Celebrating 20 years of achievement in improving Europe's built environment

The Architects' Council of Europe: Celebrating 20 years of achievement in improving Europe's built environment

BRUSSELS, November 29 2010. This week will see a series of events to mark the 20th Anniversary of the founding of the Architects' Council of Europe (ACE), an organisation representing the architectural profession in 33 countries. The ACE, its delegates and other partners in the construction industry will come together to celebrate the occasion.


Celebrations in the European Parliament
The anniversary celebrations kick off on Tuesday, 30 November with an exhibition on Sustainable Architecture across Europe in the European Parliament. This showcases 32 of the best examples of sustainable buildings in Europe, ranging from a corporate headquarters building in Hamburg, Germany, a strawbale house in Nina Village, Estonia, a Sports Arena in Koprivnica, Croatia, a Social Housing scheme in Dublin, Ireland, an urban apartment development in Malmo, Sweden to a rammed earth house in Schlins, Austria.

After its showing in the European Parliament, the exhibition will travel to many European countries for the next two years, bringing these examples of best practice in sustainable architecture to a large number of European citizens.

Frieda Brepoels, MEP, who sponsored the exhibition in the European Parliament said, "Being an architect myself, I strongly believe in the significant contribution that high-quality architecture can bring to society and to the people I represent".

As a particular highlight of events, on 3 December there will be a high-level conference on the future of architecture, held in the European Parliament. The conference, which will be addressed by a number of prominent personalities and experts, will discuss EU-level issues of special importance to the architectural profession, including the mobility of architects in Europe, the EU Public Procurement Directive, and the Construction Products Regulation. The results of the 2010 Sector Study by the ACE into the state of the architectural sector in Europe will be unveiled for the first time at the meeting.

The conference will finish with a celebratory dinner in the Palais des Beaux Arts in central Brussels.


Campaigning to promote sustainable architecture
Over the last 20 years, the ACE has campaigned relentlessly for more sustainable architecture. Its first moves began in the 1990s when sustainability was not one of the lodestones of social policy it is today. Commenting on its 20 years of work, ACE President Selma Harrington said "We believe that our profession is equipped and can continue to manage the necessary changes in achieving a sustainable environment and a better quality of life for all citizens".


Twenty years of achievement
Since its creation in 1990, ACE has clocked up a number of significant successes, as well as establishing itself as an essential interlocutor for EU policy and legislation that affects the quality of the built environment.

2010 - Leading the work of the Energy Efficiency Action Plan Taskforce on the importance of buildings to energy savings in Europe.

2007 - Inclusion of architecture as a key component of the Leipzig Charter on Sustainable European Cities, and subsequent Ministerial Declarations.

2004 - Incorporation of design contests in the provisions of the EU Directive on Public Procurement (2004/18/EC)

2001 - Adoption of the Council resolution Architectural Quality in Urban and Rural Environments

1999 - Conference on Architecture: Mediator of Urban Tensions in the UNESCO Headquarters, Paris,

1995 - The White book: Europe and Architecture Tomorrow published. This was fundamental to the development of national architectural policies in many EU Member States

Note: the ACE, which was founded in 1990, represents the architectural profession in 33 countries through its 47 member organisations, and through these about 480,000 architects. Its principle function is to influence EU policies and legislation to ensure a high quality sustainable built environment.

Architects' Council of Europe