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ACE Info 2.05

English language version
The monthly electronic note from the Architects’ Council of Europe
Monday 28^th February 2005

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to the second issue in 2005 of ACE Info, the monthly update from the Architects' Council of Europe that will give you, at a glance, information on current issues, highlighting emerging areas of activity and informing you of matters of interest in the field of architectural policy.

This issue is also available in French.

ACE POLICY ISSUES

COMMISSION CANCELS ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING

The Commission has unilaterally cancelled the announced meeting of the Advisory Committee on Education and Training in Architecture that was scheduled for the 4^th March 2005. The Committee, which was set up under the provisions of the Architects Directive (85/384EC), was due to consider the recommendation of its Working Party on Diplomas, which has issued a negative opinion in relation to an Austrian qualification that the Austrian Government had notified to the Commission in July 2004. This is a serious development as the qualification in question is a Masters of two-years duration that has been devised in the context of the ‘Bologna” reforms to third-level education. The ACE is considering the matter carefully and is consulting its Members on the issue.

SERVICES IN THE INTERNAL MARKET

The proposal of the Commission to introduce a framework directive on Services in the Internal Market has recently hit the headlines in Europe’s mass media as a result of the opposition to the proposal expressed by, among others, the French Prime Minister, Jacques Chirac, and the German Chancellor, Gerhard Schröder. In response the Commission has admitted that there was not enough reflection on the proposal prior to its release and President Barroso has said that the Commission is open to finding the “right approach”, although it is not willing to re-write or withdraw the current proposal. Similar indications were given to the Member States in the context of the Expert Group on Competitiveness and Growth>

Work in the European Parliament is proceeding with an expectation that the rapporteurs report will be available during the month of March. The PES Group recently devoted a week to the subject of the proposal to which it invited representatives of its political family from national parliaments to Brussels to debate the issue. Its objective was to define a “social democrat” response to the challenges raised by the directive. It became clear that there is a split within the group on the issues raised – a clear indication of the gravity and complexity of the issues that the directive addresses.

Others have commented favourably on the furore, stating that it is the first time that an EU legislative proposal has been so widely debated and therefore praising its effect as a true demonstration of European democracy at work.

The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) adopted its opinion on the proposal at its plenary session of the 11^th January 2005. In the opinion the EESC sets down a critical appraisal of the proposed directive and it highlights, in particular, that the introduction of the Country of Origin principle is pre-mature and will remain so until there is further significant harmonisation of legislation and systems across the EU. The text of the opinion, which lists a number of actions that should be undertaken, can be downloaded from:
http://eescopinions.esc.eu.int/viewdoc.aspx?doc=\\esppub1\esp_public\ces\int\int228\en\ces137-2005_ac_en.doc

ACCORD ON CO-OPERATION AND PROFESSIONALISM IN ARCHITECTURE

The ACE, representing the profession of architecture in the Member States of the EU has signed an Accord on co-operation and professionalism in architecture with the Committee of Canadian Architectural Councils (CCAC) and the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC). The CCAC represents the provincial/territorial registration/licensing authorities in Canada and the RAIC represents the profession of architecture in Canada. The purpose of the Accord is to set down the intention of the three organisations to develop a Mutual Recognition Agreement(MRA) containing criteria, procedures and measures for the mutual recognition of diplomas, certificates and practice experience that will result in the enrichment of the architectural profession internationally through the full portability of qualifications within both political and economic entities. It is expected that the MRA will be concluded within one year.

FP6 BROKERAGE AND PARTNERING EVENT FOR THE CONSTRUCTION SECTOR

On the 17^th January 2005, the European Council for Construction Research, Development and Innovation (ECCREDI), held a brokerage for the construction sector on the 6^th Framework Programme of the Commission for Research. The ACE was represented at the event by Jean-Marie Fauconnier, architect, Belgum. He reports that the event provided a valuable opportunity for exchange and presentation of many project proposals and that it was particularly valuable for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises to be informed of opportunities to be involved in Research. Of particular note was a high attendance of companies from the EU-10 and Turkey. Several presentations were made at the event, including one on the European Construction Technology Platform and one on the E-CORE Strategy. The ACE has been closely involved in the development of both of these initiatives.

ACE-UMAR COLLABORATION

The Architects’ Council of Europe (ACE) and the Mediterranean Union of Architects (UMAR) have agreed to engage in exploratory talks on possible collaboration on matters of mutual interest. This follows the address of the UMAR President, Patrick Genet, to the ACE General Assembly in Milan in May 2004. A working group of the UMAR will be established with an observer member from the ACE to explore the issue in more depth before deciding on what form of collaboration is possible given that the two organisations has several Members in common.

NEWS FROM THE ACE NETWORK

UNSFA – 36^TH CONGRESS

The Union des Syndicates Francais des Architectes has announced that it will hold its 36^th Congress on the 6^th, 7^th and 8^th October 2005 at the “Cirque D’Hiver” in La Villette, Paris. The theme of the Congress will be Social Cohesion and Architecture

NEW PREMISES FOR THE IRISH ARCHITECTURAL ARCHIVE

A new building to house the Irish Architectural Archive has been inaugurated in Dublin. It is located at 45 Merrion Square and is the largest of the Georgian houses on the Square. One of the other houses, number 8, is home to the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland – a Member of the ACE. The collections housed by the Archive comprise the largest body of historic architectural records in Ireland and as such constitute a vital national cultural resource. They include the most significant body of historic Irish architectural drawings in the world, with in excess of 250,000 drawings ranging in date from the late seventeenth to the late twentieth centuries. Also housed in the Archive are over 400,000 photographs, making this one of the largest collections of photographs in Ireland, and an extensive reference library, with more than 15,000 items of printed matter. Further information can be found at:
http://www.iarc.ie/45merrion/index.html

THE ARB LAUNCHES AN ELECTRONIC NEWSLETTER

The Architects Registration Board (ARB) of the UK has launched an electronic newsletter. It will be published on a regular basis and it aims to provide registrants with factual reports of the Boards meetings and other information of relevance to architects and users of their work and services. The first issue appeared in February 2005 and it can be read at:
www.arb.org.uk

OTHER MATTERS

SOLAR THERMAL COLLECTORS – PORTUGAL

On the 27^th January 2005, the Portuguese government approved new building regulations whereby new buildings and those undergoing renovation will have to fit solar thermal collectors. The rules are designed to boost an earlier solar hot water initiative that has not achieved its targets. The new regulations will apply to buildings above 1,000m² and will permit the substitution of solar thermal by other renewable energies of equal capacity. The Spanish government has also announced a similar drive in November 2004. Further information from the Portuguese solar industry association at:
www.spes.pt

INTER-MINISTERIAL MISSION ON THE QUALITY OF PUBLIC WORKS

This is an initiative of the French government that tracks developments across the EU in relation to public procurement of buildings. It has a good website (in French only) on which it gathers information from across the EU. Notably it has information on Public Procurement, Architectural Competitions and Public Private Partnerships. It can be consulted at:
www.archi.fr/MIQCP/

COMMISSION PREPARES AIR POLLUTION ACTION PLAN

The European Commission will present, before mid-2005, a new action plan to reduce air pollution. It conducted an internet consultation inviting stakeholder input to its future policy measures that ended in January 2005. It is estimated that about 310,000 people from the EU die pre-maturely because of air pollution and sick leave attributable to air pollution is estimated to cost 20 billion euro per year. For more information see:
http://europa.eu.int/comm/environment/air/cafe/index.htm

LISBON STRATEGY: COMMISSION COMMUNICATION AT SPRING EUROPEAN COUNCIL

On the 3^rd February 2005, the European Commission approved the communication from President Barroso, in agreement with Vice-president Verheugen, addressed to the Spring European Council of the 22^nd and 23^rd March, which will take stock of the mid-term review of the Lisbon Strategy. The communication can be accessed at:
http://europa.eu.int/prelex/detail_dossier_real.cfm?CL=en&DosId=192503

PUBLIC PROCUREMENT – AUTHORITIES CAN PROMOTE GREEN LOCAL PRODUCTS

European public authorities can legally promote regional products with environmental benefits according to a study carried out for the German environment agency. The results of the study were discussed at a workshop in November 2004 with officials from the European Commission. The press release on the report can be accessed at:
http://www.umweltbundesamt.de/uba-info-presse-e/2004/pe04-106.htm

EUROPE’S CAPITALS OF CULTURE ANNOUNCED

The European Parliament’s Culture Committee has approved, without amendment, the Council’s common position listing the countries that will be asked to put forward a candidate for the period 2005 to 2019. The ten new Member states are included as from 2009 and the Council has agreed to guarantee sufficient Community funding for two capitals per year from that date. Here is the new list of countries designated for 2005-2019. In 2007 and 2008, two cities currently outside the EU will take part under an option that allows towns not in the EU to be involved:

2005 Ireland (Cork) www.cork2005.ie/home/default.asp
2006 Greece (Patras)
2007 Luxembourg (Luxembourg City) and Romania (Sibiu)
2008 United Kingdom (Liverpool) and Norway (Stavanger)
From 2009, two countries per year:
2009 Austria – Lithuania
2010 Germany – Hungary
2011 Finland – Estonia
2012 Portugal – Slovenia
2013 France – Slovakia
2014 Sweden – Lithuania
2015 Belgium – Czech Republic
2016 Spain – Poland
2017 Denmark – Cyprus
2018 The Netherlands – Malta
2019 Italy

KYOTO PROTOCOL ENTERS INTO FORCE

On the 16^th February, the Kyoto Protocol on climate change entered into force. It has been signed by 140 countries and has been hailed as the first real step in fight against global warming. There was a wide welcome for the event with much satisfaction being expressed about the leading role that the EU is playing in the process. This is in sharp contrast to the approach of the US and the entry into force of the Protocol was used by many to urge the US to join the protocol and so assist in the preparations for the post-1012 period of the fight. Further information is available at:
http://unfccc.int/essential_background/kyoto_protocol/items/2830.php

ARCHIBALD – THE COMIC STRIP ARCHITECT

With the goal of promoting architecture and enhancing discussion about it, a young Belgian architect has turned away from practice to become a full-time cartoonist. Mike Hermans has a daily architectural cartoon strip that appears in several countries and is also available to view on the following website:
www.maaik.com

PRESCOTT SETS OUT EUROPEAN SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES VISION

On the 1^st February 2005, the Deputy Prime Minister of the UK, John Prescott, launched a drive to develop a European approach to creating sustainable communities. In his keynote address to the “Delivering Sustainable Communities Summit” in Manchester he said that he wants to use the UK Presidency of the European Union to set up a new, Europe-wide framework for creating places where people want to live. At the heart of Mr. Prescott’s initiative will be the UK’s new Academy for Sustainable Communities, which was launched at the conference and will be based in Leeds, England. Further information can be found at:
www.odpm.gov.uk

HOUSING MINISTERS MEETING – PRAGUE

An informal meeting of the EU Ministers for Housing is due to take place in Prague on the 14^th and 15^th March 2005. The theme of the meeting will be the challenge of high-rise residential buildings in Eastern Europe. This is an acknowledgment of the poor state of maintenance of these buildings and of the needs that arise in order to deal with this fact. In the context of the meeting, the Czech Member of CECODHAS, the European Liaison Committee for Social Housing, will host a seminar in Prague on the 14^th March on “The Future of Housing Co-operatives in Europe”. Further information can be found at:
http://www.cecodhas.org/rightclick.cfm?id=1547

PUBLICATIONS

RICS EUROPEAN HOUSING REVIEW

The RICS has published its 2004 review of the state of the housing market in Europe. As the survey information was gathered prior to the Enlargement in 2004 the review only cover the EU-15. It can be downloaded in pdf format at the following address:
http://www.realtor.org/cipshome.NSF/files/RICS%20European%20Housing%20Review%202004.pdf/$FILE/RICS%20European%20Housing%20Review%202004.pdf

DAUGE REPORT ON THE ARCHITECTURAL PROFESSION

The French Senate has published a report on the architectural profession in France. It surveys the current situation for the profession in France, addresses the question of the need to promote quality in architecture and it makes 30 propositions for architecture and the living environment. The full text can be downloaded at:
http://www.senat.fr/rap/r04-064/r04-064.html

EU ENERGY AND TRANSPORT IN FIGURES – 2004

This statistical pocketbook has been published by the Directorate General foe Energy and Transport. It provides an overview of energy and transport statistics for the EU-15 and, where available, for countries from the EU-10 would joined the EU in May 2004. The tables of the book and soe additional information can be found at:
http://europa.eu.int/comm/dgs/energy_transport/figures/pocketbook/index_en.htm

VILLAGE REGENERATION IN AUSTRIA

A book on the regeneration of Austrian villages, with a particular emphasis on recent interventions by architects in the historical centres of the villages has been published by the land of Tirol. Further information and orders for copies can be sought by e-amil to:
[email protected]

LE CORBUSIER PLANS

All of the plans of Le Corbusier are being published as a series of DVD’s. The final set collection will consist of 16 DVD’s and will contain all 35,000 drawings by Le Corbusier that are held by the Le Corbusier Foundation in Paris. The cost of the full set is 5,800 euro excluding VAT, although there is a reduction of 800 euro on orders placed before the 31^st March 2005. Further details can be found from:
[email protected]

EVENTS

SYMPOSIUM: ENABLING COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT IN REGENERATION

Comtechsa, a not-for-profit consultancy organisation, is organising this symposium in the week of the 18^th April 2005. The week will feature a two-day conference followed by a two-day study tour of completed projects. The objective of the symposium is to share experience in working with communities and voluntary groups in the regeneration of their neighbourhoods. Further details can be found at:
www.comtechsa.org

WTO SEMINAR ON CROSS-BORDER SERVICES

The World Trade Organisation (WTO) has announced that it intends to hold a seminar on cross-border trade in services (Mode 1) on the 28^th and 29^th April 2005. The full calendar of event can be consulted at the website of the WTO at:
www.wto.org

CONFERENCE 10 DBMC: DURABILITY OF BUILDING MATERIALS AND COMPONENTS

The triennial DBMC Conference is to be held in Lyon, France from the 17^th to the 20^th April 2005. It is being organised by the CSTB and it will address the issues of durability in the context of the drive towards truly sustainable construction. There will be a “practical day” dedicated to the field experience of innovative tools and approaches related to durability and service life within the building process. Further information at:
www.10dbmc.cstb.fr

SFT ARCHITECTURE CONFERENCE

Systems, Facades, Trends – a conference to be held on the 16^th, 17^th and 18^th March 2005 in Munster, Germany on the topic of innovation in façade design. Full details at:
http://www.sft-congress.de/eng/start.html

BEAUTY AND WASTE IN THE ARCHITECTURE OF HERZOG &DE MEURON

Running from the 22^nd January to the 8^th may 2005, this exhibition explores the unusual use of materials of this important architectural practice. It is running at the Nederlands Architectuurinstituut in Rotterdam. For further information see:
www.nai.nl

USEFUL LINKS

EUROPEAN COMMISSION HOMEPAGE
http://www.europa.eu.int/comm/index_en.htm

SEARCH PAGE FOR COMMISSION DOCUMENTS
http://www.europa.eu.int/prelex/rech_simple.cfm?CL=en

THE BARROSO COMMISSION:
http://europa.eu.int/comm/commission_barroso/index_en.htm

WEBSITE OF THE LUXEMBOURG PRESIDENCY
http://www.eu2005.lu/en (Then choose your preferred language)

SUSTAINABLE BUILDING WEBSITE
www.sustainablebuilding.info

COAC INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS DATABASE:
http://www.coac.net/internacional/default_w.html

CNAPPC DATABASE – ARCHIEUROPE:
http://www.archieuro.archiworld.it

WEBSITE OF THE EUROPEAN CONSTRUCTION TECHNOLOGY PLATFORM:
http://www.ectp.org

EU IMPACT ASSESSMENT IN PRACTICE

Consult a list of impact assessments that the EU has carried out on various legislative packages at:
http://europa.eu.int/comm/secretariat_general/impact/index_en.htm

ACE WEBSITE
http://www.ace-cae.org

USEFUL TIP:

In the website addresses given in ACE Info for the documents of the EU, you will frequently see the following near the end of the address: “_en”. These two letters define the language of the document (English in the case of “en”) and you can usually change these two letters in order to bring you to a different language version as follows:

EDITOR’S NOTE

The editorial board for the compilation of ACE Info is:

The ACE President: Marie-Helene Lucas

The Secretary General of the ACE: Alain Sagne

Senior Advisor to the ACE: Adrian Joyce

ACE Info is normally issued around the second Wednesday of each month. You are free to circulate the document as widely as you wish, to translate its contents for use in your publications and to refer to the information it contains once you credit the ACE as the origin.

If you wish to receive ACE Info regularly and you are not on the mailing list, you can register online at:
http://www.ace-cae.org/Public/fsPublicNetwork_EN.html

If you have information that you wish to have included in the next issue then e-mail it (in English or French please) to:
[email protected] Deadline for submissions is the first Friday of each month.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The editorial board wishes to acknowledge the sources of information for this issue of ACE Info which include Jean-Marie Fauconnier, CEPMC, the Euractiv website (www.euractiv.com) and Bulletin Quotidien Europe.

[email protected] – Comments and contributions welcome

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