World on road to net-zero carbon for built environment, but gigantic steps to be taken

New Delhi : RICS School of Built Environment, Amity University, Noida successfully hosted the International Conference on Sustainable Built Environment (ICSBE23) recently. The event brought together thought leaders, industry experts, and academia to discuss issues surrounding sustainability and net zero in the built environment.

The conference covered a wide range of themes related to sustainability and net zero in the built environment such as Education & training for Sustainability, and Capacity Building; Sustainable Urban Planning, Real Estate, and Construction practices; Net Zero Built Environment agenda, progression, opportunities, and challenges; Climate Change Policy, Legal Framework and Financing, and Technology and Innovation in Process and Products.

The conference was aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals and COP 26 and 27 accords, where the keynote and panel discussions pointed towards Scope 3 carbon emission calculation challenges and the need for low-carbon construction materials with precise data on carbon emission during extraction and manufacturing.

Prof. (Dr.) Deepak Bajaj, Head of Institution, RICS SBE, Amity University, Noida, while inaugurating the conference mentioned, “At RICS SBE, Sustainability in built environment is very important for us & all our courses have inbuilt elements related to various aspects of sustainability. Sustainability may have different meaning for different stakeholders, understanding different views and collaborating for a common cause is the need of the hour. If everyone plays their part in no matter how small it might be, it all counts towards sustainability awareness and adaption.”

The experts acknowledged the growing support of startups and new companies in developers and asset managers’ carbon emission calculation as per Greenhouse Gas Protocol. Still, more solutions are needed with the changing time on the Social and Governance aspects of the Business Responsibility & Sustainability Reporting (BRSR) structure. On the other hand, developers need core integrated strategies to tackle ESG issues at the portfolio level, which primarily institutional assets are currently focussing on.

Mr. Sanjeev Dasgupta, CEO of CapitaLand India Trust, stated, “Building a Greener Future,” at the Conference, sharing how CapitaLand integrates sustainability in the entire real estate cycle, right from investment, design, and operations. “Sustainability is a key imperative for all stakeholders and going green is not only good for the environment but increasingly becoming financially attractive too,”

Mr. Gurmit Singh Arora, National Chairman, CII-IGBC, added, “Climate Change is at our doorstep. Built Environment contributes to 38% of the carbon emissions worldwide. It is possible to achieve carbon neutrality by achieving net zero energy, water and waste. CII IGBC is committed to make the Built Environment Carbon Neutral by 2047.”

The conference was sponsored by CapitaLand Limited and Nucleus Office Parks (Blackstone Group Company), while the Centre for Policy Research, Colliers, the University of Newcastle, Australia, and RICS served as conference partners, and Springer served as the publication partner.

Participants from various sectors, including academia, industry, and government, were invited to engage in discussions on education, policy frameworks, technology, innovations, partnerships, and governance in the context of a sustainable built environment.

The Australia-India Council Grants Programme hosted a half-day interactive panel discussion on education for a net-zero carbon-built environment, which was a highlight of the conference. The session was conducted synchronously between Sydney and Noida and was live-streamed globally. The conference featured a mix of industry and academic sessions over the course of two days.

ICSBE23 aimed to create a platform for experts from all walks of life to come together and address issues related to sustainability and resilience in all types of building and construction projects, including operational buildings and infrastructure projects within urban regions worldwide. The conference aimed to contribute to the creation of a healthy, net-zero built environment for future generations.