The conference was hosted by the Chartered Institute of Building and highlighted the severity of environmental, social, and economic crises in the UK
The CIOB sustainability conference was a virtual conference, with over 200 people attending the discussions.
Titled ‘Sustainable Construction: Shifting the Narrative’, industry leaders, policy makers, and other experts all discussed how the built environment should meet the issues of these crises.
The industry can handle these issues – but must rise to the occasion
Several case studies were presented at the CIOB sustainability conference, bringing evidence of benefits to nature and the climate from built projects, and also cast a spotlight on retrofit.
Speakers at the conference include Pooran Desai OBE, author and social entrepreneur, who said: “We are realising the world is massively interconnected. We face many problems – social, environmental and economic – but can’t solve them in siloes.
“We need solutions that join up across health, climate, jobs, migration and national security. For example, 80% of spending on our health service in the UK is now on diseases primarily caused by diet, lifestyle, social issues such as poor housing, and pollution, like air pollution.
“The construction industry can play its part in becoming part of a future that pulls us together rather than pulls us apart.”
Amanda Williams, CIOB’s head of environmental sustainability, said: “The natural environment seems rarely out of the news headlines at the moment, but much of society still appears to be in denial about the challenges we face.
“The urgency to take joined up action has never been greater, not just to tackle climate change but the interconnected nature and pollution crises too, which are closely linked to community wellbeing.
“The built environment has a significant impact on the natural environment. In fact, around 39% of the world’s carbon emissions come from the construction and maintenance of buildings. It has never been more urgent for us to address the industry’s impact.
“Our projects must have a net positive impact for people, for nature and for the environment. This requires new kinds of leadership, deeper collaboration, and letting imagination guide our actions, as well as science.”
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