01.06.07
Lecture workshop wins praise from national director

A forward thinking workshop designed to raise awareness of the challenges Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly faces in integrating climate change and the built environment with economic development has taken place at the Met Office.

And the 'away day workshop' won high praise from one of the directors of CABE (Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment), the government's advisory body on architecture, urban design and public space, who said that the commitment to learning and action established by the Cornwall Lecture could be used as a model for counties all over the country to follow.

The event (held on May 31st) is one of two that have been planned as a lead up to this year's Cornwall Lecture, which is to be held at the Hall for Cornwall on November 26th and is entitled 'Designing a Better Future'. It is the first time since the Cornwall Lecture began 12 years ago that these workshops have been introduced.

Jonathan Davis, CABE Director of Knowledge and Skills, chaired the day and was also one of four speakers. He said: "Climate change is the single most important issue that mankind faces now and in the future. Nearly 50% of all greenhouse gas emissions originate from the built environment and it is really inspiring to see leaders from the private, voluntary and public sectors come together to give such serious consideration not only to how this issue will affect Cornwall's settlements in the future, but also to explore what Cornwall's contribution to making development more sustainable and the economic development opportunities that can flow from this, will be."

The Cornwall Lecture away days have been sponsored by Stephens and Scown, planned in association with Cornwall Business Partnership and supported by the Objective One Partnership. The Lecture is also supported by SWRDA, First Group (Great Western) and Midas Construction.

Keith Hambly-Staite, Cornwall Lecture Programme Director, said: "Climate change is a subject on everyone's minds at the moment and Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly face their own particular challenges. We don't always think of climate change in a positive way and what we need to do to achieve what Steve Noyes of the Met Office described as a more 'comfortable life'. This region's economy needs to grow and we want to design a better environment for business and for the people who live and work here. Indeed in the future, climate change may make the South West a more attractive place in which to invest. But what we do must be done sympathetically to our built and natural environment and, at the same time any new development must take into account the issues that climate change could raise in the future. I hope these workshops will help to stimulate discussion."

The first event, at the Met Office Exeter headquarters, focussed on environmental influences - such as climate, water and energy - that will have an impact on the way we must design and develop our future built environment. A tour of the Met Office, which also houses the Hadley Centre for Climate Predication and Research, was included.

Other speakers were Steve Noyes, Operations and Customer Service Director at the Met Office; Brian Hooper, senior consultant at Waterwise which is funded by the UK's water companies and works with water utilities, government, business and the general public to secure a more efficient use of water; and Mark Scibor-Rylski who has been involved in the commercialisation of technology for over 20 years and is currently a Gatsby Business Mentor working for the University of Exeter at Tremough (the base of the Combined Universities in Cornwall).

Delegates included representatives from Cornwall County, district and borough councils, the Objective One Partnership Office, South West Regional Development Agency, Government Office South West, Combined Universities in Cornwall, Cornwall Business Partnership, and private companies including Rok, Vickery Holman, Lou Jones Design (who also provided technical support) and Goldring Yates.

Challenging propositions that delegates discussed included 'If in 2050 our South West climate becomes more like the climate of the Algarve today are we able to design and build and environment that is able to both deliver comfort and a neutral carbon footprint?' and 'The climate challenge we face is now so significant that it is inevitable that much of the architectural heritage currently to be found in our towns and cities will have to be replaced or radically altered'.

Thelma Sorensen, chair of Cornwall Business Partnership, said: "Planners, developers and others from the public and private sectors came together at this groundbreaking event. It was an ideal forum to learn and then start planning for a future where Cornwall can use good building design and innovative technology to balance climate change demands with sustainable economic development."

Richard Goldring, of Goldring Yates, added: "This was a very interesting event. The issue is to deal with these serious concerns and find practical solutions in the real world – particularly in an area like Cornwall where there are viability issues. One of the problems is the rising tide of regulation and compliance that everyone has to juggle. Measures need to be introduced carefully so as not to hinder development. There needs to be a lot of carrots and sticks for developers."

The next workshop will take place on June 26th, in Pool, and will be called 'Regeneration in an Historic Environment'. It will examine the issues involved in building new houses, workspace and business premises in an historical environment. This workshop will also include a site visit to Robinson's Shaft in the heart of the Cornish Mining Landscape World Heritage Site and a case study on the HERS project in Falmouth and Penryn.

The Cornwall Lecture was established in 1995 as part of the In Pursuit of Excellence initiative which aimed to recognise and promote excellence in education and business in Cornwall.

The Lecture puts the spotlight on a different topic each year. Earlier lectures have looked at design and architecture, finance, cultural heritage, tourism, environment, agriculture and other topics of importance to the social and economic well being of Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.

For further information please contact Clare Morgan, Media Relations Manager, Objective One Partnership, on 07973 813647 or email cmorgan@cornwall.gov.uk.

Editor's notes:

This year the Cornwall Lecture will be chaired by Robin Nicholson CABE Commissioner, and delivered by Matthew Taylor, Chief Executive of the Royal Society of Arts.

The role call of previous speakers is impressive: It includes Sir John Banham, Chairman, Whitbread plc and the Patron of IPE; Prue Leith, Chairman, Royal Society of Arts; Sir Nicholas Grimshaw, Architect, Grimshaw Associates, architect of the world famous Eden Project at St Austell; Adair Turner, Director General, CBI; Sir Edward George, Governor Bank of England; Simon Jenkins, Columnist, The Times, Mark Byford, Director BBC World Service; Jonathon Porritt, Programme Director, Forum for the Future and Chairman of the UK Sustainable Development Commission; Tom Wright, Chief Executive, Visit Britain; Sir Neil Cossons, Chairman of English Heritage; Lord Haskins, Chairman of a panel of distinguished speakers; Professor Paul Robertson, Visiting Professor of Music and Medicine, Peninsula Medical School and Cultural Leader, World Economic Forum and Professor Raymond Tallis, Emeritus Professor of Geriatric Medicine, University of Manchester.

Clare Morgan
Media Relations Manager
Objective One Partnership Office
Castle House
Pydar Street
Truro TR1 2UD
Mobile: 07973 813647
Telephone: 01872 223439

cmorgan@cornwall.gov.uk

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