AIA UK Board Statement On Systemic Racial Injustice

Dear Members,

I hope this message finds you well. At our AGM in January, I mentioned the updates to our mission statement, which now reads:  

To serve members and the architectural community of the UK by:

• Providing relevant and innovative educational opportunities;

• Promoting ethical and inclusive practices in the architectural industry;

• Promoting good design in all aspects of the built environment;

• Advocating on behalf of the profession in the context of our position in the local community;

• Acting as a liaison between AIA jurisdictions and local UK organisations;

• Facilitating interaction and communication between members, other professionals and industry leaders; and

• Leading and supporting the adoption of progressive initiatives that address the urgent challenge of climate change.

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion are key tenets of our organisation's mission statement. 
As we slowly emerge from the current pandemic and the debates that this has provoked regarding the environment and new sustainable ways forward, we must also address the issues prompting the racial injustice protests and debates taking place in the US, here and abroad. These events are a clarion call to action for all of us to tackle these deep rooted structural inequality issues, and as an organisation, we will look within and double our efforts on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion. Our design juries, speakers, lectures, movie series and other programmes have been getting more diverse and inclusive, but we have a lot more to do! 

We will continue our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion initiatives, and keep working harder to ensure that our programmes reflect diverse heritages, life experiences and backgrounds. We will push to ensure that our programmes bring together the different people who make and shape our cities and towns, from members of the community, to students and educators, civic groups and local authorities, as well as architects, designers and developers. Architecture and the design industry is for people of all backgrounds, capabilities, ages and identities, and as such our programming will encompass this.

As AIA National recently stated: The important work starts with each of us. It is our responsibility to work together to break down the barriers that exist in architecture school and continue into the workplace. (Please read the full statement from the AIA National Board HERE).

To bring these issues to the forefront, we have revised and added to our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion resources on our website HERE. Additionally we have implemented the position of an Equity, Diversity and Inclusion chairperson to drive this mission further. Please email: edi@aiauk.org for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion matters.

Please let us know if you have any ideas on how we can improve as an organisation in achieving these key tenets of our mission statement, or if you can assist in any way with helping us achieve them. 

Thank you!

On behalf of the Board,

Christopher S.M. Musangi, AIA
2020 President.