Editorial

Abstract

This Special Issue is devoted to papers on the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Philip Ross and Kasia Maynard describe the impacts this is having and will continue to have on society. Then MatthewMarson and his team first decry the fact that in their view the human connection is still not prevalent at a deeper level in the design of intelligent buildings. Too often sentient qualities are just referred to in terms of comfort. They then show how the complexities of designing an intelligent city can be put in practice. Design is one thing but implementation is another and it can be an equally challenging process. James Kinch and his team propose a new non-technical methodology that offers a more flexible approach to implementation. Technology alone is not enough. It enables some objectives to be realised. We measure conditions of the environment and the effects on people’s health and well-being much more and this yields even more data which digital platforms can collect and analyse. Buildings and their systems are full of complexities and to complicate things more there are many people are involved so faults can easily occur, but these can be minimised with approaches such as BIM and blockchain and other AI technologies emerging. For great sustainable architecture, whether old or new, we still need human imagination and creativity to play their part. Occupants in buildings want more than practical needs to be met but relish environments that feed their sensory system so they feel some spiritual uplift. Then there are factors such as budgets and timelines which often mean projects are rushed so that thinking time is squeezed out. Should we look at economic value in a different way? We tend to measure success in terms of increased profitability and criteria like GDP. Profitability can be good if it is shared equitably and feeds new ideas and education for the betterment of humankind. But growth for the sake of it raises many questions about how we make decisions and neglect social value. Kate Raworth in her book Doughnut Economics (Penguin Random House Books 2017) proposes seven ways to think like a twenty-first century economist and they essentially form the contents of 7 chapters. Here are the ideas she proposes: Change the Goal –Move from GDP towards aiming to achieve a safe and just space for humanity with a regenerative and distributive economy within desirable ecological and social boundaries. This is her basis for the doughnut model. See the Big Picture – Too often thinking out the fine detail first obscures the mission and vision for the project. Nurture Human Nature – Social value should be the basis of our decision-making. Architecture is for humanity where justice, generosity and societal needs are the foundation. Get Savvy with Systems – I wrote some time ago that we treat the processes of design, construction and management as if they were linear systems, but they are not; they are non-linear dynamic systems which, of course, are more complex, but they are more realistic. We have the means nowadays to deal with such systems. Systems thinking is key. Design to Distribute – The COVID pandemic has shown us that we need to share if we are to avoid inequality. We knew this before the pandemic and there are good examples that feature this way of sharing what you have and then gladly receiving what others offer but with politics and power struggles between nations any thoughts of sharing too often get lost. Create to Regenerate – This simply is the basis of the Circular Economy in which reuse and recycle principles are advocated. Be Agnostic about Growth – There is a growing world population and each human being needs food and generates waste. More money, more wealth, more expenditure without restraint is not sustainable as is already evident. Perhaps we need to question our expectations and ponder on them. Are they too high? Can we be more mindful of our relation to the Earth and its natural resources? At the very least these ideas and the doughnut model are worth discussion with an open mind. Rethinking ideas and processes is not comfortable, but that is not a reason to shirk our responsibilities. We can learn