Andrew Harvey

The global climate emergency is here, but meaningful change is slow and falls short of what is required. The focus on preserving the way of life we know today will prevent a future as stable as our past. Perhaps then, we should accept that the driving principle in the response to the climate emergency is not meaningful change, but a path of least resistance that ensures life can continue with little deviation from today. A skewed balance between appropriate action, and inaction. In this, the protection of the everyday is key.

For centuries Glasgow has shaped the River Clyde, in the following centuries, the Clyde will reclaim the urban being. Glasgow will be affected by both sea-level rise and inland flooding. We are already at 1.1 degrees above pre-industrial temperatures. Half of this rise has occurred in the past 30 years. There is enough C02 in all fossil fuel reserves to raise the temperature by 10 degrees globally. Last time the earth was just 4 degrees above pre-industrial temperatures, there were no ice caps on the earth’s poles and the sea level was 80m higher.

In the future, what form would Glasgow take when the sea rises and the river floods with the populous resigned to adapting the old city to meet the needs of the time.

The thesis proposal takes place in this future where infrastructure and architecture must meet the needs of the city to preserve the current way of life through the introduction of a sea-wall and targeted water management facility.