RIBA Climate Guide

Mina Hasman's RIBA Climate Guide, which shares the essential fundamental knowledge that built environment professionals can use in their daily work to slow climate change and mitigate its effects, was published in cooperation with YEM Publishing and İSMD.

The RIBA Climate Guide, published by Taylor & Francis Group under the title RIBA Climate Guide, translated by Neslihan Güçmen, and brought to the Turkish architectural, planning, and construction world literature with the valuable contributions of ENKA and POLİMEKS; aims to guide architects, designers, engineers, urban planners, and industry professionals, as well as all key decision-makers, in developing buildings that provide sustainable integrity in line with the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals and the RIBA 2030 Climate Challenge framework.

Climate change is a threat to humanity that requires urgent action. It has become imperative for architects and industry professionals to acquire the necessary knowledge and skills to create a built environment that yields results with sustainable integrity, and to gain proficiency in climate literacy.

This book, which contains the essential fundamental knowledge that built environment professionals can use in their daily work to slow down climate change, which negatively affects the entire world and life, and to mitigate its effects, was developed around six main topics:

• Human Factors
• Circular Economy
• Energy and Carbon
• Water
• Ecology and Biodiversity
• Connectivity and Transportation

In the book, each chapter, which includes graphics, original illustrations, and sample project reviews, addresses the fundamental elements and competencies for the implementation of an integrated and sustainable design and construction-delivery framework.

Peter Oborn, former RIBA International Vice President, Member of the UIA Sustainable Development Goals Commission, Member of the UN Habitat Stakeholder Advisory Group, and current President of the Commonwealth Association of Architects, states the following in the book's foreword:
“Most of us are now aware that the climate threat is the most serious existential threat to life on this planet, and we want to know how we can help prevent catastrophe in both our personal and professional lives. If we, working in the built environment sector, truly want to achieve sustainable development, we must recognize cities and human settlements as 'complex systems with an interaction to be explored between their different elements.' While the United Nations' 17 Sustainable Development Goals offer us a clear policy framework, do we know how to actually translate the relevant goals into practice?
Despite the increasing awareness of the importance of these issues and the progress made in many areas, we are both insufficient and too slow in reaching our climate goals. To achieve the necessary pace of change, we need to improve climate literacy and radically improve coordination and collaboration across the supply chain. The Climate Guide provides us with a much-needed resource to help drive this change. The structure of the Climate Guide is designed to make the book accessible to a wide range of stakeholders and for the details in each chapter to be understandable by both students and experienced practitioners; thus, it serves as both an important learning tool and a practical checklist. Furthermore, the fundamental principles contained in the book are universal...”

Mina Hasman describes her rationale for preparing the book and its structure as follows:
“This book is aimed at all professionals who shape the built environment through their key decisions. Rather than being a comprehensive design guide, it aims to demonstrate the high-level knowledge requiring fundamental elements and competencies that can serve as a system example for potential design approaches and applications. The holistic body of knowledge resulting from collaborations between multiple sectoral and academic sectors confirms the importance of continuously mainstreaming innovative solutions, in addition to accelerating the pace and scale of change required for us to coexist and survive on this planet.
The built environment significantly impacts our quality of life; it forms the foundation of our societies, supports our daily lives, and builds the foundations that make our cities a great place to live, work, and enjoy. The design of a building determines how it is used, its impact on the environment and people, and how long it will serve its purpose. As designers and built environment professionals, it is our responsibility to ensure that the buildings we design are successful in the long term, are in harmony with the natural environment, and bring health and well-being to people within planetary boundaries...”

WHO IS MINA HASMAN?
Mina Hasman is an architect, environmental designer, and advocate for addressing climate change. In her role as Sustainability Manager at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, alongside her teaching positions at various academic institutions and expert work in numerous international organizations, she challenges norms and contributes to discussions on climate change, sustainability, well-being, and equity.
Also known for her passion in education, collaboration, and co-creation, Mina Hasman is the founder of Climate Framework, an interdisciplinary global initiative whose mission is to unite and develop the sectoral and academic capacities of the built environment within the framework of climate action plans. In 2020, the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) officially adopted the ‘Framework’s’ classification method to formulate the ‘Climate Literacy Knowledge Plan,’ which is the focus of this book, on its behalf.