Nov 15 2006
Can we have a carbon-neutral Prime Minister? How can Government lead by example in tackling climate change? When a group of Manchester students were invited to design a new environmentally friendly home and headquarters for the Prime Minister, they soon found out how good design can reduce our impact on the environment.
The students have declared that the current No. 10 Downing Street is unsustainable – a drain on energy and resources. They want the PM and senior politicians to listen to their ideas for its replacement, so they are placing a truck full of their ideas on Horse Guards Parade, London SW1 on Monday 20 – Tuesday 21 November (10am-4pm) in the RIBA’s own “Architruck”.
A panic room, an underwater cabinet room and an organic farm feature in the students’ innovative proposals for a new eco-home and office for the Prime Minister.
Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell MP and Shadow Schools Minister Nick Gibb MP are among the senior politicians that are expected to view the student’s innovative ideas over the two days in the RIBA’s mobile exhibition centre. The exhibition is also open to the public.
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) and the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) have instigated The Green Wing project, working with a group of Year 11 students (aged 15-16) from Cedar Mount High School, a successful inner-city comprehensive in East Manchester. The students were invited by the RIBA and the ICE to take part in this unique project to design an environmentally friendly Prime Minister’s office and residence on Duck Island in St James's Park.
The resulting design gives politicians and the public a real insight into what young people believe represents a suitable contemporary and sustainable residence for the Prime Minister. The school students’ proposal – illustrated in drawings, models, photographs and a film - includes plans for an underwater cabinet room and a ‘panic room’, reflecting the students’ concern about security. An ‘Introduction to the UK room’ and a ‘Multi-faith room’ address social sustainability and reflect the UK’s cultural diversity. Other new elements, missing in the existing No.10, have been proposed such as a ‘Make your feelings known room’ that shows the students’ desire to encourage ordinary people to participate and make suggestions at the very heart of government, while the inclusion of an organic farm and wind turbine provide ecological solutions. The students explored the idea of No.10 Downing Street as national icon and have strived to make the resulting design iconic as well as innovative and contemporary.
Speaking about The Green Wing project, RIBA President Jack Pringle said:
“I was amazed by the students’ ideas. They have produced imaginative designs that are radical and fun while drawing attention to the really serious issues surrounding climate change. It’s a terrific project which has captured the imagination of the students and will, I am sure, captivate politicians and the public alike when it’s on display in the heart of London.”
“The project shows not only that architecture and civil engineering are central to tackling the global challenge of climate change, but also that the built environment is a fantastic educational resource.”
Quentin Leiper, ICE President, added:
“ICE is delighted to be involved in this ground breaking project with the RIBA. The Green Wing highlights the need for our two professions to raise awareness of sustainability issues among politicians and young people.”
The Green Wing at Horse Guards Parade follows its successful debut at the Labour Party Conference in Manchester in September where it was visited by hundreds of people including Cherie Blair, Environment Secretary David Miliband MP and Culture Minister David Lammy MP. Exhibiting in central London provides the opportunity for the student’s ideas to reach a wider audience, to all the political parties and the general public. As well as speaking to politicians and the public about their designs, the students will be shown inside the original No. 10 Downing Street by kind permission of the Prime Minister and Mrs. Blair, tour the Houses of Parliament with their MP Sir Gerald Kaufman, and see the best views of the capital in their own pod on the London Eye, courtesy of VisitLondon and the British Airways London Eye.
The project covers a range of subjects including design, science, geography and citizenship.