A year ago we reflected on the polycrisis that we were, and are still, in; and therefore the need for all sectors to collaborate and act with a determined urgency. Dates such as 2030, 2050, when critical targets are due to be met, are getting ever closer, but our current actions, or lack of them, means that we are unlikely ever to meet them. 

Examining the ‘polycrisis’ there are critical issues at every turn.

Carbon! There is the urgent need to reduce carbon emissions from fossil fuels. To date, emissions have been rising and Ed Hawkins has added an even deeper red line to his climate stripes as 2025 was the third warmest year on record ever.[1]

Nature! It is said repeatedly that the UK is amongst the most nature depleted countries in the world. The government has committed to 30 x 30 which means 30% of land and sea  is protected, connected and managed for nature’s recovery by 2030. [2] The most optimistic estimate as of 2025 puts no more than 7% of the land as good for nature and  some estimates put it lower than that.

Equity and social justice! In terms of income inequality, the UK ranks 9^th least equal amongst 38 OECD countries and, according to the Office for National Statistics, our wealth inequality much greater than income inequality. The top fifth takes 36% of the country’s income and 63% of the country’s wealth, while the bottom fifth has only 8% of the income and only 0.5% of the wealth.[3] This is , of course, reflected in a lower quality of housing, education, access to nature and levels of health and wellbeing in large areas of the population – issues that were clearly highlighted during the Covid 19 pandemic. There is a responsibility for all of us to ensure transgenerational equity and not feel that we can squander the planet’s resources today! 

In the National Emergency Briefing held in November 2025, Lt-General Richard Nubee reminded us that the army is taught to assess the threat as it is and not as it would like it to be. Good advice!

Where to start?

There is a general consensus that it is vital for our political leaders to provide the leadership and policy framework for dealing with the polycrisis, to which built and natural environment professionals can respond.

Given the government’s commitment to building 1.5 million homes during the life of this parliament – with now less than 4 years remaining on the clock – how should the sector be responding? Futurebuild will be debating where those homes should be built and the types of accommodation needed, especially in the context of a growing affordability crisis that has produced a critical need for social housing. Should we be building new towns? Is the Oxford-Cambridge ‘arc’ the best place for growth when it is in an area already severely water challenged, or should there be more focus on balancing the country as a whole – between north and south?

Although the Planning and Infrastructure Act is meant to underpin the delivery of the housing target it also includes a much-contested section on nature, raising concerns about the government’s commitment to achieving the 30 x 30 target. Much will depend on the effectiveness of Environmental Delivery Plans, the controversial Nature Restoration Fund and, most fundamentally, on the maintenance and restoration of the environment being achieved in parallel with development and ‘growth’. There is much to discuss.

What can we do as built and natural environment professionals?

Government, following publication of the Final Report on the Grenfell Tower disaster, is also taking significant interest in the competence of professionals in the built environment sector.

We should be able to say that we are competent in all the areas in which we work, but can we? The built and natural environment education system should also be sure that it is producing competent individuals as they transition to professional status – but can it? The competence debate has so far focused on building safety, but there are many other areas, including sustainability, social impact, technology, accessibility and economic value that also need to be covered as we go forward. What might an effective competence regime look like, one that doesn’t overburden the professions or stymie innovation? How do updated codes of professional ethics and practice help both professionals and clients work in this new demanding landscape?

AI may have a well-composed answer to this but, as professionals, we need to find ways to ensure that it is the right one for planet and society.

• Day 1 of the conference has a session on this as well as a focus on the circular economy and reuse
• Day 2 covers the overall policy framework; why we need a nature positive built environment and the challenges of regenerative practice; while
• Day 3 focuses on taking action; delivering sustainable social housing at scale, delivering the Net Zero Carbon Building Standard, making a climate difference and examining what young professionals across the industry would like to have made a firm reality by 2030.

2026 represents 21 years of Futurebuild – a coming of age.  How do we inspire a collective desire not only across our industry but generally, that this is the time for action and we can’t afford to miss it?

Written by

The Edge

[1] https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cp9j0yy84leo

[2] https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/30by30

[3] https://equalitytrust.org.uk/scale-economic-inequality-uk/