Experts Aiming for Alignment on Embodied Carbon at Flooring Sustainability Summit

The 2024 Flooring Sustainability Summit taking place July 17-18 in Washington, D.C. will feature an expert-led panel discussion delving into the complexities of carbon emissions and advocating for a unified definition of embodied carbon. International Masonry Institute is proud to be an official partner of this inaugural event targeted toward architects & designers, procurement officers, distributors, manufacturers, installers, and policy makers.?

Organizers of the Flooring Summit have gathered an impressive group of expert panelists who will explore crucial topics such as standardization, transparency, accountability, and strategies for effective carbon reduction. As leading authorities from government agencies, standards organizations and design specification, each panelist will provide valuable and actionable insights. Confirmed presenters include?

• Alison Kinn Bennett , Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and co-founder of the EPA’s Green Building Work Group and the Sustainable Products Network.?
• Maria Knake , National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), leader of NIST’s Low Carbon Cements and Concretes Consortium.?
• Walter Tersch , U.S. General Services Administration (GSA), Sustainability Program Manager of GSA’s Office of Architecture and Engineering.?
• Dorian Krausz, PE, LEED AP , Carbon Leadership Forum Rocky Mountain/Pathways, and specialist in embodied carbon policy and education.
• Kathleen Lane, AIA , American Institute of Architects, Managing Director of Climate Action & Design Excellence.?
• Amlan Mukherjee , WAP Sustainability. Amlan has an extensive background in life cycle assessment, and will serve as Moderator of the Summit.

Architects & Designers?

Architects and designers attending the Summit will learn about alignment on calculating and reporting embodied carbon, up-to-date information on green building standards, impact of current and upcoming regulations, and navigation of health and material information.

Procurement Officers?

Procurement officers will increase their understanding of sustainable procurement, the importance of proper reporting of embodied carbon, and strategies for efficiently analyzing health and material information.

Distributors?

Distributors will increase their ability to evaluate and clearly communicate available health and material information, gain increased awareness of sustainability criteria for product selection and sales, and a better understanding of embodied carbon reporting.?

Manufacturers

Manufacturers will gain clarity and understanding of health and material ingredient reporting criteria, they will gain insights into the relevance of environmental impacts throughout the product life cycle, as well as proper ways to calculate and report embodied carbon.

Contractors and Installers

Installers will gain understanding of the sustainability impact of flooring materials, the direct relevance of health and material information, and the carbon footprint of an installation using supplier-reported embodied carbon data.?

Policy Makers, Advocacy Groups, and Standards Organizations

These groups will come away with direct interaction and feedback from constituents in the flooring and construction community on green building standards,f health and material ingredient information, and embodied carbon.?

In addition to keynotes and technical panel sessions, the 2024 Flooring Sustainability Summit will feature interactive workshops designed to increase dialogue across a broad group of flooring industry stakeholders with the common goal of advancing sustainable building practices. Registration for the event is open now, and program details can be found at https://flooringsummit.com/about/