The “What’s Smarter Now?” podcast series continued in late April 2024 with our third episode, “Powering a Smart Transition to Net Zero Carbon Building.” This discussion brought together two leading sustainability experts: Anna Foden, Head of Sustainability at ISG (now with Permasteelisa Group), and Katie Whipp, Global Head of Partnerships at re:sustain. Our conversation explored the critical transition to smarter, more sustainable net-zero carbon buildings as envisioned and brought to life by real estate leaders and other key built environment stakeholders.
This episode underscored the profound urgency of decarbonisation within the built environment. To meet the ambitious Net Zero by 2050 targets and avoid exceeding the 1.5-degree global warming threshold, accelerated efforts are unequivocally needed. The dialogue highlighted several main themes crucial for navigating this complex landscape:
- Data as a Key Enabler: Understanding actual building usage patterns and collecting relevant, meaningful data are paramount for making informed decisions about energy optimisation, design, and retrofitting strategies. Katie Whipp noted the industry’s challenge, stating, “We all talk about [data] a lot but equally it’s because we haven’t got our hands around it fully yet…it’s still really difficult to get access to the data that we need across the variety of stakeholders.” Anna Foden added that “A really simple thing…everyone could do a lot better… is to get a better handle around how people are using buildings.”
- Early Stakeholder Engagement: Engaging all stakeholders, particularly Facilities Management teams, from the very outset of a project is essential for successful implementation and to avoid costly retrofitting decisions later on. Anna Foden stressed, “One of the common denominators is they all say everyone needs to get together and start this process very early… You can’t bolt on some of this stuff…it’s just not appropriate.”
- Challenges with Standardisation: While existing standards, such as those from UKGBC, are helpful, the inherent complexity of diverse buildings, numerous stakeholders, and bespoke ESG goals necessitates a balanced approach. This means finding flexibility within standardisation, as there is currently no universally accepted definition for “Net Zero Building” or “Smart Building.” The discussion mentioned that the UKGBC was expected to release a Net Zero Carbon Building standard in spring 2024 to help address this.
- Technology as a Tool: Technology is not presented as a “silver bullet” but as a crucial tool for achieving Net Zero at the necessary scale and speed. Interoperability between systems and a strategic approach to technology adoption are vital. Katie Whipp succinctly put it: “We can get to Net Zero without technology, but we won’t get there fast enough… without it.”
The episode also delved into the significance of retrofit projects, given that approximately 80% of the building stock in use today will still be operational in 2050. The panel highlighted practical frameworks like the “better buildings partnership” and the trend of companies developing their own bespoke ESG frameworks to meet specific goals. Anna Foden observed, “People are coming up with their own bespoke frameworks of KPIs around what success in this space means specifically to their company.”
Ultimately, this discussion promoted a collaborative and proactive approach to achieving net-zero targets. It highlighted the need for meaningful data collection, early engagement across the board, and a strategic, adaptable view of technology to power the transition to a more sustainable built environment.
You can listen to the full episode here:
