They didn't laugh at us . . .

As the delegates to COP 24—the United Nations climate conference now under way in Poland—laugh out loud at cynical pronouncements by US officials about the virtues of coal, our planet and its people are facing grave challenges. Here is what the International Union of Architects (UIA) told the delegates:

Current practices in the built environment are unsustainable, wastefully consuming energy and natural resources—and the way we build can also exacerbate social inequalities and harm human health.

Environmental degradation and poverty result in part from building and development patterns that destroy heritage, degrade habitat and squander resources.

If we hope to counteract these forces, we must stop the indiscriminate destruction of natural landscapes and agricultural land. We must build responsibly, and we must build well. If the built environment is part of the problem, then planning, architecture and design are also a crucial element of the solution.

Architecture interacts with every single one of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals—not just in terms of aspirations, but also through actual buildings and settlements all over the world. Architectural solutions are already contributing to sustainable communities and to better lives.

Every year, we lose hundreds of thousands of precious acres to automobile-dependent exurban sprawl, with enormous social, environmental, health and economic costs. Exurban wastelands continue to grow, even as we face human need and poverty at a staggering scale—much of it concentrated in informal settlements that are now part of many large cities. At least one billion people on our planet live in makeshift housing.

The world's architects embrace conservation, responsible stewardship and equitable development. We accept UN Habitat’s "New Urban Agenda" as our own, and pledge to:

-- Provide basic services for all people, including housing, safe drinking water, sanitation, nutritious food, healthcare, education, culture and access to communications.

-- Ensure equal opportunity, taking into account the needs of women, youth and children, people with disabilities, marginalized groups, older persons, indigenous people, and others.

-- Promote cleaner cities by tackling urban air pollution, using renewable energy deploying “green” public transport systems and caring for natural resources.

-- Strengthen cities and settlements against disasters through better planning, stronger infrastructure and faster, more effective response systems.

-- Accommodate refugees, migrants and displaced persons, recognizing that migration poses challenges but also brings contributions.

-- Promote safe and accessible public spaces, increasing sidewalks, cycling lanes, gardens, squares and parks.

-- Assist the poorest among us to build better housing and assist with basic steps to improve self-built housing in dense, largely unregulated urban settings

-- Reduce the use of natural resources in the building industry, to help meet the enormous human and material demands, while adverting the dangers that threaten our planet

The world urgently needs effective solutions, including new designs for cities and buildings that improve all lives, not only the lives of the wealthy or fortunate.

New approaches to architecture and planning can upend the damaging patterns of the past and the present. We call upon all people to join us developing new solutions -- not tomorrow, but today. We need to adapt to local climate and culture with buildings and settlements that achieve real results, both for the environment and our quality of life.

It truly matters how people build, where, and at what cost to the environment. Architects pledge to work toward better cities for the benefit of all, while conserving our resources and using them wisely.