Built environment professionals urged to promote climate resilience in projects

Built environment professionals have been called upon to promote climate resilience in projects, support evidence-based regulations and invest in local solutions.

Dorcas Ayeni, a Professor of Architecture at the Federal University of Technology, Akure made the call on Friday during the 2026 (SET) FUTA Annual Lecture and Postgraduate Conference, themed; “Climate Resilient Communities: The role of built environment professionals in the global South held at the T.I Francis Auditorium, FUTA.

Ayeni said; “the Global South stands at a critical crossroads, facing several challenges. Our cities are expanding at unprecedented rates, with urban populations projected to double by 2050. Yet, we face this growth against the backdrop of increasing severe climate impacts across many countries in Africa, particularly in Nigeria, including devastating floods in Lagos and across our cities, prolonged droughts affecting food security, rising temperatures that make our cities nearly uninhabitable, and coastal erosion threatening many communities.

“The statistics are sobering; climate change could push an additional 100 million people in the global South into extreme poverty by 2030, and our infrastructure deficit is estimated at several billion dollars annually.

“But, I stand before you today not in despair, but in determination, because we, the built environment professionals hold the keys to transformative solutions.

“What is our collective responsibility as the built environment professionals? As architects, urban planners, quality surveyors, estate managers, industrial designers, textile designers, surveying and geoinformatics and builders, we shape the physical spaces where life unfolds. Every building we design and construct, every city we plan, and every role we play in the built environment either perpetuates vulnerability or builds resilience. Our input must be a fortress against the climate change of tomorrow.”

Abimbola Tofowomo, a town planner and the Director of the Department of Master Plan, Ondo State Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development, who was honoured with the 2026 School of Environmental Technology (SET) Conference Sponsors (Special Recognition Award) of the Federal University of Technology, Akure tasked his fellow professionals to be upright, do a lot of diligence and support upcoming planners in order to put them at rise in terms of their foundational upbringing.

“I can say that the award given to me today it’s a special recognition in terms of my contribution to the efforts and works of the postgraduate school in FUTA and I feeling very elated,” he said.

Adenike Oladiji, the Vice Chancellor (FUTA) in her earlier address said the theme of this year’s conference, “Climate Resilient Communities: The role of built environment professionals in the Global South,” was both timely and profoundly relevant.

Oladiji, who spoke at the event through the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Development), Sunday Oluyamo said that across the global south, the impacts of climate change, ranging from extreme weather events and environmental degradation to housing insecurity and infrastructure stress are no longer distant projections but lived realities.

According to her, “these challenges demand solutions that are context-specific, innovative, inclusive and sustainable. The built environment sits at the heart of this conversation. We shape the spaces in which people live, work and interact. It is therefore imperative that built environment professionals rise to the responsibility of designing and managing communities that can withstand, adapt to and recover from climate-induced shocks.”