Built for tomorrow
Since architecture was first taught at the University of Coloradoa century ago, an underlying principle has been discovering the best way to prepare professionals to shape the built environment in ways that supported the state’s growing population.
Now, as that population adapts to the climate crisis and intelligent machines, the built environment—and how students are taught to shape it—finds itself in need of an update.
Azza Kamal, an associate teaching professor of environmental design, regularly contributes to sustainability-focused initiatives on curriculum committees. Photo by Patrick Campbell
It’s one reason architecture has founda home within CMDI, where workon topics like sustainability fits the direction faculty have established forthe discipline while reflecting theuniversity’s strategic priorities.
“When our students can combine their design degrees with certificates, minors and microcredentials in sustainabilityand climate justice, they’ll be better equipped for the future,” said Azza Kamal, an associate teaching professor of environmental design.
The outcome is poised to directly benefit Colorado, which has a growing demand for experts who can find solutions to complex challenges such as affordable housing, wildfire risk, urban heatand homelessness.
“These issues require expertise insustainability and environmental and social justice, and we need to prepare students for that kind of complex work,” said Kamal, who contributes to sustainability-focused initiatives on campus curriculum committees and regularly collaborates with the city of Boulder on urban design projects. “Their careers after graduation are not going to be linear. They’re going to work across disciplines to tackle these challenges.”
Kamal’s spring capstone studio encouraged students to apply theory in addressing real community challenges. Seniors collaborated with Boulder’s divisions of climate initiatives, comprehensive planning, and housing and human services to create affordable housing near the Twenty Ninth Street retail development.
That interdisciplinary approach resonates with alumni across the country. Adam Frampton (EnvDes’02), principal at New York-based Only If, credits his education with teaching him to think beyond the boundaries of architecture. Today, Frampton’s professional practice informs his mentorship and teachings as a design critic at the Harvard Graduate School of Design.
“Architects have to think about the historical, social, political, aesthetic and environmental dimensions of every project,” Frampton said. “You need to know enough about many different fields to bring a building—or any part of the built environment—together.”
While conversations around sustainability often focus on carbon and energy efficiency, Tensho Takemori (EnvDes’88), a partner at Gehry Partners, said the next major frontier for architects is water.
“The larger discussion, especially in the western United States, is going to be centered around water access, use, conservation and recycling, which are going to shape the success of communities over the next 50 years,” Takemori said.
When it comes to educating the public about water conservation, Takemori said the partisan overtones and scientific complexity of the issue represent an opportunity for architects to make this challenge accessible.
“Architects help society with the ability to navigate complexity, solve problems creatively and communicate solutions clearly,” Takemori said. “It’s our responsibility to communicate the value of those ideas in a way that’s understandableand compelling.”
Designers are also rethinking what they build through the practice of adaptive reuse and preservation. It’s a focus of Kamal’s teachings and work, which emphasize preserving and repurposing existing buildings. Both concepts reduce the need for new materials and extend the life of the built environment.
Frampton’s concept of “indeterminate buildings” is another forward-looking idea. He said architects should design structures that can remain flexible and accommodate uses that don’t exist yet.
“Rather than creating highly specialized buildings that quickly become obsolete, we should prioritize adaptability, allowing structures to withstand 100 to 500 years,” Frampton said.
As part of their capstone planning studio with Azza Kamal, students majoring in sustainable planning and urban design collaborated with the city of Boulder to reimagine a downtown site for affordable housing. Rendering by Rikki Gallegos, Paige Jaeger, Katie Ridgway and Tyler Tatman.
Architecture and A.I.
Adaptability isn’t just for buildings—it’s for the tools used to create them. As artificial intelligence changes the way designs are created and communicated, faculty are encouraging students to responsibly use these tools. Kamal challenges her students to pair technical proficiency with strategic thinking.
“Technology alone has limited value,” Kamal said. “Students need to know how to translate that knowledge into adaptable designs, long-term strategies, and policies and actions that canbe implemented.”
In Frampton’s classes, that means encouraging students to use A.I.critically while developing skills that cannot be automated, like hand drawing and physical model-making. Headvocates curiosity, not panic.
“I’m not threatened by it,” Frampton said. “At the end of the day, architecture is a humanistic discipline, so I don’t think A.I. will replace architects.”
Allyson Maturey is a communications project manager for CMDI.