AIA's public policies & position statements

As members of their communities, architects are professionally obligated to use their knowledge, skill, and experience to engage in civic life. Supporting position statements:

· Civic engagement: AIA believes that society and the profession of architecture benefit from civically engaged architects. In order to advance leadership among architects to promote livable, healthy, sustainable, and quality-designed environments for future generations through community participation and advocacy, AIA supports its members who wish to become civically engaged and does not prevent those members from participating in AIA activities, except where it may be required by law.

· Art and architecture: AIA believes that art enhances the human experience in the built environment. AIA supports programs that promote the integration of art into the design and construction process. AIA also supports government funding for the inclusion of art in public projects as well as funding of federal, state, and local programs with missions that promote the use of art in public buildings and spaces.

Design, construction, and society are constantly changing. To serve society, architects must commit to continual professional growth through learning, innovation, and exploration. Supporting position statements:

· Mandatory continuing education: AIA maintains that each jurisdiction should mandate a minimum amount of continuing education for architectural licensure renewal. AIA supports a uniform standard for health, safety, and wellness continuing education requirements across all jurisdictions. AIA further advocates that any jurisdiction considering continuing education for re-licensure accept AIA's continuing education requirement for membership and record-keeping system as a means of fulfilling the jurisdiction's requirement. Emeritus architects should not be required to fulfill continuing education requirements, unless they wish to resume the practice of architecture.

· Practice specialty credentialing: AIA considers its architect members, by virtue of their license, equipped through education, experience, and practice to capably design a wide range of project types. When it is important to clients and the public that specialized knowledge is necessary, AIA is committed to evaluating specialty credential programs.

· Research and development: AIA supports the promotion of research and development of materials, technologies, and practices that advance the needs of clients and the public, improve the quality of the built and natural environments, and protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public.

The practice of architecture should be regulated. The privileges and responsibilities of practice should be extended only to those architects who demonstrate through education, experience, and examination that they are ethically and technically prepared. Supporting position statements:

· Definition of professional practice and use of the title "architect": AIA supports a uniform definition of the "practice of architecture" that delineates the scope of services a registered architect may perform as stipulated by regulatory controls of the local jurisdiction. The definition should follow the recommendations developed by the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB). Furthermore, AIA supports protecting the public by reserving the use of the term "architect" to those individuals licensed as architects. AIA further recommends that all jurisdictions implement a category designated as Emeritus or Retired for persons who have held a license to practice architecture but have retired and are no longer in practice.

· Designs of structures for human occupancy or use: AIA maintains that to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public, only architects should program and design all structures primarily intended for human occupancy or use. Architects are uniquely qualified through education, experience, examination, and practice to lead the design process to design buildings. The process of planning and designing the construction of buildings is complex, so sound professional judgment of an architect is needed before and throughout the design process and in construction. Therefore, it is incumbent on each jurisdiction that has a responsibility to the health, safety, and welfare of its citizens to ensure that the architect is engaged early in planning and managing the design of buildings.

· Practice and title regulations in the built environment: In the public interest, AIA holds that architects licensed through rigorous examination possess the necessary education, training, and experience to lead the design process to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public in the built environment. While other regulated or licensed professionals may participate or be responsible for specialized and focused components, architects are uniquely qualified to take responsible control for the coordinated integration of building systems through a comprehensive understanding of design, construction, and the coordination of project teams from project inception to completion.

· Interstate reciprocity and international practice for architects: AIA supports the use of uniform criteria for licensure that facilitate reciprocity and do not inhibit the interstate and international practice of architecture. Further, AIA supports the global collaboration of architects and the continued promotion of excellence in international education, practice, and design while honoring cultural diversity worldwide. AIA supports its members' international practices through the benefits of membership and by fostering positive working relationships among architects and international architecture organizations.

· Professional licensure and examination for architects: AIA maintains that examination is an essential requirement for licensure. Such examination should test for public protection competencies, including health, safety, and welfare, that are gained through a combination of appropriate education and practical experience. AIA, through its members, encourages licensure-track emerging professionals to complete the examination process at their earliest practical opportunity. AIA supports the interdependence of practice and education as elements of the profession that, when integrated, enable students, educators, and practitioners to obtain and build upon the knowledge and skills needed to enter and fully participate in the profession, as well as to achieve design excellence in service to society. To this end, AIA supports architectural registration boards allowing emerging professionals for licensure candidacy to take registration examinations following their graduation from a degree program accredited by the National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB) and concurrent with enrollment in the Architectural Experience Program (AXP).

· Architectural education and training requirements: AIA supports a professional degree from a NAAB-accredited program as the most appropriate minimum threshold for architectural education. Consideration should be given to alternative educational pathways, in lieu of a NAAB-accredited degree, as a means to fulfill educational prerequisites to licensure on an individual candidate basis. In addition, AIA supports a comprehensive internship with measurable qualitative training criteria. Further, AIA supports NCARB's AXP and its training areas, which provide emerging professionals with diverse training and experience in architectural practice.

· Architectural licensure board composition and law enforcement: AIA supports architectural registration boards that are composed of architects and public members who are residents of the jurisdiction. Architects should comprise a majority of the board, and the terms of architectural members should be staggered. Furthermore, AIA strongly supports the concept of single discipline boards to license architects. In situations where a single discipline board is not statutorily permitted, measures should be taken to ensure that only architects and the appropriate percentage of public members act on architectural issues. AIA supports strict enforcement of architectural licensing laws by each jurisdiction and recommends that disciplinary action be imposed for incompetent or improper practice. Further, AIA strongly supports vigorous prosecution, including seeking penalties and injunctions against those individuals engaged in the unlicensed practice of architecture.

With an obligation to the future of the architecture profession, architects must encourage, recruit, and inspire those who would become architects. Supporting position statements:

· Architecture awareness in education: AIA believes that education in the art and science of architecture in K–12 core curricula and post-secondary education will benefit society by creating early exposure to and public awareness of the impact and importance of design and the built environment. AIA supports the integration of architectural subject matter that promotes creative and critical thinking about the importance of architecture and its impact on human and environmental health, safety, and welfare.

· Mentorship: AIA supports its members in fulfilling their professional obligation to mentor emerging professionals as they advance throughout their career. Additionally, those members who supervise individuals engaged in the IDP shall reasonably assist in proper and timely documentation in accordance with that program.

· Practice and education courses: AIA supports a professional practice environment ("office culture") that encourages the essential values of optimism, respect, sharing, engagement, and innovation. The architectural design studio culture should promote these ideals as the foundation of degree education and extend these values broadly into a career in professional practice.

· Pre-licensure titling: AIA supports the title of "intern" for students who are working in an architectural office while actively pursuing architecture degrees in NAAB-accredited programs or studying in pre-professional programs. AIA supports the title of "architectural associate" or "design professional" for those who 1) have earned a degree from a program accredited by NAAB or who have met education/experience requirements in their jurisdiction and 2) are participating in NCARB's AXP or meeting their jurisdictions' experience requirements.

Regulation of the construction industry is necessary to safeguard life, health, property and to promote public welfare. Architects, as industry leaders and stakeholders, have a responsibility to participate actively in the regulation development process and promote the adoption and application of uniform regulations. Supporting position statements:

· Building codes and standards: AIA supports regulation by a uniform set of comprehensive, coordinated, and current building codes and standards that safeguards life, health, and property and protects public welfare throughout the United States and abroad. To that end, AIA espouses the development, adoption, and application of building codes and standards that:

o Include active participation by architects in coordination and collaboration with other industry stakeholders, governmental bodies, and the general public in a consensus process

o Are the product of informed education, experience, and research

o Are without favoritism or bias to any special interest

o Include provision for a prompt appeals procedure

o Are cost-effective in relation to short- and long-term public benefit

o Promote a performance-compliance path

o Advance net zero energy, net zero carbon, sustainability, and resilience

· Building permits and process: AIA supports governmental policies, regulatory procedures, and administrative oversight that promote efficiency in the construction permitting process; provide transparency, consistency, and predictability; safeguard life, health, and property; and promote public welfare.

The financial health of architecture businesses is essential to the future of the profession. Architects should advocate within the law for sound business practices and compensation that reflect the architect's value to society. Supporting position statements:

· Copyright protection: AIA supports copyright protection of the architect's work and other intellectual property in order to prevent their unauthorized use.

· Legal form of practice: AIA supports architectural practice within any legal structure as long as an architect retains responsible control and individual responsibility for performing architectural services. Within any legal structure, the architect performing or in responsible control of the architectural services must be identified, and that structure must not be used to shield unlicensed or unlawful practice.

· Project delivery: AIA believes collaborative project delivery processes enhance the quality, cost-effectiveness, and sustainability of our built environment. This can best be achieved through industry-wide adoption of approaches to project delivery characterized by early and consistent involvement of owners, architects, engineers, constructors, fabricators, and end users in an environment of trust, fair compensation, clearly defined goals, and transparency.

There are several viable project delivery models in the marketplace that promote such early collaboration. AIA believes architects are uniquely qualified and positioned to lead the development of the project and provide architectural services for all project delivery methods. Architectural services may include predesign services, project management, programming, design, construction documentation, and construction administration for building projects. 

Architects have a professional and ethical responsibility to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public in all project delivery methods while providing reasonable and competent design guidance to the owner and representing the owner's best interests.

· Qualifications-based selection (QBS): AIA supports public policies, requirements, and administrative procedures in public procurement processes that mandate the open selection of architects on the basis of qualifications and oppose hiring of architects on the basis of fees or bids. QBS is essential to fostering quality design that serves health, safety, and welfare in the built environment. AIA supports best-practice QBS criteria that are clear and concise, encouraging fair-market competition. AIA opposes any requirements by public agencies for uncompensated design solutions as part of QBS processes.

· Tax and regulatory system: AIA supports governmental policies, programs, and administration that promote a fair tax code and business regulations that encourage the free enterprise system and the economic well-being of the American people, the U.S. construction industry, and the profession of architecture. AIA opposes the imposition of any sales and usage taxes on professional services.

· Tort reform: AIA supports governmental policies and reforms to minimize lawsuit abuse and to promote the administration of a fair civil-liability legal system. Society is best served by legislative and regulatory reforms that fairly curtail the cost and risks of litigation without jeopardizing the public interest. AIA specifically supports:

o Legislation enacting reasonable statutes of limitation and repose with respect to all actions alleging negligence or fault on the part of the architect

o Emergency responder (Good Samaritan) legislation that provides architects with liability protection for providing professional services in response to a declared state of emergency

o Legislation that requires a party alleging professional negligence to submit a sworn statement from a qualified expert in the same field of practice attesting to the alleged negligence (Certificate of Merit Statutes)

· Software interoperability: AIA believes that all industry-supporting software must facilitate, not inhibit, project planning, design, construction, commissioning, and life-cycle management. This software must support nonproprietary, open standards for auditable information exchange and allow for confident information exchanges between different software programs and between different versions of the same software. This is best accomplished through professional, public, and private sector adoption of open and interoperable software standards. AIA encourages its members and other industry organizations to assume a leadership role in the development and promulgation of open standards.

The Practice 

AIA advocates for a sustainable, equitable, and resilient built environment that includes healthy physical environments for all. Society is rapidly transforming energy systems, transportation modes, construction materials, and cultural shifts in response to the existential threat of climate change. Therefore, architects must prioritize policies supporting a cost-effective and equitable transformation. 

AIA values and actively seeks allies to work together on a shared vision for the urgent and critical transformation towards a zero-carbon, equitable, and resilient built environment. 

Architects rely on the development, evaluation, and use of codes, standards, and evidence-based rating systems to achieve healthy, resilient buildings and communities for all members of society. The AIA advocates for codes, policies, and incentives to meet these goals, and actively provides resources to architects and design firms to aid in compliance. 

Energy Efficiency 

AIA advocates for policies, programs, and incentives for energy efficiency in the built environment's planning, design, construction, and operations. These strategies reduce greenhouse gas emissions and help combat climate change, which can lower risks and costs for our clients and the public. 

AIA advocates for operationally carbon-neutral new construction and major renovations by 2030 (AIA 2030 Commitment), and a carbon-neutral built environment by 2040. 

AIA supports policies that radically reduce carbon pollution, including passive design, energy efficiency, electrification, renewable energy, demand response, transportation integration with buildings, and the equitable and rapid transition to a carbon-neutral electric grid. 

Existing Buildings and Energy Retrofits toward Net Zero 

AIA advocates for policies that lead to existing building reuse and deep energy retrofits, encouraging architects to employ strategies that increase passive performance, resilience, energy efficiency, electrification, demand response, and the utilization of renewable energy. 

AIA advocates for the benefits of building reuse which include significant avoidance of embodied carbon emissions. Many existing buildings are historically and culturally significant, contributing to the character and identity of the built environment that is meaningful to communities. Energy and decarbonization retrofits should leverage these buildings' inherently sustainable features and be appropriate and sensitive to each structure in its context. 

Embodied Carbon toward Net Zero 

AIA supports policies and practices that identify and significantly reduce the embodied carbon of construction materials and processes, including the use of Life Cycle Assessment and impact transparency. Research is needed to develop and promote low-carbon and carbon sequestering materials. AIA supports policies and practices that create a more circular economy, including building reuse, disassembly, design for deconstruction, product refurbishment and repair, and warehousing of salvaged products to support a materials reuse marketplace. Architects can support this transition to a circular economy through design and specifications that include salvaged and refurbished materials, minimal toxins in factory production and use phases, products that can be reused, and products that are de-constructible and recyclable

Materials and Human Health 

Materials significantly affect human and ecosystem health, well-being, climate, and social equity in extraction, manufacturing, use, and end of life. The AIA advocates for programs (such as the AIA Architecture and Design Materials Pledge), policies, and practices that support a comprehensive approach to selecting and evaluating construction materials, including transparent and standardized impact labeling. 

AIA supports the development of products that are free of toxic substances, minimize greenhouse gas emissions, free of forced labor, and are environmentally and socially responsible. 

AIA advocates for consideration of the health impacts throughout the life of a building, working in collaboration with public health professionals, environmental psychologists, and other allied design professionals such as landscape architects and urban planners. Design solutions should promote well-being and facilitate healthy environments for all members of society. 

Equity, Environmental Justice, and Land Use 

The design of the built environment supports the physical, mental, and social well-being of communities which is increasingly undermined by severe climate exposures that is especially challenging for underserved communities. The AIA advocates for policies and procedures that support the equitable advancement of public health priorities, including protecting vulnerable populations, reducing air and water pollution, employing biophilic design principles, supporting active lifestyles, and enhancing community cohesion. 

AIA advocates for policies that promote housing affordability, preserve, and restore natural ecosystems, equitably protect human health, and support low-carbon transportation choices. 

As design professionals, we advocate for responsible land use and environmental planning to reduce hazards and other environmental risks, and to safeguard life, health, property, and to promote public welfare. Land use planning strategies may be needed to achieve environmental and equitable outcomes, including managed retreat, eminent domain, and zoning. The AIA advocates for policies that consider the value of existing land uses, community stakeholders, and history to achieve a well-defined public purpose adopted through an inclusive public process. 

Ecosystems and Water 

AIA advocates for policies and nature-based systems that use and reuse water responsibly within buildings and sites; protect aquifers, watersheds, and water quality by managing stormwater runoff; address water scarcity; and anticipate changing freshwater availability. 

The extraction and manufacturing of building materials can damage and degrade ecosystems and waterways. The AIA supports the prioritization of products and companies that regenerate and restore natural air, water, biological systems, and support ecosystem health. 

AIA advocates for comprehensive site and landscape design that supports biodiversity, ecosystem health, rewilding, and reduces heat island effect. 

Resilience + Adaptation 

AIA acknowledges that climate mitigation and adaptation are essential, and communities must prepare for increased climate-amplified disasters and sea level rise. The AIA supports establishing community resilience centers that help prepare for disasters and provide recovery assistance. 

Architects can play a key role in equitable and effective recovery from disasters. The AIA supports member training and active involvement in disaster assistance, recovery, and rebuilding efforts, providing insights and aid to communities before, during, and after a destructive event. 

AIA advocates for policies that increase the resilience of communities to survive and thrive during and after shocks and stressors, especially those that rely on passive and nature-based systems and support social resilience, resilient housing, and the integration of green infrastructure solutions. This includes future climate outcomes to be considered and added to codes, standards, and policies 

Leadership in design and construction requires collaboration. Architects must encourage and celebrate the contributions of those who bring diverse experiences, views, and needs into the design process. Supporting position statements:

· Civil rights: AIA supports the promotion of human and civil rights, the universal respect for human dignity, and the unbiased treatment of all persons in employment, civic, and business transactions. Embracing a culture of equity, all programs and initiatives of AIA and its members shall reflect the society that we serve, regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, physical abilities, or religious practices.

· Diversity: AIA, as part of the global community, champions a culture of equity, diversity, and inclusion within the profession of architecture to create a better environment for all. Achieving this vision has a direct impact on the relevance of our profession and the world's prosperity, health, and future.

· Relationship to NCARB: AIA will advocate for the interests of the architectural profession and collaborate with NCARB in the adoption of legislative standards for licensing.

· Project team collaboration: Architectural design and construction is a complex process requiring the coordinated teamwork of many diverse entities. AIA supports a collaborative teamwork approach among architects, designers, clients, communities, jurisdictions, contractors, and industry partners to achieve successful project completion.

· Inclusive public engagement: As a profession that envisions the future built environment and therefore impacts every member of society, we should strive to be inclusive of all stakeholders in the communities we serve. Through community design, social impact design, and a spirit of service in practice, AIA members can engage with the majority of society that would never commission our work but whose voices are equally important.

Architecture expresses the values of society and has the power to enhance the quality of life for this and future generations. Architects must advocate for responsible design that results in beautiful and healthy places that respect and accommodate society's diverse cultures and needs. Supporting position statements:

· Accessible environment: AIA supports governmental programs, incentives, and policies, including clear and consistent accessibility rules and guidelines, that ensure a built environment that meets the reasonable needs of people with disabilities. Individuals with disabilities should be afforded the means to participate in society to the extent that they are able through the elimination of physical barriers and through universal design principles that balance the interests of an inclusive society.

· Housing: AIA advocates for access to housing as a fundamental right. Architects are at the forefront of the challenges inherent to providing safe, healthy, and sustainable housing to all. AIA advocates for governmental policies, programs, and incentives to promote the design, construction, renovation, rehabilitation, preservation, and stabilization of safe, healthy, affordable, sustainable, and disaster-resistant housing within the means of all people. In addition, AIA supports regional, private-public, nontraditional, holistic approaches to solving the global housing crisis, teaching communities the benefits of higher-density housing near transit. We must proactively stem future sprawl and work with communities and legislators to provide real solutions that can accommodate the additional 2.5 billion people estimated to live on this planet by 2050.

· Livable communities: AIA advocates for policies, programs, and incentives that promote well-designed communities and maximize public participation in an inclusive community-planning process. Architects must integrate transportation, housing, and land-use policies at the neighborhood, community, and regional scales to create safe, healthy, affordable, equitable, walkable, sustainable, and resilient communities that recognize and address local natural hazards.

· Historic preservation: AIA supports governmental policies, programs, and incentives to preserve and rehabilitate diverse historic structures, sites, and places.

· Design excellence in publicly funded projects: AIA believes that society is best served by public buildings, places, and projects that represent the highest ideals of citizens and their elected government. AIA supports the funding for and creation of public buildings that demonstrate advanced sustainability strategies for integrated teams and systems, resource efficiency, community responsiveness, and human health and well-being that meet and exceed the specific requirements inherent in each individual project and site.