Climate emergency

Find out how companies and the Institution are working towards the goals of the climate emergency declaration.

Hear from a range of speakers on how best practice structural design can help to combat the climate emergency

Pragmatic assistance for structural engineers in the delivery of sustainable projects for the building sector.

Jo reflects on her own career and looks ahead to 2050, discussing the role structural engineers play in creating safe, sustainable, inclusive and resilient cities.

This foreword briefly summarises the commitments that engineers have made in declaring a climate emergency and considers first steps to build action plans that will support these commitments.

In an inspiring online lecture, Dr Mike Cook presented his compelling vision for the future. He argued that structural engineers have a vital role to play in reducing the impact of carbon in the built environment.

Chris Wise discusses individual responsibility and how engineers can attempt to affect climate change.

An introduction to the goals and how structural engineers can use them to tackle the climate crisis and create a better world.

Engineers must resist pressure to build environmentally unsustainable schemes if we want to be judged well by future generations, says 2020 Gold Medal winner and former Institution Vice-President, Mike Cook.

In late 2019, the Institution set up a Climate Emergency Task Group, with the goal of driving our response to the climate emergency.

Mike Cook FIStructE explains how and why structural engineering firms are addressing the climate emergency.

Mike gives a presentation about his career and commitment to the climate emergency.

Engineering Matters speaks to 2020 Gold Medal winner, Mike Cook, about the climate emergency and his career.

Will Arnold describes the role structural engineers can play in tackling climate change, by making informed design decisions and influencing other members of the project team.

Mike Cook and Will Arnold outline the Institution’s approach to providing guidance on the climate emergency, discussing six key areas this guidance will fall into.

How digital fabrication is transforming the way we construct the built environment.

A discussion of culture and practice in design relating to material efficiency.

The Institution’s Digital Workflows and Computational Design Panel calls for a rethink of what computational design offers the industry for more sustainable design.

Caroline Field explores the relationship between ‘lean’ and ‘resilient’ design, and discusses how future designs should evaluate risks and incorporate strategies to mitigate and adapt to these.

Natasha Watson explains how structural engineers can produce designs that make efficient use of material to reduce their environmental impact.

Isuru Nanayakkara looks at traditional technologies and modern approaches to lightweight shell construction to seek a better perspective on how shell technology can be appropriated to different local contexts.

Steve McKechnie explores building a culture of sharing and innovation where people are proud to talk about the work they do.

A study shared by BuroHappold to share knowledge that may help address the climate emergency.

Some form of approximate analysis remains essential for both the conceptual design of structures and verification of final (computer) analysis. This text presents simple approaches to the approximate analysis of two-dimensional skeletal structures.

Mike gives a presentation about his career and commitment to the climate emergency.

In an inspiring online lecture, Dr Mike Cook presented his compelling vision for the future. He argued that structural engineers have a vital role to play in reducing the impact of carbon in the built environment.

Oliver Broadbent and James Norman call for a rethink of engineering education to meet the needs of an industry adapting to the demands of the climate emergency.

In his winning entry to the Institution’s Kenneth Severn Award 2020 – an annual essay competition for young engineers – Will Rogers-Tizard argues that structural engineers can help tackle the climate emergency by making better use of materials, understanding carbon values and questioning industry norms.

William Algaard presents ways in which structural engineers can help shape the direction of a project by confidently and constructively sharing their expertise in a language that client and architect will understand.

Philip Isaac and Jonny Hawkshaw review the potential for materials with lower embodied carbon to be used more widely in both small-scale domestic projects and larger-scale residential and commercial projects.

Adrian Campbell, Robert Hairstans and Giulia Jones explain how natural, human, social, manufactured and economic capital can all benefit from a sustainability-focused approach to off-site manufacturing.

Jenny Burridge of the Concrete Centre discusses a more sustainable approach to concrete.