BERKELEY PRIZE COMPETITION ESSAY PARTICIPANT Ms Deanna L Smith COUNTRY United States UNIVERISTY Drury University DEPARTMENT Hammons School of Architecture MAJOR Architecture YEAR 4 FIRST DRAFT Throughout history, architects have had a social responsibility to serving communities in the most significant way possible. Too often, fame, publicity and awards have defined success and excellence in design and planning. The fault here often lies in this publicity of well-known architecture; the building is often perceived as an object, indifferent to its actual user. When the Congres Internationaux d’Architecture Moderne’ developed the Charter of Athens in 1941, precedent was set for architects to work with a community of citizens, town planners and experts to “satisfy the primordial biological and psychological needs of their inhabitants,” as described in tenet 71. Still today, architects must realize their role in the psychological and sociological attitudes of our society. If architecture continually feeds on the capitalistic materialism of today, what kind of success will this create in the long run? True success and excellence involves creating vision by offering alternatives, not in merely solving problems. This is the service architects have to society, a society in which they are a part of. Excellence can be found in the consistent application of critical thought and when the community is served with excellence as a priority. Many architects today still believe they have the power to create community. They do not. Architects simply facilitate the possibility of good communities to occur. This cannot be forced. Again, it is necessary to have vision, not merely solve problems. This is critical in the future of our built environment and the public perception of architecture. FIRST SOURCES