London Skyline in 2005. (Licensed by CC BY-SA 3.0). Image Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons User: Mewiki
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has appointed fifty “Design Advocates” to support his efforts in ensuring that development across the British capital is “high-quality, inclusive, and sustainable.” Well-known names—such as Sir David Adjaye, Peter Murray and Alison Brooks—have been nominated alongside a broad range of architects, activists and thinkers, including Russell Curtis, Daisy Froud, Dan Hill, Richard Lavington, Tom Holbrook, Rory Hyde, Adam Khan, and Maria Smith.
The appointments coincide with the launch of the “Good Growth by Design” programme, which intends to “enhance the design of buildings and neighbourhoods for all Londoners” as the city’s population heads towards ten million inhabitants.
According to the Office of the Mayor of London, the programme intends to:
- Set ambitious design standards.
- Apply these standards and undertake rigorous design reviews.
- Increase capacity by launching a new social enterprise – ‘Public Practice’ – that will place talented designers and planners in local authorities for up to a year, plugging the skills gap and creating a sense of common endeavour in enhancing London’s built environment.
- Support diversity by pushing the firms that City Hall commissions to do much more to tackle the under-representation of women and people from minority groups in the built environment professions.
- Use open procurement processes such as design competitions to seek the highest standards for public projects.
- Lead by example, with the Greater London Authority being champions of good growth by advocating best practice to support success across the sector.
Speaking on his appointment, Sir David Adjaye reinforced the urgency of the challenges the programme faces. “Predictions,” he said, “of unprecedented growth within our capital urgently necessitate exceptional leadership and unparalleled design strategies in order for London to thrive as a successful and sustainable world city. But how also do we create and shape a city that benefits everyone, a city with inclusivity and diversity at its heart?”
Other Design Advocates include:
- Indy Johar
- Paul Karakusevic
- Vincent Lacovara
- Sunand Prasad
- Christopher Lee
- Hilary Satchwell
- Laura Mazzeo
- Hiro Aso
- Joanna Averley
- Rachel Bagenal
- Clara Bagenal George
- Claire Bennie
- Dinah Bornat
- Andy von Bradsky
- Adam Brown
- Peter Coleman
- John Dales
- Irene Djao-Rakitine
- Alex Ely
- Liza Fior
- Kathryn Firth
- Alice Fung
- Roger Hawkins
- Wayne Hemingway MBE
- Dipa Joshi
- Lynn Kinnear
- Julian Lewis
- Holly Lewis
- Sadie Morgan
- Lucy Musgrave
- Fabienne Nicholas
- David Ogunmuyiwa
- Elsie Owusu OBE
- Julia Park
- Sowmya Parthasarathy
- Manisha Patel
- Monica von Schmalensee
- Fiona Scott
- Neil Smith
- Paloma Strelitz
- David West
News via Mayor of London
