With the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) a few months in the rear-view mirror, we are challenged to make sense of it all, to incorporate ambition into action to meet the urgency of keeping temperatures to 1.5 C above pre-industrial levels- the goal of the Paris Agreement.
But let’s step back a bit to 2018, when a group of like-minded partners began to share their efforts towards the integration of cultural heritage and climate action. Believing that the two were not mutually exclusive, this group organized the Climate Heritage Mobilization, a high-level side event on the subject at the Global Climate Action Summit, took place.
Building on the principles established at this successful event, the Climate Heritage Network (CHN) was established in 2019 to mobilize the arts, culture, and heritage organizations to help communities tackle climate change. As one of its founders, it is exciting for me to see the network grow, listen, learn, and communicate the benefits of cultural heritage in global climate action to help create a just, low carbon future for all communities. Recognizing that people, culture, and communities deserve greater representation in the dialogues, the UN selected the CHN as an official observer to COP26. (In addition, the CHN is one of 24 global partners in the UN’s Race to Resilience Campaign.)
Now engaged, the CHN is poised to deliver. At the pre-cop and COP26, it hosted sessions and contributed to countless others with an aim to accelerate climate action through the power of arts, culture, and heritage. It produced a guide to specific topics of utmost importance to greater climate ambitions (Manifesto Culture At COP – Climate Heritage Mobilization) such as a just transition, indigenous food sovereignty, governmental policy actions, and the engagement of youth. CHN members were able to connect with non-traditional partners, providing a wealth of resources on stewardship and adaptation. It also created a website Culture at COP to communicate more broadly with those participating virtually and beyond COP26.
The CHN is proud to count the AIA as a founding member and dedicated supporter. Through the work of members such as Carl Elefante, FAIA, 2018 AIA President (see Carbon Positive: Building on the Best of COP26), and Lori Ferris, AIA, of Goody Clancy, the CHN signed on to Architecture 2030’s Communique Architecture 2030 – COP26 Communique a vision of leadership and actions needed to achieve limiting global warming to 1.5C.
The CHN created the Madrid-to-Glasgow Plan, a series of working groups that developed materials and sessions in the lead up to COP26, themed to support the goals of the international efforts (Webinar on Mobilising Arts, Culture: An Introduction to the Climate Heritage Network Madrid-to-Glasgow Climate Action Plan | Historic England.) One of those, Working Group #3, Making the Case for Building Reuse through Better Metrics for Avoided, Operational, and Embodied Carbon, was led by AIA members Mark Brandt (MTB Architects), Ferris, and Mark Huck (California Office of Historic Preservation). Larry Strain, FAIA (Siegel & Strain Architects) also contributed with the Carbon Avoided Retrofit Estimator (CARE)- a tool for calculating and comparing he embodied, operating and avoided carbon impacts and benefits of reusing existing- and heritage- buildings.
Additional topics included engaging vulnerable front-line communities in valuing cultural heritage as part of a larger landscape to create sustainable solutions. In addition to moderating sessions, I presented California’s efforts to create a climate vulnerability index assessment (CVI) tool that is inclusive of the values of tribal and local communities to provide for greater stewardship of cultural heritage in climate change solutions.
It was an honor to be part of the CHN and California delegations at COP26 and to do so in partnership with the AIA delegation. While the high-level negotiations may have fallen short on some levels, I believe the participants made excellent progress towards the possible and created a clearer vision of what is needed to meet the urgency before us. I left Glasgow saturated with ideas, concepts, and actions to carry forward. Collaboration with partners such as Historic Environment Scotland, ICLEI (Local Governments for Sustainability), and the AIA, is critical to advancing climate efforts.
The CHN will continue to amplify the good work being done by its members and partners, create new entry points for culture-based climate action globally, and accelerate the culture sector for greater success in our global communities. Tackling the climate crisis, centering on equity and justice, involves cultural values, human values. Cultural heritage actors play an immense role in integrating natural and cultural values. The time to act is now; I hope you will join us! Further, faster, together!