Culturally Sustainable Design: Sensitivity + Responsivity in a Changing World

About this Event

Global Studio Lecture Series

Culture + Equity + Society Talks

co-hosted by

Athabasca University RAIC Centre for Architecture +

University of Calgary School of Architecture, Planning & Landscape

Title:

Culturally Sustainable Design | Sensitivity + Responsivity in a Changing World

Guest Speakers:

Patrik Schumacher

Principal, Zaha Hadid Architects

Patrik Schumacher joined Zaha Hadid Architects in 1988 as a designer and became a close collaborator and office partner of the late Zaha Hadid. Through the course of nearly 40 years, Patrik has been the co-author of the firm’s defining culturally sustainable design projects, including the ‘MAXXI’ National Museum of XXI Century Arts in Rome, the BMW Central Building in Leipzig, the Nordpark Cable Railway in Innsbruck, the Antwerp Port House and the Western Sydney Airport. Patrik will share insights on how ZHA became responsible for some of the world’s most important architectural accomplishments of the 20th and 21st centuries.

Cristiano Ceccato

Director, Zaha Hadid Architects

Cristiano Ceccato is a Director at Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA) in London, having previously worked for Frank O. Gehry Partners in Los Angeles. Trained as an architect and computer scientist, he engages across all levels of design and technical development, with worldwide project delivery experience on a wide range of typologies. Cristiano is also an accomplished software developer, having previously co-founded the BIM company Gehry Technologies in California. Cristiano has spearheaded ZHA’s entrance into the aviation market since 2010. He is the Project Director for the Beijing Daxing Airport (72mppa) in China; the Navi Mumbai International Airport (70mppa) in India; and the Western Sydney Airport (82mppa) in Australia. Cristiano is a graduate of the Architectural Association and Imperial College in London. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society, where he sits on the Air Transport Specialist Group board.

Craig Kiner

Senior Associate, Zaha Hadid Architects

Craig Kiner is a Senior Associate at Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA) in London. He was the Project Director for the Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum in East Lansing, Michigan, Project Director / Manager for Dongdaemun Design Plaza in Seoul, South Korea and Project Director for the Sleuk Rith Institute in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. He has been involved in numerous master planning and cultural projects throughout his several years with ZHA. With over 25 years’ experience, Craig holds degrees in Environmental Design and Architecture and awarded a degree in Urban Design from the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University. Craig is a member of the Royal Institute of British Architects, Urban Design Group and an Academician at the Academy of Urbanism.

Dr. Brian R. Sinclair

Professor, School of Architecture, Planning + Landscape, University of Calgary

Dr. Brian R. Sinclair, PhD DrHC FRAIC AIA (Intl) is an award-winning Professor of Architecture + Environmental Design, and former Dean, in the University of Calgary’s School of Architecture, Planning + Landscape (SAPL). Brian is president of sinclairstudio inc., a multi-disciplinary design|research corporation engaged in an array of global projects. He holds postgraduate degrees in architecture and psychology. An educator and practitioner, Sinclair`s expertise and explorations span from science to art. Professional memberships include American Institute of Architects, Union of Mongolian Architects, Society of Nepalese Architects, Council for Tall Buildings + Urban Habitat, and Fellowship in the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada. His doctoral degree (University of Missouri) focused on an innovative holistic design + planning framework to improve quality of life for some of world’s poorest people. Scholarship includes professional practice, design methods, open building, agile architecture, ethnography, equity & ethics, human rights, indigenous culture, environmental psychology, international development, systems & sustainability, and the collision of science + spirit. He has authored a wealth of papers, journal articles, book chapters and books, including the CaGBC volume entitled ‘Culture, Context and the Pursuit of Sustainability’ and the contribution on ‘Spirituality and the City’ for Routledge’s new International Handbook on Spirituality in Society and the Professions.

Moderator:

Sam Oboh

Principal / Vice-President, Ensight+ Architecture

Sam Oboh is Principal | Vice President at Ensight+ Architecture. A distinguished Fellow of the of the American Institute of Architects, and the 2015 President of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC), Sam Oboh is an accomplished architect who has successfully designed, managed and delivered several culturally sensitive projects in Canada and internationally including the multi-billion-dollar Alberta Legislature Centre Redevelopment Project - where, as lead architect, he led and contributed to capturing the spirit of Alberta’s most significant heritage site in a variety of creative and innovative forms. A former Vice President - Architecture at a Fortune 500 Company and recipient of several awards and recognitions including the AIA President’s medal in 2015 and the 2016 Excellence Magazine Award for Leadership, Sam is an adjunct design studio reviewer with the University of Calgary and is licensed as an architect in several jurisdictions - including Alberta, Ontario, Manitoba, and British Columbia in Canada as well as in the State of Texas – USA.

Date: January 14th, 2021

Time: 10:00-11:30 (MST) in Athabasca, Canada / 17:00-18:30 (GMT) in London, UK

Venue: Online Video Conference ZOOM

To Register: http://architecture.athabascau...

Abstract:

Culturally Sustainable Design

The term ‘sustainability’ is generally understood to refer to environmental performance, passive design and renewable or low-energy requirements. While this undoubtedly remains its focal point, sustainability today can be inferred to signify much more: economic sustainability, social sustainability and technological sustainability – all of which are constituent elements of a civilisation, if understood as a temporal society and its cultural output.

In an age of a growing awareness of marginalised cultures, minority populations and globalized socio-economic diversity, it is imperative that contemporary architecture addresses the urgent need to safeguard and sustain those elements of society which are otherwise at risk of relegation. Safeguarding of a naturally sound and healthy environment, in form of environmental sustainability, is the cornerstone for the successful preservation of a distinct culture. However, for a project to be truly sustainable today, it must do much more than just embody energy-efficient design.

A truly culturally sustainable design must first and foremost engage with the society and people that it will affect, and its designers must confront the historical, political, and socio-economic fabric in which they plan to intervene. Today, societal overlay through historic displacement, immigration, cultural marginalisation and even genocide have led to the erosion and potential erasure of pre-existing historical cultures. Understanding the amalgamation of traditions and the emergence of new forms of hybrid culture require a profound engagement with different members of the many constituent societies, their traditions, beliefs and needs.

In this lecture / talk, regional and international practitioners will showcase a set of guiding principles & exemplary projects which demonstrate careful analysis of environment, civilization, and ethnicity to create the basis for the synthesis of contemporary socio-economically and culturally sustainable design solutions.

Sponsors:

Ensight+ Architecture

Keystone Architecture

Iwanski Architecture

Credits:

Participants who attend the full 90-minute session will be granted a Certificate of Completion to apply for professional development credits recognized by the following institutes.

• Alberta Association of Architects (AAA) | 1.5 Structured Learning Hour

• Ontario Association of Architects (OAA) | 1.5 Structured Learning Hour

• Cape Institute for Architecture (CIfA) | 0.25 Category 1 CPD Credits

• Gauteng Institute for Architecture (GIFA) | 0.25 Category 1 CPD Credits

• KwaZulu Natal Institute for Architecture (SAIA-KZN) | 0.25 Category 1 CPD Credits

For Inquires:

Dr. Henry Tsang

Assistant Professor, RAIC Centre for Architecture, Athabasca University

htsang@athabascau.ca