The Howard Liddell Memorial Lecture Series: ECO-MAX
Howard Liddell OBE was a co-founder of SEDA in 1991. Howard was acknowledged as one of the leading ecological design architects in Europe, with forty years experience in brief setting, design, consultation and procurement at the forefront of sustainable development of the built environment. His international experience in Building Biology, Ecological Design, Sustainable Development Masterplanning and Community Architecture ranged from a firm basis in practice, to research, teaching, training and facilitation work. When Howard died in 2013, he was working on a book, Eco-max: the carbon free lectures, about pioneers of ecological design and their legacy. It was intended to discuss the many under represented issues around sustainability through the voice of his heroes.
In 2015 Howard’s widow, Sandy Halliday, gave SEDA's first Howard Liddell memorial lecture on this theme - an overview of the heroes - incorporating a think piece, A short history of good ideas. The 2nd memorial lecture in 2016 focused on the life of Rachel Carson with a film and a play about Rachel’s life. In 2017 under the banner “everything must go somewhere” the focus was on Barry Commoner with several regional screenings of A Plastic Ocean. In 2018 we looked at the life of Ian McHarg and in 2019 several people contributed to an event on housing. This focussed on the legacy of Sherry Arnstein. The various outputs can be found here.
Future lectures will look to James Lovelock, Fritz Schumacher, Buckminster Fuller and Patrick Geddes.
2015 - HOWARD LIDDELL obe MEMORIAL LECTURE
A short history of good ideas looked at all of the pioneers
2016
RACHEL CARSON
The 2nd memorial lecture looked at the life and legacy of Rachel Carson. The event was made up of four consequetive parts: The Lecture, the film, the play and the follow up of her life.
Carson was a scientist and author of Silent Spring (1962) that presented a vision of a town and surroundings silenced by the impact of chemicals. She is considered hugely influential in changing attitudes to environmental toxicity. This focus caused significant interest and led to multiple screenings of the Swedish Film Underkastelsen by Stefan Jarl
The attached is a film of the discussion following one screening
Another Kind of Silence – by Liz Rothchild
Liz is a performer, celebrant and award winning burial ground owner. For a number of years she has been performing her one-person show about Rachel Carson. The play is currently restricted due to copyright but Liz was ably to give the audience a flavour of the content.
Review: “ This beautifully modulated piece of work, written and performed by Liz Rothschild, was a real eye-opener. Rothschild really lived the role: thoroughly inhabiting the skin of her character and presenting her with calm assurance and gentle humour. A backscreen showing attractive nature slides, a soundtrack of birdsong and a minimal setting with its little vase of real flowers added so much to the telling of Carson's story."
The play is currently restricted due to copyright but Liz was able to give the audience a flavour of the content.
2017
BARRY COMMONER / A PLASTIC OCEAN
The 3rd memorial lecture looked at the life and legacy of Barry Commoner and the timely showing of the film A Plastic Ocean. Commoner was the founder of modern ecology and one of its most provocative thinkers and mobilizers in making environmentalism a people’s political cause.
2018
IAN MCHARG-THE GENESIS OF URBAN ECOLOGY
The 4th memorial lecture looked at the life and legacy of Ian McHarg, who was a Scottish Landscape Architect and writer on regional planning using natural systems. Born in Clydebank in 1920, he went on to found the department of landscape architecture at the University of Pennsylvania in the United States. His 1969 book Design with Nature pioneered the concept of ecological planning and remains a seminal book on landscape architecture and land-use planning.
Iain McHarg - The Genesis of Urban Technology - Full Lecture - Professor Sandy Halliday CEng Hon FRIAS
2019
sherry arnstein
The 5th memorial lecture looked at the life and legacy of Sherry Arnstein, who was the author of the seminal paper in the field of participatory decision making “The Ladder of Citizen Participation” through the eyes of a number of people involved in Scottish Housing.
Introduction: The Legacy of Sherry Arnstein - Professor Sandy Halliday CEng Hon FRIAS
The Great Scottish Housing Disaster:
Indoor Air Quality, Asthma and Public Health
Dr Stirling Howieson
Housing Fit For Purpose:
The role of Post Occupancy Evaluation
Professor Fionn Stevenson
Scotland’s Housing:
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Andy Wightman-MSP
Howard L Liddell OBE B.Arch RIBA, RIAS, M.ARB (1945 – 2013)
Howard founded Gaia Architects in 1984 on the twin expertise of community architecture and sustainable design. He was a founder member of GAIA International - a worldwide federation of ‘green’ architects and planners. Howard held the only A* RIAS award in sustainable design for his innovative application of sustainable development principles in the built environment. He was for several years a lecturer at Oslo School of Architecture and developed a green agenda with his first cohort, and he taught international students at the Oslo Summer School for 25 years.
As designer or consultant he was associated with the very best green/eco planning and architectural projects. The Hunter Crescent regeneration in Perth under his stewardship and that of his good friend Drew Mackie blossomed into the Fairfield housing scheme and earned a World Habitat Award. He achieved an international sustainability award for the exemplary Glencoe Visitor Centre.
He received the UK House of the year award in 1992 for the Bourne House at Weem and shared wry humour with his friends that the architectural profession could only see architecture (or) green buildings – never that the two could - and must - be synergized. Working with his wife, engineer and researcher, Sandy Halliday, he was able to fulfill his ambitions to pursue innovation through to construction and post occupancy evaluation in numerous projects. At Toll House Gardens – designed as affordable Allergy Free Housing, McLaren Leisure Centre – demonstrating dynamic insulation, the Straw Bale Office at Dunning and healthy refurbishment at Nicolson St. His most recent architectural projects, Plummerswood Active House, Glentress mountain biking centre, Acharacle School were all in the Howard style - innovative use of good wood to provide a better environment for communities. Others seemed to think that compromise was necessary. He honoured that it was not.
His publications included:
Eco-minimalism: The antidote to eco-bling, published by RIBA Publications in 2007 and 2013
Design and Construction of Sustainable Schools, 2 volumes, with Halliday S.P., and Chapman B., published by Scottish Executive 2005. Free to download at: www.ads.org.uk/design-construction-of-sustainable-schools
Design for toxic chemical reduction in buildings with Halliday S.P., and Gilbert J., published by Scottish Government 2008. Free to download at: www.seda.uk.net/design-guides
You can find out more about Howard and his work with Gaia Architects at : http://gaiagroup.org/