The world of New York architects is changing rapidly everyday and students at design schools are at the frontlines of this change. What today’s design school student reaps from the classroom is the Architectural world we will live tomorrow. With a focus on environmentally conscious design in schools, tomorrow’s architecture can house the world’s sustainability demands.
We are seeing an immense shift in the styles and philosophy of architectural design towards sustainable human environments. This is something design schools have answered the call to by integrating sustainability practices in all architectural design. From “green” housing and business complexes to the innovative structures of the world’s metropolises, architecture is the most visual emblem of sustainability.
A successful school embraces a responsibility to foresee a world that applies a philosophy of “Smart Growth” in architecture. This begins in the world of urban planning, but the heart of smart growth is in architectural design. Schools of architectural design must put students in the marketplace with a fundamental awareness of sustainability. This comes in knowing that humans have an intimate relationship with private and public spaces. As the paradigm shift to sustainability evolves, schools have naturally reflected this by fostering it in students.
Many schools now realize that green building and sustainability is no longer a branch of architecture, but a philosophical root. This was made apparent industry wide in 2000 with the design principles of the Bill of Rights for the Planet, proposed by William McDonough Architects. Since then almost every major Architectural organization has adopted these principles, which put sustainability of the core of all design practices.
At a functional level the contemporary world of architecture is born in design schools that teach sustainability basics. This applies to everything from green building materials used in construction to the lifecycle of a building. Of course, while this is a given initiative in new developments, design schools can also integrate the ability of students to re-design and re-imagine the worlds existing spaces.
Beyond the functional level, there is a growing aesthetic in architecture that reflects an organic and natural world. While design schools prepare students in practical design ability and an ethic in sustainability, it is their own creative vision that is forming this aesthetic. This is seen in the visually stunning architecture movements of Blobitecture, as represented by the London City Hall or the Guggenheim Museums.