What will the city of the future be like? In what direction is construction going and in what cities will we live in 10, 20 or 50 years? Citizens start asking about green spaces, architects are implementing more and more innovative solutions, and legislators are planning legal conditions for “greening” urban space. However, there is still a lot to do. Everyone agrees – the key to achieving environmental neutrality of cities is the cooperation of all participants in the construction process and the implementation of economic and legal solutions that facilitate the construction of green cities. The debate “Future in concrete or concrete in the future?” and its conclusions.
Concrete is the second-most used material on earth. It is also the second-largest emitter of CO2, with cement manufacturing accounting for 5 to 7 percent of annual emissions. The continued popularity of concrete as a material of choice in the design and construction industry, coupled with increasing unease of the environmental consequences, has put concrete firmly in the spotlight of innovation and experimentation. As a result, designers, architects, and researchers around the world are generating multiple visions for what the future of concrete in architecture could look like. (archdaily.com)
Migration from villages to cities has been increasing for decades. Recent years show that the young generation wants to live in cities and there is no indication that this tendency will change. On the contrary, the inhabitants are more and more willing to settle in agglomerations in search of professional development. In 1950, 1 billion of the world’s population lived in cities but today, it is almost 4 billion.
According to forecasts – in 2050, city residents will constitute a group of approx. 6.5 billion people. Although the cities cover only 1% of Earth’s surface, more than half of the world’s population live in them. Cities consume 78% of world energy. In the discussion on the urban and architectural future of cities and ecological responsibility, the following slogans emerge: synergy, innovation, and cooperation.
Recent months have shown that the current economic situation is a challenge for the construction industry. As a result of economic and political factors, housing prices are rising. Consequently, among the buyers of modern housing developments there are people with an increasing budget but also with growing environmental awareness and expectations. Demanding buyers look for a convenient location, infrastructure and modern architectural solutions in the new and already existing blocks of flats. But that’s not all. One of the more and more frequent expectations of this group is the “green” investment in which they buy a flat for years.
What does it mean? It is simple, a flat should be built in a green space – in the vicinity of a park, green squares, trees and green recreational spaces. Also, the building itself should be eco-friendly itself. Noticeably, nowadays the customer is becoming more and more ecologically aware and look for comfort.
As summarized by the participants of the debate, in order to achieve the goal of climate neutrality in construction, it is necessary to act holistically and find an answer to the question how cities should develop, i.e. how and where should we build to make it environmentally friendly. Starting from planning, going through designs, i.e. maximizing the ecological awareness of designers and architects, to implementation in the spirit of green building.
Moreover, as significant, experts mention the role of institutional regulators, in the hands of which there are conditions that may stimulate investments in green construction products. They emphasize that such a stimulator is needed due to the prices of green products which still exceed the prices of standard components.
Developers play one of the key roles in the construction chain. As the participants of the debate indicate – it is a developer who has to read not only the economic needs, but also, and perhaps now, primarily the ecological ones, and then meet them together with a designer. The circle is closed and such cooperation brings effects for the climate.