“Making Cities Work”, Ireland’s single biggest challenge, is the provisional title of the theme of this years’ conference, to be held in Bordeaux (October 1st – 5th 2008).

Members (and non-members) of the RIAI may already be familiar with Bordeaux. If not, they will be familiar with its wine and its many historic associations with Ireland.

The current (elected) mayor, Alan Juppe, (former French Prime Minister, who hopefully will address the conference) is identified with the radical transformation of the public realm, of what until very recently, was a city in apparently terminal decline.

The Director of Urbanism, Francis Cuellier, a speaker at the conference, came to Bordeaux following remarkably successful interventions in the renewal of Strasbourg and Grenoble, linked strategically to the provision of high quality tram centred public transport of which Dublin’s “LUAS” is a derivative.

Michel Desvigne, one of France’s most eminent landscape architects, also a guest speaker, is credited with the detailed design of the public realm and is now embarked on a radical “greening” project for the city region.

The “Conference Day” will offer members an opportunity to hear how another governance system set about realising a radical vision. There will also be contributions from local architects who will present educational and housing projects in the renewed city.

Professional english-speaking guides from ‘l’Arc en Reve’, a remarkable institution for the promotion of architecture and urbanism, will lead a series of tours, which will also be accompanied by the project architects and landscape architects. One of these will be to “Pessac”, Le Corbusiers infamous housing project, long cited by conservatives as a monument to the failure of modernism. It is currently going through a radical process of regeneration. By way of innovation, the conference will be graced by the presence of our own “Bard” in the person of Theo Dorgan, poet, sailor, francophone and keen observer of architecture and life.

It is hoped that the conference will also be graced by the presence of leaders of our sister professions, county and city managers and commissioners from the Office of Public Works.

The Institute is currently seeking sponsorship to support the presence of students from all of our schools. A range of accommodation is available to delegates to suit all budgets.

It is my earnest hope that younger members will attend, in numbers, and that the conversation ensuing from Bordeaux will continue to be developed further at the 2009 conference to be held in Limerick.

Direct flights are available from Dublin and with Aer Arran from Waterford. Potential delegates are advised to book early, but also be mindful that Bordeaux is readily accessible from Paris and Biarritz by train. Indeed the city can be accessed in a variety of modes. There will be a prize for the delegate with the lowest carbon footprint!

RIAI Website

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