Uglification of our cities

DECISIONS are made on the built environment by some politicians, their favored contractors and some profit-centered developers. Good architecture and good urban planning are becoming of lesser importance in the urban development of our built environment. More than ever, there is a pressing need for the Philippine government to establish a National Green Building Code as soon as possible, if we are truly concerned about mitigating the growing problem of environmental degradation and avoiding negative impacts of climate change.

According to Dr. Nirmal Kishnani, “The business case for Greening--that a Green building is a better investment with quicker returns--fails to find an audience in parts of developing Asia where the challenge is not just cost and investment but also quality of life and livelihood. “