OLD ALLEYNIANS
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‘How Does London Grow?’
I n May 2017, some 80 or so guests, including Old Alleynians, current boys, staff and parents, came together at the stunning offices of Grimshaw Architects in Clerkenwell to hear from a panel of experts on the built environment. The discussion, ‘How Does London Grow?’, was moderated by the Master, Dr Joe Spence, and considered the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats for our global city. It quickly became apparent just how much each panellist felt for London, a city whose present form reflects centuries of change, and both care and neglect. They called for repair, the need to recreate a sense of place that, particularly in the housing market, is being replaced by commodification, by profit before people. ‘Why can’t we build attractive social housing?’ one questioner asked. There was great hope, however, that the future is bright and that despite the threats posed by potential Brexit-shaped potholes in the road, we can navigate to a sustainable future – one that recognises the need to adapt from the current dense pattern of interconnectivity to a looser structure where working from home is the norm and commuting to a city centre is replaced by a more ‘virtual’ way of doing things. A future that responds to the need to think big
but act small, to re-use the places we have abused and bring light to those places we have left in the dark. The evening ended with the opportunity to reflect in a more informal environment over drinks and networking amongst guests. The panel of experts included Caroline Cole (Director of Coleander Associates), Ian Brown CBE (Former MD of Transport for London, London Rail), Nigel Lea RIAS, RIBA (Design Director, Gensler), Al Scott (Director IF_DO), Gabi Stein (Managing Director, Equity
Capital Markets (London) at Tishman Speyer) and Jolyon Brewer (Partner at Grimshaw Architects). The discussion was moderated by Dr Joe Spence (Master of the College). Our next event will be on the 16th of November and will focus on those in the healthcare professions. We also hold events for those in the City, Law, Arts & Media and for Entrepreneurs. If you would like to be informed of any of these events, please email alleynclub@ dulwich.org.uk, stating which groups you are interested in.
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