It hasn’t been an easy year, but the resilience of the profession shines through

In February, Ella Jessel’s investigation into the treatment of junior staff in practice made waves (‘Architectural assistants take aim at profession’s “culture of exploitation”’). Her focus on the experience of Part 1 and 2 students, more than 850 of whom signed an open letter to the RIBA, led us to put together an extensive survey of architectural assistants and lift the lid on poor pay and precarious contracts. And it’s spurred us on to redouble our efforts in championing  emerging talent and voices, be that through the AJ Student Prize, our dynamic speed mentoring events, or this year’s AJ100 New Talent initiative.

In September, Richard Waite’s article ‘Uber for architecture reveals aggressive growth plan and £500k crowd-funder’ went stratospheric. The story was so popular because it spoke to real concerns that a new business model could shake up the way that architects do business. It’s a timely reminder that a successful profession needs to be alert to new ways of doing things; to be nimble, flexible, and on the front foot with regard to opportunities – and challenges.

Cathy Slessor’s piece on our AJ100 Contribution to the Profession winner (‘Peter Barber interview: housing’s architectural evangelist’) really resonated. Not just because of Barber’s quiet stature in the sector, but also because of the focus on that key architectural pursuit: providing places for ordinary people to live and thrive. The article also reminded us of architects’ wider remit, as Peter noted: ‘Getting involved in education helps to remove yourself from the here and now and imagine something other than the status quo.’

You’ll likely have your own favourites. For me, Jim Stephenson’s jewel-like, meditative films of the RIBA Stirling Prize 2021 shortlisted projects captured the spirit of strong architecture. Architects want and need to see these buildings – and Jim takes you there.

Our sustainability focus, centred on our RetroFirst campaign, has also stepped up a gear and is evident in so much of the AJ’s award-winning coverage. The campaign has been presented to government, and had its recommendations echoed by the Environmental Audit Committee and in the national media – and retrofit is now a growing approach across architecture. AJ’s ‘RetroFirst stories’ are useful, pithy opportunities to learn from the ways architects have saved buildings from demolition and reimagined them for a successful future – and they’re all well worth a look.

This has not been an easy year. Everyone has had to dig deep: from the climate emergency to pandemic battles; to lockdown last winter to the worry of what this season brings; from personal struggles to business challenges. But the creativity, adaptability and resilience of the profession continues to shine through.

Thank you for your support during 2021; we’re looking forward to informing, inspiring and challenging you throughout 2022 and beyond. In the meantime, we wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas and a peaceful New Year.