In an atmosphere of collegial understanding and friendship

Last week, the sixteenth Alvar Aalto Symposium was experienced in Jyväskylä, a medium-sized university town in Central Finland. Indeed, experienced, because the symposium’s most valuable feature is sharing thoughts and experiences with fellow participants.

This time, the programme included many exquisite presentations and speakers who provided food for thought and much to discuss. For me, the highlights were the beautiful and sensitive medal speech by Yvonne Farrell, Chair of the Alvar Aalto Medal Jury, and Sam De Vocht's presentation on the work and life of medallist Marie-José Van Hee, which conveyed warmth, humanity and relevance of her architecture.

It was important to hear John Schellnhuber’s urgent message again on the climate emergency and the inevitable rise in global average temperatures. As one of the world's leading climate scientists, he also created hope by saying that, although global warming will rise at current rates to well above the Paris Agreement targets by the end of the century, we can stop it at 2.7 degrees Celsius and turn it down so that a hundred years later we will be below the critical 1.5 degrees Celsius. This requires strong and effective climate action now – and especially in the building sector.

Yet a third of the world's population will become climate refugees. I’d already had the chance to hear Schellnhuber last spring in Brussels, and many others have heard him elsewhere, but one can never be too reminded of the issue. Construction has a huge impact. Barnabas Calder stressed in his intensive "Form follows fuel" presentation that, although not everything is the responsibility of architects, one thing certainly is: The architect must tell their client about the environmental impact of design solutions and educate them to choose more climate-friendly options.

This pressing debate is linked to recent efforts by many in the industry, such as the anti-demolition campaign initiated by a group of individuals in Finland. At Archinfo, we have also actively highlighted the themes of conservation and preservation, which we also brought to the Alvar Aalto Symposium stage. For the younger generation of architects, the shift in the way architecture is defined is self-evident, but for many, for example, the inclusion of the role of maintenance as part of the appreciation of architecture still seems to be a hard pill to swallow. Should maintenance be included in the definition of architecture, and how would it be reflected in architecture.

All in all, the well-organised symposium – thanks to the Alvar Aalto Academy and especially to Nina Heikkonen, who kept all the balls in the air – was something even more meaningful than the impressive presentations. The symposium and its side programme, such as excursions to Aalto sites, opened up the opportunity for the Average Joe and Jane to talk to a Pritzker Prize winner, former Prime Minister and climate guru at the same table, without titles and positions. The Alvar Aalto Symposium creates a unique atmosphere of friendship and mutual understanding, a bubble within which the thoughts of all of us are important.

Miina Jutila is an architect and Archinfo's Head of Communications.