Over the last few months I have been considering the changing role of the architect, looking at protection of title, education, diversity, fee scales and procurement. One of the most striking themes I noticed running through all these areas is how the architect must learn to sit outside the easy certainty, in the spaces in-between, the shades of grey.

By nature architects sit between the arts and the sciences. But by necessity they must learn to thrive between innovation and conservation; between collaboration and competition; and between business and academia. Changing times are making this balancing act ever more vital to an architect’s skillset.

Architectural education is currently at a crossroads. There is pressure from many sides for it to become better at practical application. Meanwhile practitioners are being called on to better engage with high-quality, evidence-based research and to increase their participation in RIBA stage 7 and other forms of post-occupancy analysis.

…