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Françoise-Hélène Jourda
 Truly a key figure in sustainable development. For a long time the French architect has positioned her personal work to "contribute to curbing the catastrophic phenomenon, which will only end in the destruction of the quality of life of our environment in the more or less short-term". And, as usual with relentless energy, she tried to see her approach through to the end, dragging along her partners and clients. Her goal was to encourage them to live differently, under different conditions, in order to stop harming all of the environment.
In order to do so "all of one's architectural practice must be called into question". Her daily actions and even her teachings at the Vienna technical school bear this out. It starts with certain ethics vis-à-vis the order, subsequently by taking into account the geography, the climate and existing local resources, it means working primarily with renewable materials, minimising the use of materials that generate pollution in their production, it also involves recovering rainwater, banning air conditioning, treating the buildings' shells as efficiently as possible, using non-polluting energies, solar energy, photovoltaic cells, etc. Despite their technological sophistication, her buildings prove that bold design can be produced through ecological solutions.
As regards residential architecture, Françoise-Hélène Jourda feels that the charm of living in general consists of a type of nomadism in one's own house where comfort is adapted to the activity of the moment and where we no longer believe that only heating and air-conditioning are able to improve this comfort. Consequently the building can be considered as a type of protective shell that is undressed at times or dressed differently. "I am all for living skins, buildings that react to their environment".
"Sustainable development means rediscovering man, the architect affirms. And to do so, to take great care of the environment." It is first and foremost a humanistic approach. High-tech is not part of her vocabulary. To her only "low-tech" exists. However, the reality of her work is well anchored in society and culture. "The architect is not a designer, not a creator of images, of shells, of dresses, of skirts around a building. The architect is there to ensure that people live more happily tomorrow than yesterday. In any case, this is what motivates me."
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