Reinventing Sustainable Construction: Exploring the Paradigm Shift Needed to Reconcile Environmental and Sustainability Objectives

Övrigt konferensbidrag, 2010

Nowadays it is a well‐known fact that the conventional architectural and urban development model has difficulty in being adapted to the new requirements that society and industry demands, particularly with regard to cultural aspects and sustainability. Regardless there is a constant progress in such technology and research, the historical inertia of construction procedures and techniques have had the consequence that the building process is un‐synchronised with current requirements. A recent contribution in this regard is the “House Master School (HMS)” education and career model that integrates the concepts of Sustainable Building (SB), Sustainable Conservation (SC) and Education for Sustainable Development (ESD). Thus, the HMS model integrates a unitary set of transdisciplinary and holistic key concepts involved in sustainable development, planning and design, involving architecture; engineering; conservation; energy; natural and social sciences; economy; innovation; management; quality; logistics; ICT; arts and crafts, that may be locally or globally applied. It is generally applicable, and may be transferred to other countries, regions and/or fields. This paper introduces the HMS model and analyzes the pros and cons of adapting this model in Spain. It analyzes the possible implications of its introduction in the production‐system and building. Potential impact and effects of this change in a Spanish context are discussed, and the role of such implications on decision‐making.