There is much happening at the Chapter. I had the good fortune to hear 2018 Gold Medallist Alec Tzannes’ AM LFRAIA presentation recently and it was great to see so many attend.

Apart from the beauty and innovation of many of the projects he showed, Alec spoke about ‘architects as the trusted stewards of the built environment’ and that there was ‘good’ and ‘bad’ architecture.

With the community seeking their knowledge more and more online, it made me think about the role of architects as professionals. What is the future role of architects? How do we stay relevant as professionals in times where Google is king? And how do we as a profession publicly position ourselves as the trusted stewards of the built environment?

These are high order questions to which I don’t for one minute profess to have all the answers. Advocacy is one of the Institute’s key strategic platforms and it is through this public engagement that we can remind key decision-makers such as government ministers, government officials, and the community of the importance of architects in terms of their professional skills and expertise and their contribution to society at large.

Last week, Jess de Rome, Dean McPherson, Yuri Leong Maish and I presented on your behalf to the ACT Legislative Assembly Committee on Planning and Urban Renewal’s Inquiry into Engagement with Development Application Processes in the ACT.

While we are supportive of the current planning system in the ACT, there are many changes that can be made to improve the system so it is more efficient, red-tape is reduced, and it doesn’t take 3-4 months at a minimum for a DA to be processed.

Being part of this Committee’s Inquiry is one way that we can publicly demonstrate the professional expertise, knowledge, and public stewardship of architects in the ACT.

What are your thoughts on the future of the architecture profession? I would be interested in hearing your views at actpresident@architecture.com.au

Also, as a diary note, don’t miss hearing Dillon Kombumerri, Principal Architect at the Office of the Government Architect NSW this Wednesday as the third speaker in the Contemporary Australian Architect Speaker Series at the National Gallery. My thanks to Nathan Judd and Dominic Pelle for yet again coordinating a high calibre speaker series!

Philip Leeson
18 September 2018