Greetings and welcome back to another Wednesday roundup; today’s midweek information session is heavy on climate change news as countries rally to put forth new emission regulations.

Here’s what you need to know:

Europe rolls out a plan to heavily slash emissions and phase out fossil fuels

Today, the European Commission announced an ambitious set of climate targets aimed at getting the E.U. block to carbon neutrality by 2050. Ahead of climate talks in Glasgow this November, the Brussels-headquartered administrative body has proposed slashing greenhouse gas emissions to 55 percent of the block’s 1990 levels, requiring at least 38.5 percent of energy be produced by renewable sources by 2030, and phasing out the sale of new gasoline-powered cars by 2035. Of course, while these are heady goals to set, now the 27 member countries must hash out how to actually achieve them—and depending on how tariffs or other measures are implemented, the new agreement could upend global trade.

H/t to the New York Times

Maurizio Cattelan unveils a 9/11 memorial at his new solo show in Milan

For the 20th anniversary of the September 11th attacks, Maurizio Cattelan has unveiled a somber monument to the day’s deadly events—something the Italian artist and New York resident witnessed personally. As part of his new Breath Ghosts Blind solo exhibition in Milan (named after the three pieces on display), Blind is a towering monolith of black resin cut through at the top with an airplane. The piece, a meditation on grief, pain, and lingering frailty, is a noted departure from Cattelan’s more irreverent recent works: the $120,000 banana he unveiled at the 2019 Art Basel Miami Beach (eaten), and the solid gold America toilet (stolen).

H/t to The Art Newspaper

Zaha Hadid Architects leaves its office of 40 years

Although Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA) has plenty of satellite offices, the firm has been headquartered in London’s Grade II-listed former Bowling Green Lane School since 1983. Now, ZHA is moving on to greener pastures after revealing that the landmarked school was impossible to retrofit in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. That means relocating to its extant satellite offices on Goswell Road, a former garment factory that can be more effectively converted thanks to its wide and open floor plates. ZHA also plans on building out a creative lab and new fabrication spaces.

H/t to the Architects’ Journal

Sweden’s largest cement factory is shut down over environmental concerns

Swedish cement manufacture Cementa will shut down its largest plant, which produces three-quarters of the country’s supply, after losing its license to mine limestone. Last week the Swedish Supreme Land and Environmental Court denied the factory’s permit application to mine limestone for another 20 years over the impact on local groundwater. Cementa, the second largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in Sweden, will be forced to shutter its Gotland factory on November 1 if the ruling stands. Although Cementa is also the only cement producer in the country, it has a second, smaller plant in Skövde to the south.

H/t to Dezeen

Jersey City could implement stricter building inspections after Surfside tower collapse

Concerns over structural stability have been bubbling to the surface, and northward, after the Champlain Towers South collapse in Surfside, Florida, on June 24. Now, Jersey City might be the latest locale to beef up enforcement. Mayor Steven Fulop will reportedly introduce legislation to increase structural and facade inspections. If passed, the new legislation would require facade inspections by a licensed architect or engineer every five years for buildings six stories or taller, every four years for buildings with masonry facades, and every ten years for concrete structures over six stories.

H/t to The Real Deal

LACMA announces its 2021 Art + Technology grants awardees

The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) has revealed the recipients of its 2021 Art + Technology grants, selecting four recipients out of a record breaking 900 submissions. Those include:

• American Artist, who will intertwine rocket research and the works of Octavia Butler in Altadena, California, where both Artist and Butler lived—the community is also next to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
• Lukas Avendaño, EYIBRA (Abraham Brody), and Oswaldo Erreve, who will use digital avatars, virtual reality, performances and more to reexamine the role of gender norms in Western society, especially when compared to the “muxe identity of the Zapotec people of Mexico.”
• Jaqueline Kiyomi Gork and Rhett LaRue will develop a multiplayer video game built on the principles of collaborative listening, with sound as the main navigation and interaction tool.
• Lawrence Lek will create an “interactive movie” with an autonomous car as its protagonist, presenting empathy for non-humans and perspectives of non-Western technology development as “Theta” navigates an oppressive dystopian future.