The Future of Sustainable Construction

In this insightful episode, we delve into the complexities of carbon emissions within the construction industry. Our guest, Gilbert Lennox King, CEO and co-founder of Construction Carbon, shares his mission to simplify carbon management for developers. We explore the crucial distinction between embodied and operational carbon, the drivers behind the growing focus on embodied carbon, and innovative financial incentives for sustainable development. Discover how Construction Carbon is helping developers and funders forecast, track, and reduce their carbon footprint, and gain valuable insights into the future of sustainable construction.  

Key Takeaways

● Embodied carbon refers to emissions from the materials and construction processes of a building, while operational carbon is associated with its energy use.  
● The importance of embodied carbon is growing as operational emissions decrease due to grid decarbonisation.  
● Construction Carbon aims to simplify carbon management for developers by providing tools to forecast, track, and reduce emissions.  
● Financial incentives, such as rebates on development loans, are being used to encourage developers to reduce embodied carbon.  
● The UK Net Zero Carbon Building Standard provides benchmarks and definitions for net zero carbon in construction and operation.  
● Measuring and verifying embodied carbon is becoming increasingly important for reporting to voluntary frameworks and for due diligence.  
● There are differing views on the role of timber in reducing embodied carbon, particularly regarding the accounting of carbon sequestration.  
● The industry is working towards better integration of various standards and data to improve building sustainability.  

Best Moments
● "It's not that complicated really."  
● "Sometimes it's not that nice to run your company either."  
● "We're on a mission to try and make carbon simpler for developers."  
● "You could build the most energy-efficient building in the world and fly in the materials from coal-fired factories and nobody would actually care about that upstream emissions, whereas now I think there's sort of broader recognition that you need to look at the whole life of a building."  

VALUABLE RESOURCES

Jon Ackroyd - https://uk.linkedin.com/in/jonackroyd

Oliver Lowrie - https://www.linkedin.com/in/oliver-lowrie/?original_referer=&originalSubdomain=uk

EPISODES TO CHECK OUT NEXT

The Future of Sustainable Design with Kelly Alvarez Doran
Is the Future of Housing Rental? With Michael Keaveney from Grainger PLC

ABOUT THE HOSTS

Jon Ackroyd and Oliver Lowrie, the visionary hosts of Urban Forecast, bring their expertise from leading their innovative practice, Ackroyd Lowrie. Known for pushing the boundaries in urban design, Jon and Oliver use their podcast to delve into the future of cities, sharing insights from their work on projects that emphasise sustainability, community, and transformative architecture. Through Urban Forecast, they engage listeners with discussions on how architecture and design shape urban living, aiming to inspire new ways of thinking about the spaces around us.

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