (@YoungArchitxPDX)

Stephen Ramos – BUILDINGS ARE COOL (@sramos_BAC)

brady ernst – Soapbox Architect (@bradyernstAIA)
The Architecture of Change: R/UDAT

Brian Paletz – The Emerging Architect (@bpaletz)
Architecture = Change

Michael LaValley – Evolving Architect (@archivalley)
My Architecture of Change / Hitting Pause to Redesign My Life

Jonathan Brown – Proto-Architecture (@mondo_tiki_man)

Eric Wittman – intern[life] (@rico_w)

Sharon George – Architecture By George (@sharonraigeorge)

Brinn Miracle – Architangent (@architangent)
Architecture of Change: Building a Legacy

David Molinaro – Relax2dmax (@relax2dmax)

Emily Grandstaff-Rice – Emily Grandstaff-Rice FAIA (@egrfaia)

Daniel Beck – The Architect’s Checklist (@archchecklist)

Jarod Hall – di’velept (@divelept)

Anthony Richardson – That Architecture Student (@thatarchstudent)

Lindsey Rhoden – SPARC Design (@sparcdesignpc)

Drew Paul Bell – Drew Paul Bell (@DrewPaulBell)

Greg Croft – Sage Leaf Group (@croft_gregory)

Courtney Casburn Brett – Casburn Brett (@CasburnBrett)

Jeffrey Pelletier – Board & Vellum (@boardandvellum)
Imagining the Future of Architecture

Aaron Bowman – Product & Process (@PP_Podcast)

Samantha R. Markham – The Aspiring Architect (@TheAspiringArch)
3 Things I Hope Change in Architecture

Kyu Young Kim – J&K Atelier (@sokokyu)

Nisha Kandiah – ArchiDragon (@ArchiDragon)
The art of Architecture of Change

Karen E. Williams – (@karenewilliams3)

Jared W. Smith – Architect OWL (@ArchitectOWL)

Rusty Long – Rusty Long, Architect (@rustylong)

Keith Palma – Architect’s Trace (@cogitatedesign)

Adam Denais – Defragging Architecture (@DefragArch)

Jim Mehaffey – Yeoman Architect (@jamesmehaffey)
Changes

Ken Saginario – Twelfth Street Studio ()

Tim Ung – Journey of an Architect (@timothy_ung)

Mark Stephens – Mark Stephens Architects (@architectmark)
The Architecture of Change