Session #125

– Paper Presentations –

At the root of an ecology of care is a system of ethics. In the architectural culture this is often presumed to be common to all, but this is more complex when investigated though dialogue. These issues are deeply linked to justice and power.

At time of change for the architectural education system and practicing architecture, the architect can be the only member of the design team bound by regulation to adhere to a code of conduct and ethics in order to use this protected title. Significant contradictions in this obligation have been identified by recent Government led reviews such as the Grenfell enquiry. This event seeks to explore the theme of the fundamental understanding of how ethics are used in architecture.

Many other subjects such as law and medicine, include specific teaching around ethical practice, but in creative subjects this thinking is not made patent. Could this be one of the reasons for stifled attainment and concerning retention patterns within creative courses leading to industries with dominant cultures over represented?

Several representational and regulatory bodies now refer to ‘ethics’ in their codes of conduct, what do we mean by this? What ethical structures do we engage with by designing and creating? How does this issue manifest itself in an ecology of care? Is our misunderstanding of ethical actions standing in the way of our understanding of others?