Modern architecture responded to the social needs of democracies in the twentieth century but was often beset by poor environmental performance. This talk will explore the value of these buildings and the reasons why we might conserve them. It will illustrate two case studies from Ireland which we are repurposing for the environmental challenges of the twenty first century.

John McLaughlin leads a design studio whose work has received many awards and has been noted for its elegance, understatement and playfulness. He represented Ireland at the Venice Architecture Biennale in 2012 and 2014, and was an invited exhibitor in 2016. In 2015 his practice was named Best Emerging Practice by the RIAI.