High level of "environmental awareness" required of designers

In addition to the United States, China, currently the largest emitter, also participated in the Paris Agreement. The fact that 196 countries, both developed and developing, participated in the agreement and created a legal framework is a very important agreement in preventing further global warming and creating a sustainable environment, and it is very significant that the attitude of "preventing global warming" was shared by the whole world. The main points of the agreement are that both developed and developing countries submit reduction targets and declare the implementation of measures, and review and improve them every five years. By 2050, anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions and ecosystem absorption will be balanced. Furthermore, the average temperature rise from before the Industrial Revolution will be kept well below 2 degrees. It also mentions the need to limit it to 1.5 degrees. This is the result of the world placing top priority on having a common ideal beyond the interests of each country, and it shows how critical the current global environment is.

Let's take a look at the current situation in Japan. The combined transport and industrial sectors account for roughly half of Japan's total energy consumption and are on the decline, while the civilian (commercial and residential) sector accounts for roughly one-third and is on the rise. (From the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism's "Law Concerning the Improvement of Energy Consumption Performance of Buildings" document) In the civilian sector, when it comes to construction, there is energy consumed during the building construction process and energy consumed after the building begins to be used, and the amount of energy consumed by both is mostly determined at the "design stage." Reducing the energy consumption of buildings also reduces the running costs of the building, which is of great benefit to the building owner. In Japan, there have been dramatic advances in proactive efforts and technological advances to make buildings more energy efficient in recent years. In the future, there will be further reductions through technological innovations such as the conversion of buildings to zero energy buildings and smart cities, and there will also be a need to work on "extending the lifespan of buildings."

Currently, the main materials that buildings are made of are cement, steel, etc. A huge amount of energy is used to produce these materials. Extending the lifespan of buildings that are made from materials that consume such a huge amount of energy will ultimately contribute greatly to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. To extend the lifespan of a building, it is essential not only to take measures against deterioration of the equipment and facilities associated with the building, but also to anticipate changes in how the building is used and the owner's requirements from the time of construction, and to incorporate measures to deal with these changes from the design stage.

We designers need to continue to be actively involved in "extending life spans" including not only hard but also soft aspects, and to continue to be involved not only in the design stage but also after the building is completed. In order to pass on and leave a comfortable global environment for the next generation, we are required to have a high level of "environmental awareness" and work on this issue.