But those priorities are shifting following spikes in energy prices and amid rising public awareness of the built environment’s contribution to global warming, experts say. Instead, lower-impact features such as air-source heat pumps, solar panels and energy efficiency are increasingly important attributes as consumers seek to cut their expenses while being kinder to the planet.  Energy classifications and certification are also starting to have an impact. 

We are honored to have Justin Travlos, Head of Responsible Investments at AXA IM Alts, Lena Hök, Executive Vice President of Sustainability and Innovation at Skanska Group, and Benoit Bazin, CEO of Saint-Gobain, as our guests. They shed light on the evolution from vision to action, detailing how their organizations are embodying sustainability commitments through cross-sector partnerships and knowledge sharing. 

With 200 apartments, the Powerhouse Lade project demonstrates how homes can become part of the climate transition, and how the Powerhouse concept continues to lead the way in energy efficiency.

If you’re reading this article in a shared space, like a train or a bus or an office, take a moment to look around before you read any further. Now consider this. Statistics suggest that up to one in five of the people around you is ‘neuroatypical,’ meaning that they have a brain that functions slightly differently from the norm. Whether they are living with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism, dyslexia or one of a range of other conditions, their unique ‘neurotype’ or brain type presents them with both challenges and opportunities in their daily lives. There’s a 20 percent chance that you are neuroatypical yourself.

However, the sector has a carbon emissions problem. It is the only major European economic sector in which carbon emissions have increased since 1990, according to the European Environment Agency (EEA). Even with reduction measures currently planned by EU member states, domestic transport emissions won’t drop below 1990 levels until 2029.

Magnus Persson, EVP and CFO at Skanska Group, and Thorsten Slytå, Managing Director and Head of Nordic Real Estate at BlackRock, share their view on these questions. Each has a valuable perspective on the changing investment landscape.

This episode, the last one for our first season, features Magnus Persson, EVP and CFO at Skanska Group, and Thorsten Slytå, Managing Director and Head of Nordic Real Estate at BlackRock. Each is working at the forefront of the changing economic landscape relating to sustainability.

Yet both employees and employers are realizing there are benefits to in-person work that can’t be gained through virtual workspaces. To get teams back to the workplace, workspaces need to promote physical and emotional health for employees, and be spaces where people want to work.

Brendan Wallace, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Fifth Wall, Henrik Ahnström, Director of Innovation at Skanska Commercial Development Nordic, and Stacy Smedley, Executive Director at Building Transparency, are all leaders in innovation, finding ways to make use of the latest digital solutions. Each, in their own unique way, is using technology to tackle our modern climate challenges head-on.

This episode features Brendan Wallace, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Fifth Wall, Henrik Ahnström, Director of Development at Skanska Commercial Development Nordic, and Stacy Smedley, Executive Director at Building Transparency. Each plays a unique role in merging the technology and real estate development sectors.

This episode features Dr. Whitney Austin Gray, Senior Vice President at International WELL Building Institute, Ewelina Kałużna, Head of Strategic Workplace Solutions Advisory CEE at Skanska and Managing Director at Business Link, and Theres Söderlund Lakso, Head of Internal Communications, Business Area Cloud Software & Services at Ericsson. Together, they’re creating a work environment where people want to be, one that incorporates social, environmental and urban sustainability.

The place your organization is based and the ease of getting there are both key as they determine employees’ willingness to work at the office. 

Tim Smart, Managing Director Phase 2 at HS2 Ltd, Louise Dailly, Head of Social Sustainability at the Skanska Costain STRABAG Joint Venture, David Ode, TBM Tunnel Superintendent HS2 at Skanska, and Fiona O’Riordan, Assistant Civil Engineer at Skanska, joined this episode to share how they’re turning the HS2 vision into a reality.

Vanessa Butani, VP of Group Sustainability at Electrolux Group; Guillaume Charny-Brunet, Co-Founder and Head of Ventures at SPACE10; and Juhani Aspara, Regional Manager at Skanska in Finland, are all working to create built environments that enable healthy, sustainable living.

The latest episode of Shaping Sustainable Places, the global podcast from Skanska, features Vanessa Butani, VP of Group Sustainability at Electrolux, Guillaume Charny-Brunet, Co-Founder and Head of Ventures at SPACE10, and Juhani Aspara, Regional Manager at Skanska in Finland. Each offers some insight into how to make sustainable living more accessible on the individual level. 

Sustainability is a team effort. No organization can achieve carbon neutrality on its own but, by working together, we can enact a holistic plan of sustainability that creates a cleaner, safer and healthier built environment.

The transportation sector is one of the biggest contributors to global carbon emissions. But in our globalized economy, the need for safe, fast and reliable transportation isn’t going away.

In our globalized economy, the need for safe, fast and reliable transportation isn’t going away, so decarbonization efforts must focus on creating more sustainable, energy-saving methods of mobility. Read the article where industry leaders working on clean transportation initiatives offer a glimpse into specific solutions to transportation emissions.

We sat down with three industry and community experts who are already working to prepare urban environments for exactly these sorts of challenges. Sabrina Bornstein, Principal and Head of Climate Resilience at Buro Happold, Christopher Westley, Senior Vice President of Strategic Services at Skanska USA Commercial Development, and Sylvester Turner, Mayor of Houston, are all leaders working to shape climate-resilient urban spaces.

How can cities prepare for the impact of climate change in ways that also improve social equity? In this episode of Shaping Sustainable Places, we discuss what cities are doing to become more resilient.

Fires and floods, droughts and downpours: the extreme weather seen around the world this year, which has killed thousands and forced millions from their homes, is in line with predictions under climate modeling of global warming.

We all share a basic need for homes, workplaces and the infrastructure that makes up our communities. A clean, safe and well-planned built environment allows us to lead meaningful lives and to reach our full potential.

Energy is one of the hottest questions as we consider ways to ensure a sustainable future. A clean energy transition is well underway in many countries, with electrification lowering carbon emissions in transport systems as well as construction and development projects. Yet, major challenges remain. How can the built environment play a positive role here? 

Thankfully, although many important technological innovations are in the pipeline, the truth is that much of the technology we need to reduce buildings’ carbon emissions already exists. By using energy more efficiently with existing tools and resources, we can drastically reduce urban energy consumption and, in turn, reduce carbon emissions.

It’s the first building in Georgia, and 28th in the world, to earn the Living Building Challenge certification and is net positive in both energy and water consumption. Its construction phase boasted a zero carbon footprint. 

The Kendeda Building is the most environmentally advanced educational and research facility in the US Southeast. It boasts an innovative sustainable design and was also the first building in Georgia, and 28th in the world, to earn the Living Building Challenge (LBC) certification. It is net positive both in energy and water consumption, and its construction phase achieved a zero carbon footprint. It was designed and built to be a healthy, inclusive and attractive workspace for the faculty and students.

“By keeping carbon inside wood, one day timber could turn our homes and even entire cities into carbon sinks,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said during an event on November 24, 2022.

Developers and city planners across the globe are focusing on solutions that benefit people, communities and the environment. Mark Watts at C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, Guillaume Charny-Brunet at SPACE10 and Morten Kjer Jeppesen at Gehl are involved in creating sustainable cities through urgent climate actions.

The world’s population recently topped 8 billion people, and more than half of those people live in cities today. This number is set to rise to 60% by 2030. We need our cities to be inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable in order to support this growing population. 

By giving thought now to what kinds of urban spaces work best, we can build comfortable, sustainable cities that improve life for ourselves – and for future generations. 

The population is growing and infrastructure is needed to support it. But the built environment is a major source of CO2 emissions, around 40 percent. Many of these emissions are produced when new materials are manufactured, such as cement, steel and glass.

The built environment is responsible for 40% of energy-related CO2 emissions globally. And it just continues to grow, essentially adding one New York City each month with construction materials being the primary cause of emissions. This presents an incredible challenge. However, sustainable innovations in cement, steel, glass, and other materials can significantly move us forward on the journey toward low-carbon construction.

Rethinking how we design and use materials, and avoiding over-specification (generally the stronger the concrete, the more cement is required), can make the construction process more efficient. And using more efficient design and delivery methods, modularization and digital rehearsals to avoid design clashes, can cut emissions.

How else can we pave the way to a sustainable future for the construction industry? Let’s have a look at four solutions from the Skanska world.

A zero-energy building (ZEB) has such high energy efficiency that it consumes no net energy from the energy grid. Such buildings should generate enough energy from their own renewable sources – such as solar panels – to cover their annual energy requirements. A nearly zero-energy building (NZEB) has achieved almost the same levels, requiring minimal energy from external sources.

The built environment is responsible for around 40 percent of energy-related carbon emissions globally. Reducing emissions throughout the entire life cycle can have a significant effect on carbon minimization as we try to limit global warming to 1.5C.

We see a world where sustainability is simply built into living. By coming together to think differently and solve problems today, we have the power to shape sustainable places to support healthy living beyond our lifetime.