Office of Sustainability Newsletter Interview – January 2022
Ian Banner, Director of the Office of Sustainability
Interview conducted by Kathryn Kidd
Ian Banner is the director of the Office of Sustainability, director of Facilities Planning, & university architect at the University of Mississippi. Ian has provided us with a brief update on sustainable progress at UM while reflecting on his lifelong career in sustainability and architecture.
Ian Banner became the director of the Office of Sustainability in 2012 and has a rich background in architecture. He grew up in the small village of Langham, located in a rural part of eastern England. At the age of 18, he left school and went to work in an architects’ office in Peterborough. He stated, “the building I worked in was the seventeenth-century Archdeaconry House in the grounds of Peterborough Cathedral. It really fired my aspirations to become an architect.”
He worked in Peterborough for 3 years where he was able to study building construction technology via a “day release” program offered by his employer. He went on to study Architecture at Plymouth and Cambridge Universities and eventually settled in the United States following several short visits while in college. A general architectural education led him to specialize in environmental issues and energy-efficient design. A major topic of his study focused on “designing with nature as opposed to taking a machine-driven approach to overpower the natural environment.”
Throughout his career, he has been fortunate enough to work in teaching, research, and architectural practice. For the last seventeen years, he has worked here at the University of Mississippi as the university architect, director of Facilities Planning (as of 2006), and director of the Office of Sustainability (as of 2012). Ian explained that in his career he regards “environmental responsibility in design as hugely important, and minimizing our global construction footprint remains central to what I do each day.”
Ian is currently responsible for the design and construction of the new STEM building, which itself will feature sustainability measures. This building is under construction just south of Hume Hall. According to Ian,
“This is a large, 4 story building with over 200,000 square feet of interior space. The building is important for 2 reasons. First, it has been designed for its specific site with careful attention to its place in the world regarding orientation, admission of natural light, and efficient systems to ventilate and admit fresh air for its occupants. Second, and of the greatest importance, will be its ability to provide a place for young scientists to learn about their environment, to progress, and to become leaders themselves. Hopefully, this building will support and contribute in the regard for many years to come.”
When asked about his work at the university, Ian often circled back to the importance of the social impacts. He said that he is proud of the University of Mississippi for enabling the design and construction of several buildings over the last fifteen years that are considered ‘energy-efficient.’ He explained that publicizing these successes is beneficial; not for professional advancement or gratification, but “because our environment benefits from students talking about sustainability, efficiency, and social responsibility. As they graduate and move out into the world, many as leaders, their influence in designing and building a healthy world cannot be understated.” He explains his pride isn’t “in a sustainability-related building project like the Law School, or the Science Building.” Instead, he finds pride in “the positive power of the potential influence of the people who leave here.”
When asked about his most important lessons learned at the university, Ian responded: “listen–we might just learn something!”
He explained he is “always surprised how many people there are at UM who are making amazing contributions to an improved natural environment. These people are teachers, researchers, students, and staff. They turn up in unexpected places and are making significant contributions.”
Our interview came to a close with one final question: what advice do you have for people working for sustainable progress?
“Don’t give up. There are serious environmental issues out there. Your generation has inherited them which is unfair. But they are there to be solved through your ingenuity, creativity, and tenacity. Don’t underestimate the positive effect of the individual. We all have valuable contributions to make individually and as teams.”
Sustainable projects, like the construction of the science building, provide physical examples of progress for our campus, but Ian reminds us to pay attention to the social impacts. While harder to spot or define, social impacts may have the largest ripple effects. Listen closely to those around you and never underestimate your contributions, as positive sustainable change can come from anywhere.
-Story by OOS Project Manager, Kathryn Kidd
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