Evolution can be painful, how can designers embrace the opportunity to imagine alternative futures? – Times of India

In the context of Architectural design, the term radical implied design which was extreme in form, scale, structural design or pushing the limits of the materials used for construction. Today, with radical changes in climate and global events that impact how we live, architectural design should address radical changes by shifting from the routine problem-solving approach by setting up new logical relationships to the design issues and arriving at new solutions by being aware of the complex nature of the design situation. This is the starting point for shaping new and more exploratory design processes.

Architecture is a collaborative process, from concept to occupation of the built spaces involving the broader public along with many stakeholders who participate in the design process. Governmental, legal, technical, economic, social, and political systems interact with architecture in complex ways for the duration of a project which can range from 3 to 10 years depending on the type of project.

The design process has to inherently rethink what buildings can adapt to during the life of the building. Awareness of the impact that a building has, beyond its designed lifespan, studying the effects of chosen materials, procurement, building operation, maintenance, resiliency, and end-of-life processes is imperative to imbibe any change.

The changes should be approached with logical thinking and creative realism. Architects have to increase agility & flexibility so that processes, workflows and roles can flex and that they acquire cross-functional knowledge and training.While workflows increase efficiency, it also creates rigidity, as systems have no flexibility to respond to disruptions.

Resilient design firms are able to respond and correct course quickly to accommodate the changes.

Climate change, ecological goals, wellness, economic conditions and social equity are factors for radical change. These changes influence the scale, timelines, budgets, materials, relevance and essence of the programme; so the clarity and transparency of design changes become the source of innovation.

For example, to achieve ecological goals, traditional building materials have to be replaced by ecological processing of building materials, building materials have to be environmental friendly, and the performance of ecological building materials during the life cycle of the building has to be established.

Barcelona Techhas developed biological concrete that grows vertical gardens. The plants capture CO2 from the air and release oxygen. The layer also acts as an insulation which regulates temperatures within the building by absorbing heat and preventing it from entering the building in hot weather or escaping the building in cold weather.

The right combination of nature-based or environmentally friendlier materialslike hempcrete, bio-brick, recycled timber, etc could reduce the carbon impact of construction considerably, compared to buildings made primarily with steel and concrete. The use of bio-materials could turn the building into a biofuel source that could bring the buildings operations beyond net zero.

To mitigate climate change, advanced & clean energy-saving technology has to be implemented from the initial design stage, during the construction and at the operation stages such that energy consumption is efficient. Energy is optimised by recycling of energy, reduction of waste emissions, and energy conservation.

Design has to deal with complex problem situations and despite the strategies and inventive workarounds that have been developed to manage the cognitive load on the designer/design team, dealing with all the information in the complex design situation is not easy. It requires the ability to (repeatedly) frame the complexities in the design situation, propose possible solutions and analyse the efficacy of both of these. A rational problem solving approach would be to refer to similar case studies, assimilate the appropriate R&D and technical data, establish the goal, imbibe the relevant best practices/ codes/ norms and map the tasks to arrive at the solutions.

Managing radical change would require influencing the system, rather than implementation of a plan to solve the problem; and astateof relative stability can be achieved by creating resilience, rather than striving for that so-called solution.

1. The approach should focus on Is this action leading in the desired direction?rather than the emerging design solution.2. Empathising: Understanding the human needs involved.3. Defining: Re-framing and defining the problem in human-centric ways.4. Ideating: Creating multiple ideas in ideation sessions.5. Investing in digital infrastructure and VR, that allows creative freedom for complex designs and for changes to be incorporated with less time and cost.

Views expressed above are the author's own.

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Evolution can be painful, how can designers embrace the opportunity to imagine alternative futures? - Times of India