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United Nations Environmental Programme - Sustainable Buildings and Climate Initiative Symposium

5592517173 f3bfa22689 m UNEP SBCIOn October 27th and 28th, 2011, the T.C. Chan Center hosted the United Nations Environmental Programme – Sustainable Buildings and Climate Initiative (UNEP-SBCI) Symposium at the University of Pennsylvania. This event brought together notable speakers from around the world to share knowledge on current events, technology, and policy to promote sustainable building practices on a regional and global scale.

This high-profile symposium is a yearly event held by the UNEP-SBCI to bring together business, academics and non-profit organizations involved with sustainable building practices. Industry and technology presentations and panel discussions were held along with governmental and policy contributions from local, national and international perspectives. The symposium included two days of presentations, speakers and panels, and a networking reception.

View the full press release here.

Video Archives

Videos from T.C. Chan Center.

Photo Archives

Photos from UNEP-SBCI Symposium.

Agenda

View the full Symposium agenda here.

Presentations & Outcomes

Thursday October 27, 2011

Welcome and Opening Remarks: Dr. Ali Malkawi, Founder and Director, T.C. Chan Center; Craig R. Carnaroli, Executive Vice President, University of Pennsylvania & Marcelo Vespoli Takaoka, UNEPSBCI Board Chair; Arab Hoballah, Chief, Sustainable Consumption and Production, UNEP

Video Presentation: HRH Princess Sumaya bint El Hassan, President of El Hassan Science City and the Royal Scientific Society, Jordan

Technical Session 1: Measuring and Reporting Progress in Sustainable Buildings
Moderator: Stéphane Pouffary, Founder and President, ENERGIES 2050

  • Framework for a Sustainable Buildings Index -
    Rodney Milford, Programme Manager, Construction Industry and Development Board – South Africa
  • Developing Country Baselines -
    Dr. Constantine Kontokosta, P.E., Director, Center for the Sustainable Built Environment, New York University, Schack Institute of Real Estate
  • Metropolitan Tokyo’s Cap and Trade Program –
    Yuko Nishida, Planner, Tokyo Metropolitan Government
  • Development of Regional Rating Systems: Qatar Sustainability Assessment System (QSAS) -
    Dr. Ali Malkawi, Founder and Director, T.C. Chan Center

Technical Session 2: Strategies for Improving Performance
Moderator: Mohammad Asfour, Chairman, Jordan Green Building Council

Keynote Address – We can Fight Climate Change and Create jobs – Here’s how. How to Fight Climate Change and create Jobs: David Miller, former-Chair, C40 & former-Mayor, City of Toronto

Policy Panel 1: Industry Perspectives (Panel discussion)
Moderator: Rodney Milford, Programme Manager, Construction Industry and Development Board, South Africa

Noel Morrin, SVP Sustainability & Green Support, SKANSKA; Carol Eicher, Business Group Vice President, Dow Building and Construction; Meirav Even-Har, BOMA Canada; Douglas Hocking, Principal, Kohn Pedersen & Fox; Sunny Wang, General Manager; BROAD USA Inc.; Michael Deane, Vice President, Chief Sustainability Officer, Turner Construction

Panel Highlights:

  • There is no reason problems of sustainability in buildings can’t be solved today; it is not a matter of technology, the real issue is political will.
  • Companies like to keep their successes to themselves, but recently there has been more sharing of such stories, and this needs to continue to be encouraged.
  • Voluntary certification schemes have done very well in terms of pushing industry to rethink how they do business. At some point however, the government needs to push the laggards forward. Industry knows a change is coming, but inevitably some will need more encouragement than others.
  • Today we are failing because we are just thinking about building the building, cutting the ribbon and then walking away. It is important to benchmark and then collect and use the information to understand the performance of the building.
  • Clients are trying to leverage their influence to challenge and change their supply chains.

Policy Panel 2: Mayor/City Initiatives (Panel discussion)
Moderator: Bill Purcell, former-Mayor, Nashville, Tennessee

Mayor Michael Nutter, City of Philadelphia; David Miller, former-Chair, C40 & former-Mayor, City of Toronto; Elton Santa Fé Zacarias, Municipal Secretary of Urban Infrastructure and Construction, City of Sao Paulo; Catalina de Miguel García, Técnico Superior, Innovation Department, Empresa Municipal de la Vivienda y Suelo, Madrid

Panel Highlights:

  • Mayoral leadership is critical, cities need to be visionaries.
  • Mayor’s need to work together, learning from each others’ experiences, sharing best practice, and this will drive change at home.
  • Policies need to be made relevant to citizens and communicated clearly.
  • Sustainable policies are not separate to other goals such as economic development, especially in this climate, they go hand in hand.
  • If cities want to influence national policy, projects need to be a win-win for local and national governments.
  • We have to make sustainability sustainable.

Friday October 28, 2011

UNEP-SBCI Committee Workshops

Welcome and Opening Remarks: Dr. Ali Malkawi, Founder and Director, T.C. Chan Center; Marilyn Jordon Taylor, Dean, University of Pennsylvania School of Design; Anne Papageorge, Vice President Facilities and Real Estate Services, University of Pennsylvania

Technical Session 3: Innovative Approaches for Sustainable Buildings and Communities
Moderator: Curt Garrigan, Coordinator, UNEP-SBCI

Policy Panel 3: National Government Actions (Panel discussion)
Moderator: Roger Platt, Senior Vice-President, Global Policy & Law, US Green Building Council

Maria Salette de Carvalho Weber, Gerente de Projetos da Secretaria Nacional de Habitação, Ministério das Cidades; Rodney Milford, Programme Manager, Construction Industry and Development Board – South Africa; Kian Seng Ang, Director of Research, Building and Construction Authority, Singapore; Cesar Rafael Chávez Ortíz, Director General de Fomento Ambiental Urbano y Turístico, SEMARNAT – Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, Government of Mexico

Panel Highlights:

  • Brazil has a housing deficit of 5.6 million total units and has introduced the “My home, my life” program, which focuses on sustainability. Click here to view presentation.
  • South Africa is developing a green building policy for the country. A significant challenge being faced is the fact that climate change cuts across many different departments in government, which adds to considerable complexity.
  • It is important not to forget green issues when working on the green economy.
  • Singapore has established an inter-agency committee to address climate change/GHG emissions, and has developed a green building master plan, with five strategic thrusts. These include: the public sector will take lead spurring the private sector, development of technology, industry capacity building, awareness raising, and imposing minimum standards. Click here to view presentation.
  • Mexico is pursuing Zero Energy Housing. Click here to view presentation.

Policy Panel 4: International Policy-Making(Panel discussion)
Moderator: Amy Fraenkel, Regional Director and Representative, UNEP Regional Office for North America

Arab Hoballah, Chief, Sustainable Consumption and Production, UNEP; Marcus Lee, Urban Development – Cities and Climate Change Finance, Economics and Urban Department, The World Bank; Roger Platt, Senior Vice-President, Global Policy & Law, US Green Building Council; Cecile Martinez, Director, New York Office, United Nations Human Settlements Program (UN-Habitat)

Panel Highlights:

  • There is an opportunity for improvement, with existing tools and practices, that will save money.
  • Standardization is essential in reporting, so that we can measure and manage progress, which in turn will lead to more opportunity.
  • The serious challenge is how we deploy the choir, and speak to issues of economic development and poverty eradication.
  • Scale is an issue – we need to reach out to 1000s, not just megacities, and we need to consider how we address urban areas, and not just cities.
  • Rio + 20 is a political opportunity:
    • We need to engage younger generations and deliver a vision for our future generations; Rio is about finding the road we are going to take.
    • Targets which involve cities in a meaningful way may be a very useful tool for ensuring change.
    • We need to appreciate the legal differences across countries in committing to international agreements; therefore initiatives are a good option for moving forward. For example, initiatives driving new forms of planning that are green, efficient and improve quality of life.
    • We need to bring the actors together, to move forward.

Summary of Proceedings and Recommended Actions: Arab Hoballah, Chief, Sustainable Consumption and Production, UNEP (available soon)