“Make Our Planet Great Again”

“Make Our Planet Great Again”: it was in these terms that the French President responded to the decision of his American counterpart to withdraw his country from the Paris Agreement. Donald Trump is liable to annihilate a courageous political policy carried out by his predecessor Mr Obama. “On the issue of climate change, there is no plan B”, Emannuel Macron added during a televised address reacting to the speech of Donald Trump “because there is no planet B”. Such is the danger we face and the responsibility we carry on our shoulder, if— of course—we consider that the planet should survive us.

As it was clearly affirmed at the COP21—during which the Paris Agreement was signed—and as it has demonstrated through its actions worldwide, the Cuomo Foundation is fully committed to environment. The fellowship program it supports with the IPCC, the UN scientific body focusing on climate change, is one of our flagship projects. The program has already helped a dozen young climate scientists from developing countries to find solutions for the climatic disasters lying ahead in their respective countries.

The new school which will open this summer in the rural area of Mambakkam (Tamil Nadu, India) epitomises further the green concerns of the Foundation. An experimentation of green, sustainable and local building methods and technologies, the new school is a manifesto of a new architectural concept it advocates.

This school is the logical continuation of the commitment of twenty years of actions in India. The project is all the more meaningful at a time when emerging countries, with deep socio-economic mutations, are becoming more and more sensitive to the ecological transition. The new school, which is competing for the coveted Indian Green Building Council label, is also a reminder of India’s enormous ecological responsibility as a global power for the crucial years to come.