Powering the City - Innovations in Energy

From the impact of increasing oil prices to the benefits of investing in renewables and smart grids, energy has become central to the discussion on recovering from recession(1).  And whether through 'passive houses', 'transition towns' or 'low carbon cities', the question of sustainable energy now figures prominently at all scales of architectural and urban thinking.  For built environment advisors CABE "no building, place or space can be considered well designed if it does not contribute to environmental …. sustainability"(2).



So how should designers view the elevation of energy efficiency as one of, or perhaps even the defining criterion of design quality?  With the likes of the Dongtan eco-city(3) in China receiving widespread praise, the benefits of resolving energy questions at the level of the building or urban fabric have become widely accepted.   Some argue energy efficiency is a stimulus to new architectural forms.  But is saving energy an ambitious enough starting point for designing the future city?  And are there some disadvantages that are being overlooked? For example, are urban layouts best determined as a consequence of energy efficiency criteria? Or is there a danger that we unnecessarily constrain our choices - in materials, densities or transport? 



At times the focus for energy innovation has been less on architectural and urban forms than on scaling up production(4). Does the current emphasis on localising supply and 'off grid' solutions mean that universal supply and scale efficiencies have had their day?  At a time when there are fears over the slow pace of innovation, what is the best way to advance? Does the recent focus on altering individual behaviour represent a welcome broadening out of the concept of innovation?  Or does it indicate that controls and regulations are taking precedence over discovery and experimentation?   



Speakers

Spencer de Grey - Head of Design, Foster + Partners.

Rob Lyons - Deputy editor, spiked-online.

Peter Guthrie - Professor of Engineering for Sustainable Development, University of Cambridge.

Chair

Dr Ying Jin – Lecturer, Department of Architecture, Researcher, Energy Efficient Cities;, University of Cambridge.



 


Read on…

Hallmarks of a Sustainable City (pdf) CABE  (5 March 2009)

Energy Efficient Cities initiative Research Horizons, University of Cambridge

Transition Towns Handbook: From Oil Dependency to Local Resilience – Rob Hopkins - Green Books (6 Mar 2008)

Sustainable Energy By Design – Town and Country Planning Association



Energise! A Future for Energy Innovation Prof James Woudhuysen and Joe Kaplinsky - Beautiful Books Limited (22 Jan 2009) An edited version of the first chapter of Energise! is available here

Planned recession could avoid catastrophic climate change - Louise Gray



Saving the planet by numbers - David MacKay



Reasons to be optimistic for the future - New Scientist Editorial



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