Built environment/wellness
Our cities, buildings and man-made environment plus issues around health and wellness
Tracking concrete technology developments
Among the various organisations interested in lower carbon concrete is, unsurprisingly, the Institution of Structural Engineers. Concrete is a massively important building material. But, as they say "publicly available information about these technologies is often limited and inconsistent, making it difficult to draw comparisons with conventional concrete." Which
Easing the perceived pain of retrofitting payback
The simple payback period calculation for retrofitting (amount spent / annual savings) misses nuance
An 'Industrial Revolution' for efficient buildings?
The European Energy Performance of Buildings Directive could create a massive investment opportunity.
Blood test could revolutionise Alzheimer's diagnosis
An existing commercially available blood test could identify Alzheimer's risk early.
UK declares national incident as measles cases soar
Between 1st October 2023 and 18th January 2024 (15 weeks), there have been 216 confirmed and 103 probable cases of measles in the West Midlands (a region in the UK) with the majority of cases among children under the age of 10. It has prompted the UK Health Security Agency
Could property linked finance unlock £bn of investment?
The Green Finance Institute (GFI) has recently released a report suggesting that introducing Property Linked Finance (PLF) to the UK market could enable £ billions of capital to be raised, to improve the energy efficiency of the UK’s homes and commercial buildings. While the response to the report has been
Green buildings offer good financial value as well?
We know we need greener buildings, but the 'how' is often less clear. And we need to better understand the financial implications. A recent report from the engineering consultancy ARUP, for the World Building Council for Sustainable Development, highlighted the important role that making buildings greener will play
Minimising cost overruns - part 3
Cost over runs not only destroy project economics, they also taint future similar projects with the cost 'blow out' brush. A technique known as Reference Classes can help, but we need to work together to make it useful.
Health equity: FDA panel support for sickle cell disease cure
The potential approval of a treatment for a historically under-served community is important.
The growing gap between Brown and Green building value
Lucienne Mosquera, Managing Partner, at SustainCRE has published some interesting analysis on the growing evidence of a Brown discount in the global real estate market. According to their research "in their current form, around 97% of today’s commercial buildings will not support the transition to net zero. This
Hydrogen for UK home heating ruled out; still important for industry
The 2nd National Infrastructure Assessment report came out during the third week of October. This is particularly interesting: "The Commission’s analysis demonstrates that there is no public policy case for hydrogen to be used to heat individual buildings. It should be ruled out as an option to enable
Place-based approaches - economic and social value
Engaging communities in the right way can improve economic resilience, lives and the environment.