Climate issue at the top of architects' concerns, according to a study

The architects put climate change at the top of their concerns, illustrating their growing awareness of the impact of their constructions on the environment, according to the annual study "Archigraphie 2020" published by the Order of Architects.

"The first challenge cited by architects is that of issues related to climate change (78% of them) whereas it was cited by 50% of respondents in 2018", underlines this study carried out by CREDOC (Center de recherche for the study and observation of living conditions) for the Order of Architects.

Another salient development: the feminization of the profession. In nearly 20 years, the proportion of women has risen from 16,6% to 30,7%, this increase mainly affecting those under 35.

83% of women architects place the climate challenge at the top of their concerns, compared to 76% of men, according to this survey carried out in April among 2.233 architects.

They had to prioritize six types of challenges: new management methods, new clienteles, diversification of the profession, impact of digital technology, place of the architect in project management, issues linked to climate change.

"Women have more quickly understood their social role in a society undergoing essential ecological change," Elizabeth Gossart, who led the working group, told AFP.

The new generations of architects "no longer want to put aside their social life. Our job is to anticipate the development of buildings, their longevity, their use, the lives of their users, their comfort of life", a- she added.

The rate of renewal of old buildings by new buildings being too slow, it is thermal renovation that the Order of Architects would like to accelerate with the objectives of reducing final energy consumption by 50% (compared to 2012) and the division by 4 of greenhouse gas emissions in 2050.

According to "Archigraphie 2020", architects are grouping more and more into organizations and associations to meet these ecological challenges: waste management on construction sites, use of bio-based and local materials, better management of building consumption.

The building and construction sector accounts for 35% of global final energy consumption and almost 40% of energy-related CO² emissions.