AJ Climate Champions podcast: Harry Paticas on low-carbon retrofit of primary schools

Hattie Hartman and her co-host George Morgan interview change-makers and innovators who are transforming architecture by designing in ways that respect planetary boundaries. Our six champions offer inspiration as well as sharing essential knowledge about design in an era of climate emergency.

With a team that grew from one person to six during lockdown, Paticas is preparing retrofit strategies for five Lewisham primary schools with community engagement at the heart of the process. Equipping children with thermal cameras and teaching them rudimentary building physics with baked potatoes, Paticas is expanding the reach of his retrofit know-how.

And in a quick news round-up, co-hosts Hattie Hartman and George Morgan share views on ACAN’s student activism campaign, greenwashing and Passivhaus myth-busting.

You can catch up on previous episodes of AJ Climate Champions – featuring Maria Smith, Annalie Riches, Sofie Pelsmakers, Diana Dina, Sarah Wigglesworth, Anna Heringer, Owen Hatherley and Will Hurst – here.

Find Climate Champions on your favourite podcast app: subscribe via Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Deezer and Podbean

About Harry Paticas

After more than a decade at Arboreal Architecture, the practice he co-founded in 2007, Paticas left in January 2021 to work full-time on RAFT, Retrofit Action for Tomorrow, a Lewisham-based community enterprise he founded that promotes low-carbon retrofit in primary schools. RAFT combines professional retrofit expertise with a hands-on educational programme with students, teachers and parents.

RAFT grew out of Paticas’ experience involving his son in the Passivhaus EnerPHit retrofit of his own home, a 1980s mid-terrace in London’s Honor Oak.

Show notes: resources mentioned in this episode

News round-up

• StuCAN, ACAN’s student network, supports collective action for curriculum reform across UK architecture schools. StuCAN recently launched a detailed starter pack that explains how to set up a student climate action group at any university.
• Climate Responsive Design, FCBStudios
• Negroni talk on Greenwashing
• Sabrina Syed in the AR on greenwashing
• ACAN Passivhaus Mythbusting