What Do Young Architects Think About ESG and Sustainability?

In recent weeks, we came together with architecture students at Istanbul Technical University and conducted a survey to measure their awareness of ESG and sustainability issues. The future role of architecture students in the industry is of great importance and therefore their perception of sustainability will play a critical role in determining the direction of future designs.

Some of the prominent questions and answers in our survey were as follows:

What do you think is the most important element of an architectural project?

We asked the participants what is the most important factor in an architectural project. The responses were as follows:

• Sustainability: %35
• Comfort: %25
• Aesthetics: %20
• Innovation: %20

The fact that sustainability is the most prominent element shows that architecture students may focus on reducing environmental impact in the next generation of projects. This shows that green building certifications and energy efficient designs are becoming increasingly important in architecture.

Do You Know What ESG Means?

All participants answered ‘No’ to this question. This shows that the concept of ESG is not yet sufficiently known in universities and that this issue should be given more space in architectural education. Considering the increasing importance of ESG compliance, especially in the architecture and construction sector, raising this awareness can make a big difference in terms of environmental and social impacts.

What should be the first step for a sustainable world?

According to the architects of the future, the first step towards sustainability is distributed as follows:

• Limiting consumption: %35
• Reforestation works: %30
• Renewable energy utilisation: %20
• Recycling of waste: %15

Participants think that the most critical step towards sustainability is limiting consumption. This shows that resources should be consumed more consciously and that changing individual habits can make a great contribution to sustainability. Afforestation and the use of renewable energy are also important topics.

Conclusion

This survey shows that while architecture students are aware of sustainability, the concept of ESG is still not sufficiently known. In order for the sector to produce more conscious and environmentally friendly projects in the future, it is of great importance to make ESG issues a part of architectural education. It is recommended that everyone who wants to learn more about ESG and sustainability and take steps in this regard should follow these issues closely.

Hope to build a sustainable future together!