Architecture and politics

The Kamra tal-Periti recently organised a forum entitled 'Architecture and politics: partnering for sustainable development in the Mediterranean' on the occasion of the Union of Mediterranean Architects' (UMAR) 14th general assembly in Malta.

Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi delivered a keynote address. Other speakers included French Ambassador Jean Marc Rives, UMAR president Patrice Genet, Prof. Lino Briguglio, chairman of the National Committee for Sustainable Development, and KTP president David Felice.

This was Dr Gonzi's first public debate on the built environment since taking the local planning authorities and sustainable development under his wing. The KTP hopes this is the start of a long and healthy relationship between architecture and politics, particularly in the light of the fact that these two disciplines are responsible for the physical transformation of many of Malta's socio-economic and cultural objectives.

The Kamra supports Dr Gonzi's contribution, whereby he said that "the Government is always open to dialogue with the KTP, especially matters that are distinctive locally. We need to work together to achieve the highest professional standards to make sure that the core values of what we do together remain linked to what is valuable for quality of life and not merely for material wealth."

The forum focused on aspects of architectural practice where economic interest coincides with environmental relevance. Dr Gonzi highlighted the fact that "co-operation between researchers on this topic is bound to be fruitful, as also the documentation of successful traditional low energy media for controlling interior environments."

Dr Gonzi also referred to KTP's position paper on the built environment entitled 'The urban challenge: our quality of life and the built environment', saying that "the ideas in the document that are consistent with the objectives declared by UMAR were taken into account in the policies put forward by his party in the election."

Founded in Morocco in 1994, UMAR represents all but two of the architects' national organisations from countries in and around the Mediterranean basin. It aims to reveal architecture to be of public interest, architecture and the organisation of space being expressions of culture. It also acts as a forum for encouraging relationships of friendship, solidarity and confraternity between architects, while representing more than 300,000 architects in a dialogue with governments, regional and international institutions.

KTP, a founder member of UMAR, has been prominently active within the organisation. Malta is the official seat of the organisation and its secretary-general is Mr Felice. Anthony Fenech Vella is the local representative on UMAR and was responsible for the organisation of its general assembly in Malta.