The last 20 years have been marked by the expansion and liberalization of international
capital and major advances in communication which have created the phenomenon known as
globalisation. The breakdown of national barriers to trade and communication and the increased
movement of populations have had a significant effect on the stability of communities and have affected
their sense of identity. Place identity has also been transformed as cities adapt and project themselves
on the global market. Architects are the agents of the symbolic visual markers of identity and, at the top
of their profession, have been instrumental in major changes in the built environment. As social identity
is challenged by the effects of globalisation, geographically stable place identity can be a palliative to
vulnerable communities. The architectural profession has a unique opportunity to influence the
character of places to the benefit or dis-benefit of the resident and incoming communities. A broad view
of how the architectural profession itself fits into an emerging global society and how it has responded
to these challenges and opportunities will reveal if it is acting as a positive or negative force for newly
destabilised communities and their sense of identity.
Keywords: Identity, globalisation, architectural profession, modernism, city, community.