Growth of the global higher education estate: challenges ahead
- Alexi Marmot, UCL’s Bartlett Faculty of the Built Environment
Global growth of the higher education sector is accompanied by growth and change in the physical infrastructure of universities, which in turn is affected by pedagogy, digital learning, local and national politics, sustainability and economics. Digital delivery, e-books and ‘new ways of working’ have led to questioning the scale of future need for physical estates premised on face-to-face learning and engagement. ‘Spaceless growth’ is sought by universities intent on expansion but with limited means to invest in property.
Drawing primarily on UK estate data, with some international comparisons, this talk will discuss the scale of capital investment in higher education estates, and the increasing globalisation of the design, construction and property investment industries that develop new buildings. Trends in space per person will be presented. Several case studies will be used to illustrate the size and utilisation of higher education estates and the possibilities for realising spaceless growth.
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Architect and planner Alexi Marmot is Professor of Facility and Environment Management in UCL’s Bartlett Faculty of the Built Environment. She is a director of AMA Alexi Marmot Associates, a niche consultancy devoted to evidence-based consultative design that has advised more than thirty UK universities on their estates. Her research focuses primarily on spaces for learning and workspaces.
Alexi is the author of: ‘Managing the campus: Facility management and design, the student experience and university effectiveness’ in Paul Temple (ed.) The Physical University: Contours of space and place in higher education’ (2014) Routledge.