Charlie Woodruff’s Post

Wondering how to progress from decarbonization targets to the implementation of cost-effective, net-zero retrofits? PCL’s Sustainable Retrofits & Decarbonization (SR&D) team works to put an actionable plan on your road to net zero. Building systems manager and sustainability expert in our Toronto office, Stephen Montgomery, describes how our SR&D services can get you to your net-zero goals.

Exciting news for the standards industry! A global alliance for digital transformation in the built environment is underway. The industry is currently facing a challenge with various digital "walled gardens" that do not communicate, hindering global initiatives and collaborations. This new initiative aims to create a common platform for players worldwide, standardize best practices, and facilitate collaboration to address environmental issues. By leading with shared data, this alliance is challenging standards developers to do their best work and lower entry barriers to create a solution that works for everyone. Learn more about this global initiative here: https://lnkd.in/gfpvbuBK

Yesterday's Breakfast Event hosted by Mott MacDonald, chaired by the fantastic Trudi Sully was a great success! Huge thanks to Mott MacDonald for the invitation, and thank you to Mark and Amy for your insightful presentations. We delved into the theme of Unlocking the Circular Economy in the Built Environment, and the morning's presentations included: 1️⃣ Mark Enzer, from Mott MacDonald, framed the Circular Economy from a systems-based lens, highlighting the complexities and importance of shared values among stakeholders. 2️⃣ KOPE showcased our purpose-built software platform for the offsite construction section, providing visibility and access to a digitalized supply chain. Enabling seamless integration of products into projects so that we can measure and report on various solutions to inform our decisions around circular economy. 3️⃣ Amy Casterton from ES Global shared interesting insights from their amazing projects and global experience, highlighting the circular nature of their solutions and the evolving approach to temporary and re-locatable structures. The Key takeaways resonated across all presentations: ◾ Embrace systems thinking ◾ Foster connections across products, organizations, and sectors ◾ Prioritize visibility and accessibility to crucial information throughout a product lifecycle. ◾ Common data infrastructures and digitalized products are critical in developing the building blocks to industrialize the supply chain and scale. The call to action is for us now to pull together to make the circular economy, in the built environment, common language. Each of us must choose to act and make change happen in the parts of the built environment where we have influence and control. #circulareconomy #digitalplatforms #connectivity #systemsthinking #innovation

Corporate sustainability often focuses on the environmental footprint of an organization, which emphasizes reducing the direct impact of business operations. Bentley Systems impact strategy goes beyond mitigating our own impacts. Our 'handprint' refers to the positive social and environmental impacts Bentley users achieve through our software.

Stantec walks the talk and I appreciate that. ESG performance gives companies a competitive advantage for attracting and engaging employees, and for promoting innovation. Recent research shows that when employees say their work has meaning, rather than being “just a job,” they are 56% more likely to experience innovation opportunities. Great work Stantec on the 5th year of top sustainability performance!

The built environment – the buildings, linear infrastructure, and shared places that collectively support our communities – is one of the world’s greatest climate culprits, directly contributing to approximately 40% of global carbon emissions and 40% of material use worldwide. And still, the world is undergoing the largest wave of urban growth in history. On World Engineering Day for Sustainable Development, discover how Dar’s experts are working with clients to decarbonise the built environment across its lifecycle – from master planning sustainable new cities to designing ambitious and sustainable building and infrastructure projects to working with building owners to optimise operations and maintenance through advanced digital technologies. Together, we can shape a more sustainable and welcoming world. 

Today is #EarthDay, and we are excited to release our 2023 Environmental, Social, and Governance report. This second annual report tells the story of how we are working to address our operational footprint while expanding our handprint to empower users to advance the UN Sustainable Development Goals. With climate change and other social and environmental challenges straining the world’s aging infrastructure, we take immense pride in the role that our software plays in helping engineers design, build, and operate infrastructure that is more sustainable and resilient. Download the report to learn more about our impact. https://bit.ly/3UtGYVp #sustainability #infrastructure #ESG #ESGreport #EarthDay

For anyone who works on sustainability reports, you know that creating these is no simple task. It takes months of meticulous collaboration, iteration and long nights to wrangle the data, find the stories, create the content and visualize the information in these PDFs. It was great partnering with Hotwire to work with Bentley Systems on developing its 2023 ESG Report. A shout out to everyone who I had the pleasure of working with to make this happen: Angela Curry, Joe Neukrug, Sarika Jagtiani, Jim Dobbs and Chris Bradshaw and Hotwire team: Crystal Frankenbery, Jacey File, Paige Rodgers and others. This is a prime example of how a fractional sustainability comms executive like myself can partner with an agency to deliver world-class sustainability communication and reporting services for companies that advance sustainable business.

Title : Thought Leaders Series: Sustainable duality, infrastructure for tomorrow" In the recent CPD webinar, "Thought Leaders Series: Sustainable duality, infrastructure for tomorrow," industry experts addressed the pressing need for sustainable infrastructure in the face of climate change and evolving societal expectations. Claire Thorstensen, Manager (Sustainability) at the Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads, shared insights into leading major projects towards sustainable assessments and outcomes. Dr. Richard Parsons, Technical Principal at SMEC, offered international expertise in social impact assessment, community engagement, and optimizing social outcomes. Kirsty Bauer, Senior Associate at SMEC, drew on her 19 years of experience to highlight the integration of sustainability into project and asset management systems. The webinar emphasized the urgency of climate action, ecosystem restoration, and the integration of sustainable practices in infrastructure design. It highlighted the role of early community engagement and building a circular economy to minimize waste. Personally, I appreciated the dynamic approach advocated for sustainability throughout the project life cycle. Thanks to Claire Thorstensen, Dr. Richard Parsons, Kirsty Bauer, and all speakers for sharing valuable insights. The webinar not only underscored the challenges but also provided actionable suggestions for implementing sustainable practices in infrastructure projects, ensuring they meet the needs of today without compromising the well-being of future generations.

Futurebuild 2024: The industry's tunnel vision on carbon – how to address sustainability holistically? Michelle Sánchez Brajkovic, RSHP Sustainability Lead, has organised a fantastic group of speakers for the RSHP-curated panel at Futurebuild next week, 06 March at 12.30 pm. If you are attending, be sure to add the talk to your list. Chair: Michelle Sánchez #RSHP Ann Dalzell, Building Services Engineer & Director, Arup Gary Grant, Director at Green Infrastructure Consultancy Marylis Ramos, Director, Savills Earth Advisory at Savills Rob Partridge, Director, AKT II Register here and join the debate: https://lnkd.in/eQGAFR_c The Construction Industry is forgetting that sustainability engages with a far greater range of issues than carbon emissions alone. Our industry has a much wider negative impact beyond the 38 percent contribution to carbon emissions and greenhouse gases. Now that we have a way forward to reducing operational and embodied carbon, we need to look at sustainability as a whole and see other areas where our industry is causing harm.