New opportunities for accelerating climate action and sustainability (10 September 2020)
Ang Kian Seng, BCA
Eric Soh, Samwoh Corporation Pte Ltd
Lynette Leong, CapitaLand Group
In which direction do you think the Green building sector will evolve in the next three to five years?
A poll conducted with the sessions’ attendees gave the following results:
• 33.7 per cent: As planned, there will be more Super Low Energy (SLE) buildings.
• 36.8 per cent: Even more aggressively: more net-zero carbon buildings and consideration of embodied carbon.
• 17.9 per cent: No change: the Green Building agenda has taken a backseat during the pandemic.
• 11.6 per cent: Regress: with economic uncertainty, there is less appetite for investment in Green buildings and sustainability.
“This pandemic has shown that the sustainability that allows everyone to thrive can only be achieved by design, not by disaster,” said Joelle Chen, Programme Director at Beca Singapore, the moderator for this session.
Co-creation of Singapore Green Building Masterplan (SGBMP) “In 2005, Singapore launched the BCA Green Mark Scheme. Since the beginning of 2020, SGBC and BCA have been co-creating the SGBMP with the general public, industry and youth to build a shared vision for Green buildings in Singapore. The efforts thus far are aligned to combat climate change, where one of the key targets is to Green 80 per cent of Singapore’s gross floor area by 2030. The conversion moving forward is hence to make our buildings not just Green, but also Greener than before,” shared Ang Kian Seng, Group Director, Environment Sustainability Group, Building and Construction Authority (BCA), and current second Vice President of the Singapore Green Building Council (SGBC).
Green Mark buildings are targeting and achieving higher energy efficiency standards, with the industry capable to push the boundaries for more. The industry has been targeting and achieving higher energy efficiency standards across various building typologies over the last five years. Green Mark buildings reap net positive savings throughout their life cycles, with energy savings outweighing the upfront investment costs in the long run, Ang observed. There is a strong business case for developers to strive for higher standards and go beyond the Green Mark Platinum rating. “The number of Green Mark Platinum projects in a year has doubled, compared to five years ago,” he said.
Advancing net-zero in the tropics with the Super Low Energy Buildings (SLEB) Programme Currently, there has been encouraging progress from SLEB Challenge, with 14 SLEB projects in 2018 increasing to 55 projects in 2020 involving 79 industry stakeholders, such as developers, buildings owners, architects, ESD consultants, as well as mechanical and electrical (M&E) consultants. Some examples include the Surbana Jurong Campus (SLEB) with an estimated Energy Use Intensity (EUI) of 82 kWh/m2
University of Singapore, School of Design & Environment 4 (NUS SDE) (net- zero energy building) with an estimated EUI of 52.5 kWh/m2
/year, and the National /year.
“With net positive savings over the life cycle, widespread adoption of SLEB in Singapore will help to reduce energy use and emissions in the building sector. The energy savings enjoyed during the building life cycle support the case to raise minimum legislative energy efficiency standard. With the public sector leading the way, demand can be created for SLEB while building capabilities for a robust ecosystem that supports Singapore’s climate change commitments,” Ang observed.
Speakers from leading organisations such as the World Green Building Council, City Developments Limited and Beca Asia shared with the audience how we can draw lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic and leverage innovative technologies to accelerate global climate action moving forward.
Cristina Gamboa is Chief Executive Officer at the World Green Building Council (WorldGBC), the local-regional-global network of around 70 Green Building Councils and 36,000 members, catalysing the uptake of sustainable buildings globally. Prior to joining WorldGBC in November 2018, she was CEO of Colombia Green Building Council.
Cristina Gamboa, WorldGBC
“Accelerating climate action has never been more important than before. What I would like to say in this opening remark to start the conversation is that there are several lessons to be learnt from what we have experienced thus far that can make a difference for the people, the planet and the built environment,” shared Gamboa.
“We know that the COVID-19 pandemic has emphasised the importance of net-zero buildings for economies. Even though we think that there might be a reduction in carbon emissions due to, for example, the slowdown in activities, we still consume energy. There are still opportunities in the recovery plans for governments and stakeholders to take action,” Gamboa emphasised.
The WorldGBC has launched a new strategy recently: Sustainable Buildings for Everyone, Everywhere. Sustainable buildings have evolved around three main aspects: climate action; health and well-being; as well as resources and circularity.
“For a long time, we know that buildings have to be part of the solution to address the climate emergency. What we have here is a way forward for us to make a difference, in particular, a systemic change approach and a radical collaboration that we can deliver to have sustainability embedded in all aspects,” Gamboa commented.
Gamboa shared five main points that are key to having a conversation on the lessons learnt from the COVID-19 pandemic: trusts in scientists; collaborative government structures; innovative partnerships; change in the message of mental and physical health; and digital acceleration. The pandemic has shown that there are opportunities for transformation: that we can act and society can be mobilised quickly if we understand that the climate emergency is also putting our health at stake. Buildings do support our health, the health of the planet, and help in a Greener recovery, Gamboa said.
“A sustainable future is our only future. And history will judge us tomorrow on what we do today. We have solutions. It’s time to scale them up; it’s time for collective action for a much needed Green and equitable transformation all around the world,” advised Gamboa.
Leadership Plenary: Re-imagining the built environment in a post- pandemic era (24 September 2020)
The pandemic has irrevocably changed the way the built environment sector and businesses have to operate. The speakers in this session discussed where the future of the built environment sector is headed and how we should then design, build and operate our buildings in response to these changes. The moderator of this session was Tai Lee Siang, Executive Director, Building and Construction Authority (BCA).
FUTURARC 101
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