An Interview With Monica Sanders
“Look for optimal climates to optimize performance”
According to the University of Colorado, “Those who are most affected and have the fewest resources to adapt to climate change are also the least responsible for the greenhouse gas emissions — both globally and within the United States.” Promoting climate justice is an incredibly important environmental responsibility that is slowly becoming more and more recognized. In this interview series, we are talking to leaders who are helping to promote sustainability and climate justice. As part of this series, we had the pleasure of interviewing Ross Wimer.
Mr. Wimer leads AECOM’s national architectural design practice. His projects range from industrial design to city planning to super tall buildings and have been built in 30 cities on five continents. Mr. Wimer is known for exploring the link between architecture and engineering, and for an emphasis on the environmental performance of design. Mr. Wimer’s projects have been published widely and shown at distinguished art exhibitions and institutions such as the Venice Biennale, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Museum of Modern Art in New York. His projects have also received numerous awards, including three Progressive Architecture awards. Mr. Wimer continues an active relationship with academia as a visiting design critic at Harvard University, Yale University, Columbia University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Southern California Institute of Architecture, UCLA, USC, Parsons, Illinois Institute of Technology, and the University of Illinois — Chicago.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Everyone has a cataclysmic moment or marker in their life which propels them to take certain actions, a “why”. What is your why?
An important marker in my life took place in 1979. I took part in a research program funded by the National Science Foundation on the Juneau Ice Field in Alaska. With the Foundation for Glacier and Environmental Research we spent four months collecting data on the climate that was beginning to form the understanding of how we are affecting our environment. The data showed that the snowfall that feeds the Alaskan glaciers was significantly decreasing, and this was one of the early indications of global warming. This experience gave me an early insight into the climate issues we are trying to address today.
You are currently leading an organization that is making a difference for our planet. Can you tell us a bit about what you and your organization are trying to change?
There are many companies which are trying to make a positive impact on our planet. My company, AECOM is very large, so we feel that our actions can have a significant impact because of the scale of their application. We are a professional services firm, so this takes place in our own internal policies and practices which we control, but also more importantly, in the work we create for others that mitigates and adapts for climate change. For instance, in our design work we are able to help clients adapt their sites to protect against climate change with the introduction of elevated waterfront parks that anticipate sea level rise. Within our architecture practice we have changed the way we view our work. Although the focus of our effort on the functionality of a design and service to its internal program, we are also looking outside the project to address how it enhances its neighborhood and community. Energy efficiency is part of the process as that will serve the owner and end users but by mitigating carbon a building also makes a contribution to the climate as a whole.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company or organization?
My work with AECOM has taken me many unusual places. When we were designing a new development on the coast of the Red Sea our client flew us by helicopter to the remote nearly inaccessible site. This is a rugged location where the desert meets the sea and at first glance appears to be desolate and unforgiving. When we were able to explore the site further over the course of the day, we found a unique beauty in natural rock formations nearby and beneath the water we found a remarkable display of color and life. Our unique and environmentally sensitive design solution tapped into the hidden worlds within the rocks and beneath the sea.
None of us can be successful without some help along the way. Did you have mentors or cheerleaders who helped you to succeed? Can you tell us a story about their influence?
I have been fortunate to have extraordinary mentors, notably Rafael Moneo and Alvaro Siza, who were my professors at Harvard. Professor Moneo once told me that my project, although beautiful, “would be dynamited” because of what it would do to the community it was placed in. This is a good thing for a slightly overconfident student to hear. David Childs and Marilyn Taylor who guided me professionally in my years at Skidmore Owings & Merrill. Both formed great role models for how to lead a design process with a large team and how to work with a client to create successful projects. In addition, I think there are key aspects in our upbringing that give us our perspective for viewing the world. My mother was a painter, and my father was trained as an engineer. I feel that my work falls between art and science and borrows from aspects of both. While architecture can be viewed as large scale sculpture, if it strays too far from what is practical or efficient then it fails. If it is too rigorous and defined only by functional performance it falls short of its poetic potential, so a careful balance is required.
Thank you for that. Let’s now move to the central part of our discussion. Let’s start with a basic definition of terms so that everyone is on the same page. What does climate justice mean to you? How do we operationalize it?
Climate justice is a term that is just emerging and is becoming more critical as our climate continues to change due to human activity. The definition of climate justice stems from the issue that the adverse effects of climate change such as sea level rise and extreme weather can have a disproportionate impact on vulnerable underserved communities. This is most evident in the effects of recent hurricanes like Katrina in New Orleans where poor neighborhoods were hard hit and even today have not been completely rebuilt. The first step toward achieving climate justice is raising awareness. This is beginning to happen, as shown by the proceedings at the United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP27 in November. One of the key outcomes of COP27 is a resolution to establish a fund for loss and damage from extreme weather for developing countries.
Science is telling us that we have 7–10 years to make critical decisions about climate change. What are three things you or your organization are doing to help?
In fact, we are probably 10 years late in making significant reductions in the production of greenhouse gases that are the major contributors to climate change, and we are now seeing the results in the form of increased f tornado and hurricane activity among other consequences. It is critical that we move quickly to alter the way we relate to our climate. At AECOM we are working with our clients to do three of the things that are essential to this. One is the mitigation of both operational and embodied carbon. We are adjusting the way we build, to use materials that have less embodied carbon and limit the amount of high embodied carbon materials. For instance, this means making buildings more structurally efficient so there is less steel and concrete in the project. We are also designing more energy efficient buildings that demand less use of fossil fuels so that reduces operational carbon. Second, we are helping guide our clients in the transition to clean energy. One way we do this is through our planning efforts for new cities that can generate their own electricity through wind and solar power. Third we are helping communities mitigate against the effects of climate change. One example of this is incorporating elevated sea walls into the waterfront parks we design so they protect the adjacent community against sea level rise.
Are there three things the community, society, or politicians can do to help you in your mission?
I think that the mission could be understood as altering our behaviors to create a better relationship with our planet. Three ways others can help the mission are awareness, discussion, and action. The first step is to spread awareness of the challenges that we face. This is through communicating accurate information about climate change. Once the community has a clearer understanding of what the issues are that can promote a constructive discussion about solutions. Based on this, concrete actions can follow. I could see this in a recent workshop we held at the University of Houston. A group of high school students described the community garden and recycling projects they were involved with in their own neighborhoods and how those efforts were affecting positive change. Their communities understood the challenges, discussed solutions and put them into action. These are small efforts, but if taken on in a more widespread way they can have a measurable positive impact since reducing consumption and waste and increasing recycling is part of the movement towards climate justice.
How would you articulate how a business can become more profitable by being more sustainable and more environmentally conscious? Can you share a story or example?
This is a particularly fitting question as AECOM is a large publicly traded company and we are committed to running our business in a more environmentally conscious and sustainable way. For instance, we track our carbon utilization and have policies in place to limit travel and waste. These measures have the collateral benefit of a healthier lifestyle for our workforce. This relates to my own experience, since in order to serve our client’s needs have flown over 5 million miles over the last 30 years, which comes to about 4,000 miles a week. Today I travel less than that per month.
This is the signature question we ask in most of our interviews. What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started promoting sustainability and climate justice” and why? Please share a story or example for each.
1. “Don’t start with sustainability” When I was designing Changi Airport Terminal 3 in Singapore, I had an idea for a roof that would hover like a cloud over the passenger processing areas. The cloud form would control the amount of sun coming in so that the passenger experience would be enhanced by natural light throughout the day and support an ambitious program of interior landscaping. I felt that this would make for a great experience and one that was appropriate to the garden city of Singapore. I found that once we realized this vision, it also gave us excellent environmental performance with a significant reduction in energy use. We achieved a sustainable solution by focusing on the human experience rather than the technology normally associated with those efforts.
2. “Make no small plans” I was working with a large team to design the expansion of New York’s largest rail station Pennsylvania Station in a project that is now known as Moynihan Station. We worked very closely with our cost estimators and technical experts to develop a design that was within the client’s budget since the projected financing was coming from a limited resource. We came to the realization that we needed to expand the scope and ambition of the design and go far beyond the budget to create the level of excitement that could generate the necessary funding. In addition to creating interest that drove the financing, the expanded design allowed us to get more daylight and fresh air into the station leading to a more sustainable result. The lesson was that sometimes a big, exciting design can attract enough excitement to pay for itself and fund a better environmental result.
3. “Ambitious form can enhance performance” For Cayan Tower, a large residential building in Dubai, I designed a twisting form 1000 feet tall that pushed the limits for tall building structural engineering. The primary driver for the form was to achieve improved views from units in the upper part of the tower from a site that is perpendicular to the desired orientation. The twisted shape faces the upper part of the tower toward the Arabian Gulf which improves the value of the units. We tested the design in a wind tunnel and discovered that the shape gave us structural benefits versus an extruded form. This allowed us to reduce the amount of concrete in the structure and hence minimize the embodied carbon.
4. “Look for optimal climates to optimize performance” At one point I was designing projects in Bogota, Colombia and Kunming, China. As we looked at ways to tune the architecture to the environment it became apparent that both sites were unique in that the climate was mild and very consistent throughout the year. By carefully shaping the architecture, we were able to achieve a very high performance with passive systems that limited both embodied and operational carbon. In the future, as it becomes even more critical to leave a minimal impact on the environment, the places we build may be more distinctly defined by their climate than other factors.
5. “Define design” When I joined AECOM, I was able to meet with our top leaders from multiple business lines and I was surprised to learn that when we speak of “design” that term does not always carry the same meaning. Construction experts and engineers often see design as a decorative effort which is counter to efficiency. Conversely, I have found that the best design work is a product of an ambitious vision and the leadership of the process to make it, and imbedded in good design is efficiency, logic and performance. The digital tools available to us now allow for better and faster results and the extension of design techniques beyond buildings, to larger systems that have an impact on the environment. The goal to achieve ambitious levels of sustainability and climate justice will be served by the communication of a better definition of the meaning of design.
Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would like to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. 🙂
Thomas Friedman of the New York Times. To me, Thomas is one of the most interesting commentators on the forces that have brought us to the current situation. His writing technique makes the complex issues we see in globalization and technology more intellectually accessible.
How can our readers continue to follow your work online?
Instagram @ross_wimer, LinkedIn
This was very meaningful, thank you so much. We wish you only continued success on your great work!
About the Interviewer: Monica Sanders JD, LL.M, is the founder of “The Undivide Project”, an organization dedicated to creating climate resilience in underserved communities using good tech and the power of the Internet. She holds faculty roles at the Georgetown University Law Center and the Tulane University Disaster Resilience Leadership Academy. Professor Sanders also serves on several UN agency working groups. As an attorney, Monica has held senior roles in all three branches of government, private industry, and nonprofits. In her previous life, she was a journalist for seven years and the recipient of several awards, including an Emmy. Now the New Orleans native spends her time in solidarity with and championing change for those on the frontlines of climate change and digital divestment. Learn more about how to join her at: www.theundivideproject.org.
How Ross Wimer Of AECOM Is Helping to Promote Sustainability and Climate Justice was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.