The Centre for the Study of the Production of the Built Environment (ProBE) is a cross-school research centre, established in February 2010, between the Westminster Business School (WBS) and the School of Architecture and Cities (A&C).
ProBE is concerned with:
- the critical study of the production of the built environment as a social, environmental and historical process
- understanding what this means for labour, communities, cities and nature
- finding out innovative ways to construct a just, inclusive and sustainable society
ProBE's projects and future strategy address the key questions that arise when considering the built environment as a social and historical process. In building up a portfolio of projects and outputs and a committed team of researchers, the centre seeks to be recognised as a distinct, original and even controversial unit, not afraid to research problematic issues and to develop theoretical approaches challenging existing orthodoxies.
ProBE is inclusive, embracing those actively engaged through funded projects and publications. It forms an umbrella by providing a basis for research administration, a website, and a forum for discussion and activity.
Core objectives
- Develop a coherent body of research on social and historical processes underpinning the production of the built environment
- Research problematic issues and develop unique theoretical approaches
- Develop interaction between academics, policy makers, practitioners, employers and trade unionists in researching key issues
- Maintain a flexible interdisciplinary research environment that coordinates and develops ProBE’s research strengths, resources and commitment
- Develop the international profile of ProBE as a distinct, original and controversial unit
- Provide ProBE staff with opportunities for career development in a supportive working environment
- Integrate the work of ProBE into the University’s teaching and learning programme
Research areas
ProBE’s research focuses on six key research areas:
- Vocational education and training in the built environment
- Oral and other histories of the production of the built environment
- Capital and labour relations in the production of the built environment
- Equality, diversity, and inclusion in construction
- Sustainable urban settlements and low carbon construction
- Climate change, society and environmental design
These key areas of research are too often addressed through mono-disciplinary lenses, which tend to ignore or oversimplify the complex interactions with the production of the built environment. ProBE's unique strength is that it brings these aspects together and allows the interrelationships to be studied.
Researching these areas means engaging with theoretical approaches including sociology, economics, material culture, the visual arts, philosophy, education, design and law, as well as oral, economic, social, labour, art and architectural history. ProBE’s programme is therefore inevitably multi-disciplinary in both methodology and analysis, using texts, statistics, oral histories, film and video, maps and plans, and photographic and other visual material. Its outputs include written publications, seminars, visual and oral archives, exhibitions and films.