Modus Podcast

The RICS Podcast: MODUS: Regeneration in the Thames Estuary #86

Episode description

Kate Willard OBE is on a mission to transform the Thames Estuary region of north Kent, south Essex and east London. She’s doing this in her roles as chair of the Thames Estuary Growth Board and the Thames Estuary envoy.

Through a programme of regeneration and infrastructure development, the Growth Board hopes to boost the economies of the 17 different local authorities included in the Thames Estuary, as part of a ‘Green Blue Action Plan’.

In this episode of the Building the Future podcast, Justin Sullivan FRICS, RICS Senior Vice President, meets Willard to discuss the work she is doing.

“Infrastructure is only one piece of the story – it needs to be complemented by things like skills, education policy and industrial plans,” says Willard. “But without good infrastructure these things all become much harder.”

As well as infrastructure, they also talk about biodiversity in the estuary, the role of hydrogen in greener transport and other coastal regions in the world facing similar challenges. Willard also highlights the importance of listening to local residents to get a better understanding of what it is an area really needs to succeed.

The RICS Podcast: MODUS: Women of colour in real estate #77 on Apple Podcasts

Episode description

What challenges are faced by women of colour in the construction industry? That’s the question this episode of Building the Future is exploring.

Sybil Taunton, Head of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at RICS, speaks to Ally Reid MRICS, Europe Real Estate Associate Director at QNB Capital. During their conversation, they cover topics such as the gender pay gap and why it’s exacerbated for people from different backgrounds, as well as how the industry can address the balance of representation.

“You can’t change what you don’t measure,” says Reid. “That’s what you build a strategy from. If we’re silent and we continue to try to improve the situation by building more awareness of it but not targeting our measures, then I fear that we’re not going to make the progress we want to make.”

They also look at the opportunities presented by mentoring, the importance of allyship within a company and why the average RICS membership is 29 years for men but only 16 for women.

The RICS Podcast: MODUS: The Challenges of Art Provenance #68 on Apple Podcasts

Episode description

How has the way art surveyors assessed the provenance of art and antiquities changed over the years? And what unique challenges are there in authenticating and valuing artworks from different regions and eras? These are some of the topics considered in the latest episode of the Modus podcast Building the Future.

Speaking on the podcast are Marianne Magnin, executive director at Art Identification Standard (AIS), Alvah Beander FRICS, president of Melanin Art Appraisals, and Aubrey Catrone, owner of Proper Provenance.

Find out how a postcard discovered in the 1960s allowed the heirs to a Kandinsky painting worth $44m to prove rightful ownership, as well as why blockchain technology is only as reliable as the people inputting the data.

The RICS Podcast: MODUS: The evolution of queer spaces #59 on Apple Podcasts

Episode description

The latest episode of Building the Future focuses on queer spaces, how they are used by LGBTQ+ people today and why they need to be preserved.

The podcast returns to an important topic covered last year by a Modus article on the crisis queer venues are facing. It is hosted by Kelly Canterford MRICS, founder of Tigrou Consulting and co-chair of Freehold, a networking group for LGBTQ+ people working in the built environment.

Joining Kelly for the discussion is Charlie Smith MRICS, a chartered surveyor with Cushman and Wakefield, Ed Welch, a graduate surveyor with CBRE and Grace Forster, a graduate surveyor with Savills.

Among the topics covered are what a ‘queer space’ means, how the definition of such a space has changed from the late 1950s to now and whether these spaces are always as inclusive as they should be.