By Teryani Mwadzaya
Diani, Kwale County
QS Audily Chatora, President of the Zimbabwe Institute of Quantity Survey addressing architects, engineers, quantity surveyors and town planners at Diamonds Leisure Beach & Golf Resort in Diani during the Architectural Association of Kenya (AAK) Annual Convention 2026.Photo Courtesy AAK
Kenya’s architects and built environment professionals are promoting resilient design as a practical solution to climate change and rapid urbanisation, with experts calling for buildings, roads and housing to be planned to withstand floods, heat and other growing environmental risks.
Speaking in Diani, QS Audily Chatora, President of the Zimbabwe Institute of Quantity Surveyors, urged professionals to embed resilience into everyday practice rather than treating it as a one-off intervention.
“Resilience is a shared responsibility, and the cost of inaction is ultimately measured in lives lost and communities left vulnerable. We must stop treating resilience as a product to be delivered and start embracing it as a culture that shapes every decision we make as professionals and as a society. “Noted Chatora
Architectural Association of Kenya President George A. Ndege addressing architects, engineers, quantity surveyors and town planners at Diamonds Leisure Beach & Golf Resort in Diani during the Architectural Association of Kenya (AAK) Annual Convention 2026.Photo Courtesy AAK
Additionally, AAK President George A. Ndege challenged the industry to shift from responding to disasters after they occur to designing communities that can better withstand future threats.
“As professionals, we must move beyond simply reacting to vulnerability. This gathering challenges us to ask a more important question: How do we intentionally design, plan, and build for resilience, creating communities and environments that can adapt, endure, and thrive in the face of future challenges? “Asked Ndege.
Moreover, Acting Housing Secretary QS Cassius Kusienya said the country’s climate challenges are already visible in everyday infrastructure failures. He added that Kenya’s towns are expanding faster than the systems designed to support them.
“Climate stress is no longer a future risk; it is already written into failed drains, overheated rooms, saline wells, washed-out roads and informal settlements on floodplains.”
The push for solutions dominated the 2026 Architectural Association of Kenya (AAK) Convention, running from 16–19 September at Diamonds Leisure Beach and Golf Resort in Diani under the theme “Shifting the Built Environment from Fragility to Resilience.” The Coast edition brings together professionals and stakeholders to explore how Kenya can build communities that are better prepared for future shocks.
The convention places particular focus on the Coast region, where Swahili architectural heritage, marine ecosystems, tourism infrastructure and rapid development present opportunities to demonstrate climate-responsive planning and construction.
