Toronto’s Building Lasting Change conference is fast approaching, representing an important moment for business and technical expertise to converge in order to accelerate the decarbonization of Canada’s built environment.
The event, hosted by the Canada Green Building Council (CAGBC), is scheduled for June 5 and 6 at the Marriott CF Eaton Centre.
Sessions are divided into two learning tracks covering business and technical perspectives, with delegates able to select any session to customize the experience.
“I feel like we put together a really interesting program for everybody, really trying to grow out that business side, find the business case and how to deal with those issues at the executive level,” said Catherine Kinsman-Neurauter, acting director of market engagement for CAGBC.
Kinsman-Neurauter said the industry has been evolving rapidly in recent years.
“We need to stay on top of it. The past few years, we curated the content and this year, I was really insistent that we would go back to the call for presentations from our members. Our members are the ones who are in the trenches and really dealing with all the issues day in and day out.
“Their perspective is so important in shaping the content around the conference.”
The Technical Pathways track offers delegates a detailed look at successful approaches, considerations and real-world results to reduce emissions for deep carbon retrofits and zero carbon design. Among them:
- learn the benefits of combined embodied and operational analysis for whole-building life cycle carbon in MURBs;
- explore new technologies that offer scalable solutions and real results for retrofits;
- leverage lessons learned that support the value of portfolio-scale planning; and
- explore zero carbon energy sources benefitting architectural and community projects.
The Business of Green Building track highlights the business advantages of zero carbon buildings. Sessions in this track:
- learn best practices for raising responsible capital;
- explore combined technical and financial analysis to leverage green financing mechanisms; and
- learn the importance of pricing carbon risks and opportunities in asset valuations.
The conference draws experts from across the global decarbonization sector with panels offering opportunities to compare notes on developing trends and best practices.
The day two morning keynote and plenary panel will feature Guy Grainger, global head of sustainability services and ESG at JLL, who will be joined by Michael Brooks, CEO of REALPAC; Jody Becker, chief strategy officer and EVP infrastructure services and technology at EllisDon; and Sarah Zaleski, chief products officer, USGBC.
“What he is saying is that 2024 is going to be the tipping point for investing into sustainable buildings,” Kinsman-Neurauter said of Grainger.
“He sees between now and 2030 these long-term leases are going to be turning over and how occupiers and especially anchor tenants are going to be looking at the building that they’re situated in. And if that building doesn’t align with their own ESG goals then they’re going to have to jump ship and find a building that does.”
Another session will be devoted to steel circularity — in particular, lessons learned from a structural engineer and contractor’s perspectives on employing steel reuse on the Centre Block Project in Ottawa.
On June 5, the CAGBC will launch the newest version of ZCB-Design, Canada’s standard for zero carbon construction. Version 4 of the life-cycle carbon standard reflects the latest technological advancements, policy and regulatory developments, and market expectations. Issues to be highlighted will include energy efficiency, onsite combustion, grid impacts, refrigerant management and embodied carbon.
Follow the author on X/Twitter @DonWall_DCN.
Recent Comments
comments for this post are closed