Talk sustainability and earn AIA credits at 3-part book club
At CAC's upcoming book club, architect Doug Farr will discuss his new book "Sustainable Nation: Urban Design Patterns for the Future" and debate this urgent issue with other architects and design enthusiasts.
Doug Farr cared about sustainability before sustainability had a name. For nearly three decades, he has been designing progressive green buildings for urban environments. His new book, "Sustainable Nation: Urban Design Patterns for the Future," is an urgent call to action-not just to architects and designers, but to all urban dwellers concerned about the direction our planet is heading.
Architects can earn 6LU/HSW credits from the AIA by attending the 3-part series, which begins Feb. 20. Non-architects will get a unique, front-row seat to a debate among designers about sustainability and have an exciting opportunity to take part in brainstorming regarding built environment solutions for our future.
The book club will meet in the CAC Lecture Hall, 111 E. Wacker Dr., at 6pm on Tuesday, Feb. 20, Tuesday, Feb. 27 and Wednesday, March 7. The cost to attend is $60 for the public and $45 for CAC members. In a recent interview, Doug said he wrote "Sustainable Nation" in part because he believes architecture is approaching a point of maximum inflection-its biggest since the embrace of Modernism.
"Using strident terms, we need to change how we design buildings to wring the carbon out of them. We can't continue to design glass boxes and the world's tallest buildings. These practices are in irreconcilable opposition to stranding the carbon from fossil fuels underground."
CAC's exclusive book club is sure to spur important conversations about the need to make buildings more sustainable, the race to meet the AIA's carbon-neutral 2030 goals and the resistance to these changes that exists within the architecture and development communities.
"'Sustainable Nation' provides an invaluable window into where the field of architecture is headed," Doug said. "I see the pivot that architecture needs to make as an immense, inspiring challenge. While it is sobering to absorb the book's insights on how long change takes (hint: too long), it provides answers for how to change society faster, especially on today's big challenges, such as decarbonizing our economy."
Doug says "Sustainable Nation" will appeal "to anyone curious about how the world works and how to make it better." Readers will get a peek into the future of the built environment; a new frame for viewing change and trends across generations; a better understanding of how to shift from being a sideline observer to an effective change agent; and an optimistic plan to take action that breaks the cycle of passivity.
"Our book clubs are a terrific vehicle to prompt open dialogue," says Michael Wood, CAC's senior director of program strategy. "Doug is going to lead us into a robust conversation about where we are today, where it looks like tomorrow will be going, and the changes that we need to make. These aren't easy-to-solve issues. It's going to be fun to hear architects think about what they're going to do."
To view the reading schedule and register, visit the program page.