Constructing Change: Reflecting on Pride Month 2025
As we come to the end of June, we reflect on Pride month for 2025. As an office we strive to foster an open and inclusive environment for everyone to feel comfortable as their authentic selves.
As we come to the end of June, we reflect on Pride month for 2025. As an office we strive to foster an open and inclusive environment for everyone to feel comfortable as their authentic selves. The construction industry has made great progress in becoming an open and inclusive place for all to work – but there are still improvements that can be made. Pride celebrations extend throughout the summer (and all year round), but we thought it would be worth sharing a few highlights from some of the team during June.
Members of jmarchitects enjoyed attending Pride in Edinburgh and marching along with thousands of people, despite the dreich conditions. Pride marches are a great way to join together in solidarity and meet a range of new people all sharing in the joyous occasion. It can often be felt that progress is won for members of the LGBT+ community – but we must remain engaged to ensure hard won rights are sustained and built upon. Look out for Pride marches in London, Glasgow and Manchester still to come throughout the summer!
As part of the Architecture Fringe (and supported by Edinburgh Architectural Society) we took part in Queer Frontiers at Custom Lane in Leith. The event saw the opening of an exhibition which was the result of an open call for reflections by members of the queer community. A broad range of works through different mediums and from a range of students & practitioners alike looked at how we can question spaces and see these through a diverse range of viewpoints. The exhibition was alongside a talk and panel discussion with artist and architect Marf Summers – who discussed their work and posed what ‘queering architecture’ means.
Through the year Open Plan Scotland and Architecture LGBT+ perform a role as networks and advocacy group for members of the LGBT+ community. We would encourage anyone to get involved in these and continue to work together for equality in our industry.
Photography Credit: Finlay Geddes
Credit: Finlay Geddes, Paul Smith, jmarchitects
