 Speech
by His Highness the Aga Khan
Scully Seminar Speech
Washington DC, USA, 26 January 2005
Honoured Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen:
I believe profoundly that architecture is not just about
building. It is a means of improving people’s quality
of life. At its best, it should mirror the plurality of
cultural traditions and the diverse needs of communities,
both urban and rural. At the same time it must employ modern
technologies to help fulfill desirable aspirations for the
future.
In Islam, the Holy Koran says that man is God’s noblest
creation to whom He has entrusted the stewardship of all
that is on earth. Each generation must leave for its successors
a wholesome and sustainable social and physical environment.
For these reasons, in 1977 I began working with leading
architects, philosophers, artists, teachers, historians
and thinkers -- from all religious faiths -- to examine
issues in the built environment and to establish an Award
for Architecture.
The
task was extremely difficult and, some thought, impossible.
We sought to reshape and reposition knowledge and taste
and to change the behaviour of those who have an impact
on the built environment. That meant not just architects
and their clients, but governments, planners, granting organisations,
village organisations, educational institutions and builders,
large and small, in urban and rural areas.
If we could achieve this, there was a real chance we could
launch a process that would become self sustaining, to help
bring about the truly profound change we sought.
That led us on a long journey of inquiry and action based
upon a premise which, strangely enough, was never put formally
into writing.
We were interested in architectural achievement, not just
in design, but with how good design could help improve the
daily lives of the users and beneficiaries. It was from
this service perspective that the Award parameters grew.
One example was the definition of architecture. The users
were largely in developing countries. So we pushed our definition
far beyond the so-called “architected” buildings
and into self-built environments, many of them in rural
areas, most of them poor.
It was from this notion of service to people that we were
led to search for best practices. We sought examples of
best practice for vastly different local situations –
from the ultra-poor in rural environments to the ultra-rich
cities and towns of oil producing states. The solutions
we found ranged from restoration of historic buildings to
the new high-tech buildings of modern societies.
The criteria for best practice varied to reflect conditions.
Poor communities, for example, do not have the resources
to replace buildings every few decades. So we looked to
best practice that emphasised efficient and creative refurbishing
or to new construction designed for a much longer economic
service life than industrialized countries.
As the inquiry process became more widely known in the communities
where we were focused, they responded to us with two basic
requests: first, teach us how to do things differently and
second, show us examples of best practices in real world
situations.
In response, a number of parallel programmes were spawned
to teach these best practices, such as the Programme for
Islamic Achitecture at Harvard and MIT and the online ArchNet
resource which supports global dialogue and research.
We were challenged with finding ways of making these best
practices available to broad segments of the population
in order to have a continuous and positive effect. In the
developed world, that would mean reaching the middle classes.
In the developing world, it meant making these best practices
accessible to the poor.
We have had some success in this regard through our Historic
Cities Support Programme which we launched to develop best-practice
models in the real world. That programme has been applied
in some of the poorest settlements, many of them in rural
areas. We have shown how human and material resources can
be applied to deteriorated and under-used cultural assets.
The result has been new economic activity and better quality
of life.
So I am pleased that 28 years later, we have had some success
in achieving our original goals. We are gratified that so
many others now are engaged in the cause. We have created
a momentum that has become a self-sustaining and unstoppable
force for change in the human habitat of the Muslim world.
And I am most pleased the principles we have established
are having an impact in much of the developed world as well.
But
there is still much to be done.
Quality
housing remains the most essential need for societies everywhere,
both in rural and urban environments. Industrial facilities
and workplaces are not at a level of excellence that makes
them exceptional.
Rapidly-expanding
urban centres throughout the world lack public parks and
open urban spaces. Problems of transport, congestion and
pollution have too few solutions emerging. The growth of
slums, the consequence of the relentless forces of urbanisation,
has not been stopped or even slowed down.
And
although many fine examples of rural projects have been
represented in past Award cycles, still there are not enough.
I am
also concerned there is still too little attention being
paid to design for communities to protect residents from
the effects of earthquakes, many of them in remote rural
areas. Two million people died as a result of earthquakes
in the last century and 100 million were severely affected.
There are vast populations that live in seismic-sensitive
high-mountain areas where we must focus attention.
And
the massive devastation of the Indian Ocean tsunami has
taught us a terrible lesson that the destructive power of
earthquakes can reach far beyond the initial disturbance.
It will no doubt lead to new thinking and new approaches
toward seaside construction.
So
we are by no means at the end of our task. To quote Churchill,
we may be at the end of the beginning.
I
hope the next quarter century of the Award will contain
as much innovation and surprise as the first. To the extent
that it does, it will be thanks to the many hundreds of
capable individuals who have given so generously, and continue
to give, of their time, their knowledge and their talent.
To all of them, I am enormously grateful.
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