EMISSIONS REDUCTIONS IFAD: A Green Building in Rome

After four years of preparation, in June 2008, IFAD moved into its new headquarters, uniting the formerly three IFAD locations to one. The aim was to reduce the organization’s impact on environment, to provide more space of higher quality, and to improve work conditions for its employees.

The new building has 18’000 sq m of office space, which is 2’000 sq m more than the three previous IFAD build- ings together, and includes 750 work places, 13 meet- ing rooms (eight more than previously) and a 3,000 sq m state-of-the-art conference area.

The building’s sustainability features include a high- performance building envelope façade, reducing en- ergy demand and greenhouse gas emissions. Inside the building, the major sustainability features include high- energy efficiency standards for heating, ventilation, lighting and air-conditioning. In addition, the building’s air-conditioning and fire suppression systems have zero chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) emissions. To reduce drink- ing water consumption, several water recovery systems were installed to supply the building. Paper waste is col- lected at the facility and sent for recycling.

IFAD is currently exploring possibilities of obtaining Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification that will represent recognition of building’s high performance with respect to water savings, energy efficiency, material selection and indoor air quality

With buildings at more than 530 UN duty stations around the world, and with many more smaller offices, not to mention the pre-fabricated buildings used in peacekeeping operations, the building stock leased or owned by the UN represents a significant emissions- reduction potential. Buildings, together with travel, will most likely constitute the main focus for UN emissions- reduction efforts over the next few years.

In 2009 the Inter-Agency Facility Management Network (INFM) established a working group to develop recom- mendations on the minimum efficiency performance of facilities owned or leased by the UN. Two guidelines on emissions reduction from existing buildings were released in 2009, and a third guideline on procurement of sustain- able buildings is being prepared for release in 2010.

Increased use of renewable energy Fifteen organizations report that they have increasing the share of renewable energy sources, or are planning to do so. In a few cases on-site renewable energy pro- duction through solar heaters (for hot water) or photo- voltaic cells (for electricity production) are supplement- ing other energy sources. With the support from the

German government, all UN organizations in Bonn are using green renewable electricity since January 2007.

Guidelines for renewable energy procurement in the UN are being prepared for release in 2010.

Green offices and energy efficient office equipment In addition to the design of the building itself, the set-up and operation of offices within the building can impact the climate footprint too. The accumulation of many small measures can have a large effect. This refers to is- sues such as using the energy-saving features of office equipment, reducing the amount of paper printed and minimizing the number of individual printers/copiers/ scanners, unplugging or turning off computers com- pletely after working hours, maximizing the penetration of natural light into offices to reduce the need for artificial lighting (using transparent inner walls and bright colors on walls and ceilings). Thirty-two UN organizations report having carried out such measures at their headquarters.

The UNDP Bureau for Development Policy has system- atically institutionalized green office measures as part of a refurbishment of one office floor in the FF-building. They include the purchase of renewable energy certifi- cates (RECs) and offsets to compensate for the remain- ing office emissions. Furthermore, water consumption was reduced by 40 per cent, indoor environmental quality improved and materials reused or selected un- der sustainability considerations. The bureau is the first UN office in New York that has been awarded the US Green Building Councils Gold Certification for Leader- ship in Energy and Environment Design (LEED) for one of its occupied office floors.

Other organizations have issued Green Office Guides to help field offices implement immediate cost-effective actions toward greener day-to-day operations, includ- ing standard double-sided printing, saving and recy- cling of paper and toner, turning off lights and comput- ers when not in use, and maximizing the use of natural lighting. Such measures are often very cost-effective. But staff members need to understand and support the reason for change, as their personal behaviour often has a substantial impact on performance. This is one of the reasons why staff training and communication are important parts of emissions-reduction efforts at the UN (see text box below).

Green ICT and improved access to e- communication tools Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) are of particular importance for the climate footprint of UN offices, both in terms of the direct impact from elec-

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