Archinect - News

Grimshaw launches new building decarbonization platform called Minoro

2024-07-15T12:18:00-04:00

UK mainstay Grimshaw has announced the launch of a new online platform that will help accelerate the decarbonization of buildings. It follows a two-year development phase that relied on the support of 20 other industry organizations, including the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, RIBA, Architecture 2030, and the World Green Building Council.

Minoro is a free resource that provides links and access to more than 1,000 "policies, guidance and methodologies" related to decarbonization. The firm says this centralization enables design teams and other stakeholders to set targets and develop clear, informed actions across every stage of the building's life cycle.

Related Feature on Archinect: The U.S. Just Defined a Zero Emissions Building: Is It Enough?

Paul Toyne, the Sustainability Lead at Grimshaw, promised that it "brings, for the first time, all the key information to help tackle carbon in our buildings together in one place, but will also, importantly, bring team...

Making clients go green: A free report by WGBC helps architects pitch sustainable design as good business

2021-11-05T11:55:00-04:00

The World Green Building Council has published a free interactive report setting out the economic and social benefits of constructing sustainable buildings. The 114-page “Beyond the Business Case” report was launched at COP26 and may serve as a valuable tool for architects to communicate to commercial clients the financial and social value of investing in environmentally-conscious projects.

“A growing body of evidence has shown that unmanaged climate change generates significant value risks for investors and that the inclusion of climate factors can improve returns,” reads the report. “Consequently, financial markets are increasingly directing their investments towards projects and companies that guarantee (in addition to economic profitability) the achievement of social and environmental development goals.”

Related on Archinect: The Build Better Now Virtual Pavilion at COP26

The report puts forward a range of client-facing economic benefits for green buildings, noting that green ...

World Green Building Council publishes 2021 report on net-zero carbon

2021-06-14T12:29:00-04:00

The World Green Building Council (WGBC) has published its Advancing Net Zero Status Report 2021, offering an overview of the construction sector’s progress towards decarbonization throughout the last twelve months. Available to read and download here for free, the 48-page report offers detail on the sector's progress towards net-zero carbon, including the scale of the problem, positive case studies from the industry, and responses to common misconceptions about net-zero carbon in buildings.

The report is an output of the GBC’s Advancing Net Zero global program; a pillar of the organization’s response to climate change. The 2021 report contains a world map showing participation in the program by the GBC’s global network, and an update on the GBC Net Zero Carbon Buildings Commitment, whose 141 signatories include 107 businesses, 28 cities, and 6 states/regions.

“A bold approach is urgently required to reduce the [environmental] impacts of the sector, which is globally responsible ...