Words matter. Especially in architecture, where language sets the brief, secures the funding and guides everything from placemaking to planning policy. So, when terms like equality, sustainability and inclusion begin disappearing from official guidance – whether across the Atlantic or more subtly here at home – it’s time to pay attention.

The US has seen recent high-profile rollbacks of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) and Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) commitments, affecting how government agencies, cultural institutions and even design professionals can describe their work. And while the UK hasn’t followed suit, the potential ripple effect is real: softening language, second-guessing strategies and growing hesitancy around terms that have long been part of our shared architectural vocabulary.

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