Exchange

摘要

I've been pondering your intro to September's RIBA Journal ('How best do you define "sustainability?"', p7). To begin with I wrote a long diatribe on the merits of sustainability versus a cruel commercial world. I then deleted it. On reflection, I feel this best defines sustainability for me, at this point in time: providing what is needed today, in preparation for an uncertain tomorrow, in the most responsible and sensitive way possible, while doing everything we can to ensure our injured planet is allowed to heal and sustain us, leaving positive impact for those who inherit our collective legacy. Keep up the good work. Your recent piece on 'time running out' for a coherent response to the climate emergency (RIBAJ September 2020, p7) is important, and I appreciate you taking this position. At last we are waking up to the fact that sealed buildings and the air conditioning systems within them are, in this post-Covid era, a significant health risk.