Alternative Builders
Basic information
Project Title
Full project title
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Project Description
Alternative Builders is a transdisciplinary movement which challenges the status quo on how we build and make cities. It is a space of exploration and exchange wherein diverse urban stakeholders connect to question our practices, learn from existing alternatives, and create new urban imaginaries. We mobilize and train stakeholders in urban construction and development to think collectively and act collaboratively toward a more just, healthy, and sustainable urban environment.
Project Region
EU Programme or fund
Description of the project
Summary
Urban areas account for more than 70% of global carbon emissions and are the epicenters of some of society’s greatest challenges: economic inequality, access to basic services, climate change, human rights, and more. Formally established as an association in France, Alternative Builders is a space for all stakeholders in urban construction and development to come together to create new common visions aligned with current and future climatic, environmental and societal challenges.The education model is based on innovative peer-to-peer training.
We accomplish this objective through a web-based platform, www.alternative-builders.org (under construction), where members network with peers, write and read articles on the latest trends, participate in interdisciplinary training sessions, and attend online events with sector leaders. This interactive website with integrated calendars and networking tools allows us to host gatherings through which we share knowledge and new perspectives while encouraging members to take action collectively and individually. We also host in-person meetings and events which bring together experts, professionals, students, and engaged citizens to learn about sustainable urban development practices and collaborate for shared impact.
Finally, we build educational and training curricula which introduce an interdisciplinary approach to urban making based on principles of environmental and social justice. We recently launched our first educational collaboration with the department of Civil Engineering at the National Institute of Applied Sciences in France, where we integrate sustainable urban development into the classroom. We look forward to refining this curriculum with our global partners and bringing it to classrooms, communities, and workplaces across Europe and beyond.
Key objectives for sustainability
Alternative Builders is based around three core activities to promote sustainable environments:
Alternative Resources
We host a collaborative media library which includes articles, books, podcasts, best practices, initiatives, moocs, films, art pieces, and many other sources. These resources support our efforts to question our methods of construction and improve our approach to city building with regards to our new climatic, environmental and societal realities! In addition to this media library, we produce two types of articles: (1) short, summary-based articles to spark your curiosity; (2) longer reflective articles which dig deeper into existing practices and viable alternatives in order to instigate collaborative change-making efforts. You can have a taste of our contents produced so far at the following link: https://medium.com/alternative-builders. Content is mainly written in French, but we will soon expand in English and Spanish.
Alternative Thinking: 3P Systems Thinking (People + Planet + Prosperity)
To provide a systemic understanding, we share the initiatives and work of our friends who lead discussions on climate change, natural resource scarcity, biodiversity loss, geopolitical and economic issues, and other subjects which implicate the construction and development of urban environments.
Alternative Third places: Let’s Meet Up!
Gatherings are at the heart of the Alternative Builders philosophy. They allow us to share knowledge and new perspectives while encouraging us to take action collectively and individually. Whether it is at a roundtable discussion, during an interactive webinar, or participating in thematic groups, we believe that only through collaboration will we achieve the promise of just, healthy, and sustainable cities. This agility in collective meetings (virtual and in-person) allows us to deal with global issues within local contexts in order to have truly sustainable practices.
Key objectives for aesthetics and quality
Oscar Wilde once said, “life imitates art much more than art imitates life.” We are convinced that art and aesthetics play a central role in our imagination, shaping our beliefs, curiosities, and perspectives on the world. Thus, art plays a key role in shifting societal paradigms and reimagining our approach to constructing our environment. Our members share on the Alternative Builders platform their favorite pieces – the works of art that offer new visions of the world, that raise important questions, and that offer exciting alternatives for the future.
Members of the Alternative Builders Community are also empowered to collaborate through working groups on urban design, architecture, and artistic projects at the neighborhood, city, national and international scale. For example, a group of Alternative Builders was recently named a laureate of "La Cité des ascensions durables” architectural competition, for which they proposed the redesign of the Montparnasse neighborhood in Paris into a pedestrian-friendly, sustainable environment which preserves historic heritage while integrating nature-based and innovative solutions to affordable housing, energy use, public transportation, and essential services.
The Alternative Builders team is also collaborating with Microville112, an abandoned industrial area outside of the city of Reims where a group of citizens and civil society groups are working to build a smart, sustainable, and inclusive community. Our team is leveraging the expertise of our diverse membership to propose ideas to the project development team, including ways to creatively retrofit existing buildings for energy efficiency and design public spaces to encourage interaction and relaxation. These ideas will be featured on our website as examples of how we can construct cities which are at once beautiful and sustainable, inspiring and inclusive.
Key objectives for inclusion
We are convinced that a collective effort is required to align the practices of the urban development sector with the demands of the 21st century. Our movement is founded upon the proactive participation of all. Our international team has roots in France, Ireland, the United States of America, Switzerland and the Netherlands, and our founding members are majority women. Moreover, our partner organizations are working across seven countries of the EU and beyond. In developing and launching our platform, we are thinking collectively and acting collaboratively toward a more just, healthy, and sustainable model of city building on the European continent.
We seek to include a diversity of visions and voices in this movement, paying particular attention to how race, gender, social class, physical abilities and age influence our experiences. We are committed to building a global network of partners and collaborators. Already, we have co-organized events with the United Nations Major Group for Children and Youth’s Constituency for Sustainable Communities, the General Assembly-mandated space for young people across the world to engage in international policy making in the urban and territorial development sectors. We look forward to continuing to recruit members of all backgrounds and perspectives to join the movement, especially those who are systematically under-represented: women and gender minorities, people of color, citizens of the global south, low-income individuals, and youth.
We will ensure that participation in this movement, including access to articles, trainings, and networking opportunities, are available to all regardless of background or income. In order to accomplish this, access to the Alternative Builders platform will be free to all with the option to donate in function with their capacity to pay. Furthermore, our team will continue to seek financial support from donors and institutions, including businesses and universities to whom we will off
Innovative character
Alternative Builders proposes an innovative peer-to-peer training aimed at building cross-disciplinary competencies to concretely act for just, healthy and sustainable urban environments. This effort is supported by an online platform for the exploration and sharing of building and urban making alternatives that challenge the status quo. The community gathers students, practitioners, researchers and policy makers across disciplines, connecting science, arts and social studies.
The innovative character of our initiative is an inclusive approach to collaboration and change-making based on five key values: openness to all approaches and experiences, transparency in collective growth and learning, diversity in experiences and disciplines, collaboration in making change, collective growth with lifelong learning.
The Alternative Builders’ trainings are designed and proposed by Alternative Builders Community Members, individually or in groups. The first ones have been instigated by the core team, composed of students, practitioners and researchers from civil and urban engineering, architecture, political and social sciences. Today, there are 3 thematic groups building knowledge and sharing practices on (1) Circular Economy at the building and city level, (2) Education to accompany academic institutions in the remodelling of their curricula, (3) Greenwashing Debunking. We plan to have 10+ thematic groups by the end of 2021. The outcomes of this work will be published and shared widely with all urban makers. Free and open-to-all events are organized on a regular basis, from once to twice a month, in order to collectively exchange on related topics.
In the context of the New Urban Agenda, Sustainable Development Goal 11, European Green Deal, Urban Agenda for the EU, and New Leipzig Charter, Alternative Builders will bring together all urban stakeholders to make good on the promise of inclusive, sustainable, and beautiful cities and communities.
