Celebrate architecture and design during October

On August 8 at the 2014 International Union of Architects (UIA) World Congress, member organizations - representing 124 countries at over 1.3 million architects - voted to phase out CO2 and adopt the 2050 Imperative. The decision to eliminate carbon dioxide emissions in the built environment by 2050 passed unanimously. The Imperative states, "failing to act now on climate change will put future generations, and those already affected by extreme weather, natural disasters, and poverty, at great risk." Cities are responsible for more than seventy percent of carbon dioxide emissions worldwide, most of which are from buildings. Architects are now charged with helping to reduce fossil fuel emissions to zero. Architecture 2030, founded by Edward Mazria, AIA, drafted the resolution and brought it to the UIA. Architecture 2030's mission is to transform the built environment from the major contributor of carbon emissions to part of the solution. Mazria will speak about the organization and the recently passed 2050 Imperative at a morning program at the Center for Architecture on Sept. 24. Rick Bell, FAIA, AIANY executive director, and I both had the opportunity to attend the 2014 UIA Conference in Durban, South Africa where we shared AIANY's work on our Post-Sandy initiative and Active Design. I was privileged to facilitate two programs on architectural education and resiliency organized by the Global Studio and titled "Addressing Poverty and Informality Through Design Education and Practice." In New York City, we have been talking with the NYC Department of City Planning (DCP) about their upcoming Hazard Mitigation Plan Design Manual for Retrofitting Buildings for Flood Risk. I met with the DCP to discuss the draft documents and provide comments, and many AIANY members have provided input along the way. We are excited to assist with the rollout of the guide, which will be discussed at the Center for Architecture in November. AIANY and DCP are coordinating a technical walkthrough session geared towards architects and engineers as well as the panel discussion, which will provide background information on the formation of the report that will explain the coordinating and gathering of federal, state, and local changes and, in addition, the panel will address where further policy and insurance changes are needed for projects in NYC. In August, AIANY also continued talks with the Presidents of the other four NYC borough AIA chapters about how we can work more closely together on important policy and procedural issues in this inclusive five-borough city. This month, as part of the 2014 Presidential theme Civic Spirit: Civic Vision, the Center for Architecture, in collaboration with Friends of LaGuardia and the NYC Department of Transportation, will present Sonic Forest: Civic Celebrations, an interactive public art installation by artist and composer Christopher Janney and his firm PhenomenArts, on view from Sept. 5-11. Sonic Forest: Civic Celebrations transforms public spaces by engaging the public through sound and visual effects. The installation is composed of 16 eight-foot-tall "trees" placed in a site-specific pattern that house interactive photo-electric sensors, computer-controlled LED lights, and an audio speaker. Passersby will trigger the sensors by touch or movement, producing an ever-changing score of melodic tones and environmental sounds and turning the installation into a "communal instrument" enhanced by varying light effects. The opening celebration coincided with the "The Future of Public Space" panel on Sept. 5, moderated by Richard Sennett, Professor of Sociology, New York University and the London School of Economics and Political Science, and founder, Theatrum Mundi. I introduced the panel and the panelists - Suzanne Frasier, AIA; Guido Hartray, AIA; and Susan Silberberg, AIA. Finally, on August 1, we kicked off Archtober 2014 with a Tweet-up featuring Coolhaus ice cream at the recently renovated Public Theater, the site of the first Building of the Day tour. Visit Archtober.org for the complete calendar of the month's tours and programs. I hope you will join us in celebrating Architecture and Design during our October festival! Lance Brown, AIA, is a professor of achitecture at City College of New York, N.Y.