The climate crisis: What’s the future for unlisted historic buildings?

In our disposable culture it’s only too easy to dismiss unlisted historic buildings as leaky, not fit for purpose and too difficult to bring up to modern standards. Every year 50,000 buildings are demolished, their replacements usually justified as being greener and more efficient. But is that true? Is raze-and-replace actually the greenest solution? And are unlisted historic buildings beyond redemption, or can they be sensitively upgraded to give them a viable future.

Join our expert panel for a pragmatic discussion on the future of unlisted historic buildings in the face of the climate crisis and how we can reimagine them as valuable assets – culturally, environmentally and financially. We’ll consider the emerging science of embodied carbon, the changing policy landscape, technical innovations and exemplar projects to see how we can challenge the demolition-first mindset. Lessons from vernacular architecture will be explored in a way that demonstrates how today – perhaps more than ever – cultural and environmental concerns should be closely aligned when it comes to the way the climate shapes our architecture.

Chair: Henrietta Billings (Director of SAVE Britain’s Heritage)
Panellists: Robin Dhar (Chairman of Donald Insall Associates)
Tyler Goodwin (Founder and CEO of Seaforth Land)
Simon Sturgis (Founding director of Targeting Zero)