Demolition Take Down
Type: Public Engagement & Research
Client: Creative Ireland, Creative Climate Action Spark Fund II
Location: Nationwide
Stage: On going
Published: RTE Brainstorm
Demolition Take Down is a research and engagement initiative aimed at revolutionising Ireland's demolition practices. The Irish construction industry accounts for 6% of the employed population, but generates 48% of all waste produced in Ireland.
We seek to uncover the underlying motivations behind demolition practices in Ireland. Through explorative research and cross-disciplinary conversations, we aim to spark a shift in attitudes and behaviours within the construction industry.
Our existing buildings represent energy already expended and effort exhausted. To demolish a building and replace it with a new one repeats the environmental impact on the same site. The culture needs to change to one where adaptive reuse is valued over and above demolition and replacement buildings.
This project is a call to action for policy makers, decision makers, councils, construction industry works, clients and the public to take climate action now.
Public attitudes are the life and death of a building.
The installation shows the 146 tonnes generated by the construction industry on behalf of each person in Ireland.
The installation was a conversation-starter and an opportunity to engage with the public and wider construction industry on the topic of demolition.
The first phase of the project was launched with the focus on the engagement of the construction industry through a survey and interviews. This phase sought to understand some of the reasons why existing buildings are often demolished and the challenges of adapting them for reuse.
The second phase extended to third-level education with a collaboration between TU Dublin's School of Architecture, Building and Environment and School of Surveying and Construction Innovation.
A large outdoor installation at IMMA was the third phase of the initiative and combines all of the research that has been uncovered during previous phases. It was designed in response to our research and conversations.
The Demolition Take Down installation was a key feature of the Earth Rising festival at IMMA and Culture Night 2024. In support of the installation a series of public talks, film screenings and public engagement surveys took place over a weekend in September.
Research: Islander Architects
Photography: Brian Cregan & Islander Architects
Funded by: Demolition Take Down is funded by Creative Ireland's Creative Climate Action Fund funded by the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport & Media in collaboration with the Department of the Environment, Climate & Communications. The installation at IMMA is funded by Creative Ireland, Building Change, IPUT Real Estate, the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland (RIAI) and the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland (SCSI).
