WBEF Newsletter – February 2025
World Built Environment Forum
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Welcome to our February edition! This month, we delve into the rapid rise in demand for data centres and the challenges this presents for sustainability. Plus, don’t miss our upcoming webinars: discover the UK’s four key initiatives for a low-carbon built environment and learn how legal contracts can drive decarbonisation in real estate.
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The rise of data centres: are they set to outperform all other asset classes?
As demand for office and retail space declines due to shifting workplace and consumer habits, alternative real estate uses, such as data centres, are thriving.
Data centre values are expected to rise by nearly 10% per year until 2030, reflecting strong leasing demand. However, energy consumption and costs present significant challenges.
The growth of AI and machine learning is fuelling the need for more data storage, but will soaring costs and sustainability concerns slow expansion?
Tarrant Parsons , RICS head of market analytics, examines whether this rapid growth is sustainable.
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The role of greener deals in reducing global carbon emissions
Climate contracting is a powerful tool for reducing emissions in the built environment. By embedding decarbonisation targets into legal agreements, organisations can drive meaningful change.
Join expert panellists on 19 February Meena Kamath , Rebecca Annison , Diane Dickson MRICS FCIArb , Chirag Rao , and Veronica McGarry as they discuss:
·?????? How legal contracts can accelerate decarbonisation
·?????? The role of whole-life carbon assessments in real estate
·?????? Best practices for integrating sustainability into procurement
The UK’s whole life carbon ecosystem: a framework for decarbonising the built environment
Decarbonising the built environment quickly and effectively is a complex challenge and there is no single solution. Research shows that the best approach is a combination of interventions, each addressing different aspects of the issue.
In the UK, four key initiatives are shaping the future of a low-carbon built environment:
·?????? The RICS Professional Standard on Whole Life Carbon Assessment for the Built Environment
·?????? The Part Z proposal for Building Regulations
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·?????? The UK Net Zero Carbon Buildings Standard
·?????? The Built Environment Carbon Database
Join moderator Fabrizio Varriale, PhD and industry leaders Will Arnold , James Fiske , Julie Godefroy , and Anil Sawhney on 12 March as they discuss the purpose of each initiative and how they interconnect to drive meaningful change.
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How are cities accelerating progress towards a sustainable future?
In a recent WBEF webinar, Anil Sawhney , Peter Hogg , Céline Crestin , Carolien Gehrels and Stuart Rogers , explored how cities are making progress towards the 2030 UN Sustainable Development Goals.
The discussion covered:
·?????? Key takeaways from the 2024 Arcadis Sustainable Cities Index
·?????? Case studies on cities balancing people, planet, profit and progress
·?????? Strategies for maintaining momentum in urban sustainability
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RICS Sustainability Report 2024: a year of progress?
Following the publication of the?RICS Sustainability Report 2024, a recent webinar featuring sector leaders, Anil Sawhney , Frank Hovorka , Gulnara Roll , Sandeep Singh , and Anna Zinecker explore how far the real estate sector has come in its sustainability journey.
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