Future Directions in Architectural Practice

Abstract

The period since the middle of the second decade of the 21st century has seen dramatic changes in the global scientific and socio-economic environment: while the COVID-19 pandemic might have had the biggest impact on what our futures might look like, there are other changes such as the war in Ukraine, rapid developments taking place in the spheres of communication and information technology with the onset of the so-called ‘Fourth Industrial Revolution’ which will have an impact on how architects practise their profession. In addition, globalisation and new liberalism have suffered some form of (temporary?) setback and we see large-scale human migration towards wealthy countries – Western Europe in particular. At the same time the balance of economic power is shifting. And then there is the threat of global warming and the urgent need to change the way we live and do things. The future direction of architectural practice has been a topic in the professional conversation for some time, with architectural professional bodies such as the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) commissioning a study on the future of the profession, focusing on the questions: “Who will design our built environment in 2025; what roles might those trained in architecture have then and how might architectural practice have changed as a result?” Much has changed since then and the 2025 concerns suggested by the RIBA’s study are looming on the horizon. Hence, this study aimed to identify some of the possible directions into which the practice of architects could possibly develop in the next five to ten years and the opportunities that may well arise from the previously mentioned developments. Practitioners might thus be enabled to prepare themselves for possible future opportunities while educators develop and adapt education programmes in order to ensure that their graduates are empowered to flourish amidst the unfolding opportunities.