The Performance Imperative: Raising the Sustainability Baseline for Building Design

Side of Design

Thursday, April 22, is the 51st anniversary of Earth Day. When Earth Day was created, the global economy was releasing just short of 15 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. By 2019, we were producing north of 35 billion metric tons.

The facts are straight forward. Buildings generate 40 percent of greenhouse gas emissions, with the urban built environment accounting for 75 percent of emissions. By 2060, it’s predicted we’ll add another 2.5 trillion square feet of global building stock to accommodate a population of 10 billion people.

All of this is at a time when NASA reported 2020 tying 2016 as the warmest year on modern record and close to 2 degrees warmer than the baseline mean from 1951-1980.

To say there’s an impetus to improve building performance in order to mitigate the impacts of global warming is a massive understatement.

In this episode, BWBR’s Jesse Turck and Tom Hanley, both architects, LEED accredited professionals, and leading advocates in sustainable design, discuss this performance imperative and how raising the sustainability baseline for building design can positively impact both the organizations who operate these facilities and the communities that are home to these spaces.

James Lockwood hosts.

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