Associated Architects took part in the Midlands Arts Centre’s Girls That Geek event for the fourth year running, showcasing how the built environment – and families – can use technology to have an impact on the climate emergency. The event for young women aged 12 and upwards aims to explore opportunities for women working in art and technology. This year’s theme was ‘Sustainable Futures’, examining the role technology can play in supporting sustainable, healthy, and creative lives.
At the event, team members Maria Venturoli, Ruth Logan, and Beth Astington challenged the young women in attendance to make a series of modifications to an average family home via a specially developed online mini-game. The aim of the game was to improve the home’s sustainability credentials and understand changes they could make to their own homes and lifestyles. The team also engaged in wider conversations around the climate emergency and the role we can all play in tackling it, asking the young women to pledge to making one change following the event.
The bespoke mini game was developed in house as a collaboration between the Practice’s INNOVATE, Green, and CREAATE teams for Digital Innovation, Sustainability, and Social Value respectively.
Maks Uljanovs, Associate for Digital Systems and Innovation, representing the INNOVATE team:
“My role and the INNOVATE team are dedicated to the implementation of new digital tools and innovative thinking across the whole spectrum of AA’s work. Drawing from our learning with new technologies – including app building programmes which are more accessible than ever – myself, Pav Barracks-Sahota, and Maria Venturoli from the INNOVATE team relished the chance to get creative with the Green Team and CREAATE to develop this mini game for Girls that Geek. What we have learnt from this task will be developed and implemented into future project work as well as the Practice’s business operations in many ways. We also hope that we have demonstrated to the young women attending the event that app-building technology is accessible – even at their age – and that they can create their own games and apps.”
Ben Barker, Associate, representing the Green Team:
“”Associated Architects has long been dedicated to advancing sustainability. We believe that empowering young people with knowledge is crucial, as they have the potential to play a pivotal role in addressing the climate crisis, beginning with their own homes. Through this event, we aim to inspire the young women present, showing them not only the simple steps they can take today, but also the profound impact they could have in the future. By pursuing careers in architecture or technology, they have the opportunity to shape not only their own living spaces, but the wider built environment towards a more sustainable future.”
Beth Astington, Bid Manager and Social Value Lead, representing the CREAATE team:
“Preparing for this event has enabled three of AA’s Working Groups to collaborate in a new way. We have already started to collaborate with INNOVATE to develop in-house tools, eg. the app we developed to record and measure the steps taken during our STEPtember challenge, but bringing in the Green Team has allowed us to develop this Mini-Game for today’s event. Thank you to all the attendees for engaging with us and the MAC for the invitation to take part.”
