section_path: Personal interests/Built environment
section_name: Built environment
paragraph_text: Built environment
  
  Charles has openly expressed his views on architecture and urban planning; he fostered the advancement of New Classical architecture and asserted that he "care deeply about issues such as the environment, architecture, inner-city renewal, and the quality of life." In a speech given for the 150th anniversary of the Royal Institute of British Architects in May 1984, he described a proposed extension to the National Gallery in London as a "monstrous carbuncle on the face of a much-loved friend" and deplored the "glass stumps and concrete towers" of modern architecture. Charles called for local community involvement in architectural choices and asked, "why has everything got to be vertical, straight, unbending, only at right angles – and functional?" Charles has "a deep understanding of Islamic art and architecture " and has been involved in the construction of a building and garden at the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies, which combine Islamic and Oxford architectural styles.
  
  In Charles's 1989 book A Vision of Britain, and in speeches and essays, he has been critical of modern architecture, arguing that traditional designs and methods should guide contemporary ones. He has continued to campaign for traditional urbanism, human scale, restoration of historic buildings, and sustainable design despite criticism in the press. Two of his charities – the Prince's Regeneration Trust and the Prince's Foundation for Building Community, which were later merged into one charity – promote his views. The village of Poundbury was built on land owned by the Duchy of Cornwall to a master plan by Léon Krier, under the guidance of Charles and in line with his philosophy. In 2013, developments for the suburb of Nansledan began on the estate of the Duchy of Cornwall with Charles's endorsement. Charles helped purchase Dumfries House and its complete collection of 18th century furnishings in 2007, taking a £20m loan from his charitable trust to contribute toward the £45m cost. The house and gardens remain property of the Prince's Foundation and serve as a museum and community and skills training centre. This led to the development of Knockroon, called the "Scottish Poundbury".
  
  After lamenting in 1996 the unbridled destruction of many of Canada's historic urban cores, Charles offered his assistance to the Department of Canadian Heritage in creating a trust modelled on Britain's National Trust, a plan that was implemented with the passage of the federal budget in 2007. In 1999, Charles agreed to the use of his title for the Prince of Wales Prize for Municipal Heritage Leadership, awarded by the National Trust for Canada to municipal governments that have committed to the conservation of historic places.
  
  Whilst visiting the US and surveying the damage caused by Hurricane Katrina, Charles received the National Building Museum 's Vincent Scully Prize in 2005 for his efforts in regard to architecture; he donated $25,000 of the prize money towards restoring storm-damaged communities. For his work as patron of New Classical architecture, Charles was awarded the 2012 Driehaus Architecture Prize from the University of Notre Dame. The Worshipful Company of Carpenters installed Charles as an Honorary Liveryman "in recognition of his interest in London's architecture."
  
  Charles has occasionally intervened in projects that employ architectural styles such as modernism and functionalism. In 2009, Charles wrote to the Qatari royal family – the financier of the redevelopment of the Chelsea Barracks site – labelling Lord Rogers 's design for the site "unsuitable". Rogers claimed that Charles had also intervened to block his designs for the Royal Opera House and Paternoster Square. CPC Group, the project developer, took a case against Qatari Diar to the High Court. After the suit was settled, the CPC Group apologised to Charles "for any offence caused... during the course of the proceedings".