The urgency and scale of the challenges presented by global warming and climate change demand that we act cohesively and collectively to repair the relationship between nature, the built environment, and communities. The responsibility for this is not in the hands of politicians and administrations alone, but depends on drawing together governance bodies, industries, expertise and communities to collectively establish common ambitions and clear actions.
On 26 October in Santiago de Compostela, Fundación RIA formally launched an ambitious project to set the foundations for a territorial agenda for the region of Galicia with the support of Regional Minister of Finance and Public Administration, Miguel Corgos; General Director of Territorial and Urban Planning, Encarnación Rivas, as well as Ana Couto, from the Galician Architects' Association. In attendance was the Mayor of Santiago, Xosé Sánchez Bugallo and Deputy Mayor Mercedes Rosón.
David Chipperfield was joined on stage by Luis Fernández-Galiano (Arquitectura Viva), Josep Bohigas (Barcelona Regional), Lourenzo Fernández Prieto (University of Santiago de Compostela and CISPAC) and Almudena Fernández Carballal (University of A Coruña) in a panel discussion to frame the ambitions and establish the wider critical context of this work.
A collaboration between Fundación RIA, the Regional Ministry of Finance and Public Administration, the Regional Ministry of Environment, Territory and Housing, and the Galician Architects' Association, this project stems from a conviction that Galicia can become a European benchmark for sustainability by 2030. It will adapt principles of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, the European Green Pact and the Spanish Urban Agenda to the specific problems and conditions of Galicia, laying the foundations for a new territorial model based on environmental, social and economic sustainability.
How we plan infrastructure and development, how we protect our heritage and resources, how we develop mobility and communication systems, and how we coordinate energy and waste in a circular economy are some of the critical issues the project will address. Following a series of multi-disciplinary conferences and roundtables, the first results will be presented publicly in 2023 and are intended to constitute a starting point to define objectives and actions across the region for the next decade.