Record participation in the 2016 GRESB survey

Record participation in the 2016 GRESB survey

With a record 759 participating real estate companies and funds in its seventh year, the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) survey is here to stay. It is the global standard for assessing sustainability in real estate.

Quinn & Partners – GRESB Canada Snapshot – GRESB Global Snapshot – CaGBC News Release

9/11: A sustainability story

On that sunny September Tuesday, as the planes hit their targets, I was sitting in a windowless conference room, inside a Sheraton Hotel sandwiched between Terminals A and B at Bradley International Airport, just north of Hartford, Connecticut. I was part of a small team, one-day brainstorming session on behalf of the Connecticut Clean Energy Fund.

Green Biz

Canada’s most sustainable buildings honoured

A redesigned century home, a new library and an urban high-rise that acts as a safe shelter for women fleeing abusive relationships are among the nine buildings cited as the most sustainable in Canada. Sustainable Architecture and Building Magazine (SABMag) announced the winners of its annual Canadian Green Building Awards in late August.

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Ottawa development raises debate over what’s “green”

When Ian Arsenault was in the market to buy a condo, colleagues mentioned Zibi — a proposed mixed residential and commercial development on the shores of the Ottawa River that aims to be one of “the world’s most sustainable communities.”

National Observer

Insurance industry struggles with increasing costs of natural disasters

Canada’s insurance companies are grappling with an increase in environmental disasters and say property owners most at risk are likely going to have to pay more. Craig Stewart, vice-president of federal affairs at the Insurance Bureau of Canada, says the industry sees severe weather as a top priority nationally.

Financial Post

Transit-oriented suburbs for managing the GTHA’s growth

How the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) manages its suburban growth over the next 25 years is critical to the sustainability and future livability of Canada’s most populous region, a new report contends.

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Future Cities Accelerator meant to create sustainable municipalities

What happens when you give 10 aspiring social entrepreneurs $100,000 and nine months of free advice on how to make their business models work for cities facing major growing pains?

Green Biz

Mixed-use wood building scheduled for Dartmouth

Atlantic Canada’s first six-storey wood building is currently in the planning stages and will be the first mid-rise project in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, under its Reinventing Main Street program.

Read more

Atlanta moves to limit wood construction

In most of North America, building codes and regulations are being changed to allow taller wood buildings.

Treehugger – TreeHugger

Smart building market taking off

The smart building category is big. So are the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI), the cloud and big data, four of the catalysts driving the sector.

Energy Manager Today

Australian high-rise plans to be off-grid

A landmark high-rise apartment tower in Southbank whose glass exterior is wrapped in solar cells will provide its residents with “off-the-grid” power stored in Tesla-like batteries, its designers say.

Sydney Morning Herald

“Change your perspective” theme for 2016 Green Building Week

World Green Building Week is the annual opportunity for Green Building Councils, their members, and leaders from around the world to showcase to everyone how their actions and leadership are helping to deliver green buildings in their own countries, and to celebrate the positive outcomes they lead to.

Green Building Elements

Hydrogen fuel cells used in new zero-emissions building

Toyota has installed stationary pure hydrogen fuel cells at a zero-emissions facility at its Honsha Plant in Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture, Japan.

Environmental Leader

Britain plans to introduce district heating

Hundreds of thousands of homes are to be heated using warmth generated by industrial machinery, geothermal energy and even Tube trains, under government-backed plans for a major expansion of “heat networks.”

The Telegraph

Construction education including more green building principles

Not long ago, the principles of green building, sustainability and energy efficiency were an afterthought in architecture and construction education and training, when they were thought about at all.

Journal of Commerce

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	Follow BizSustainably, the most comprehensive news feed on Twitter for Canadian business concerned about sustainability.

 

Products, Technology and Design

Green building demand drives global smart glass market

The global smart glass market is expected to grow from USD 2.34 Billion in 2015 to USD 8.13 Billion by 2022, at a CAGR of 19.2% between 2016 and 2022.

Business Wire

Green Building Rating Systems

Study: Green buildings out-perform others

It’s been more than a decade since owners of commercial real estate started focusing more on the need to become energy efficient and environmentally sustainable. From the start, buildings proved their green bona fides to prospective tenants by gaining third-party certifications such as LEED, Energy Star and Boma Best.

Proud Green Building

Market Trends and Research

Mapping out the green eco-system

Sometimes you’ve got to step back to take in the big picture. We’ve just done that with the ecosystem we call VERGE, the convergence of technologies that address and accelerate sustainability solutions, from a clean-powered grid to connected and efficient transportation, to sustainable and affordable food.

Green Biz

Commercial real estate

S & P Global launches new green bond rating tool

Influential ratings agency S&P Global has launched plans for a new tool to examine the environmental impact of projects or initiatives financed by bonds.

Green Biz

Commercial Green Buildings

Building sector must look beyond for new green ideas

Going beyond the building and construction sector to gain different perspectives and fresher ideas for tackling climate change can result in better results, said speakers at the International Green Building Council on Wednesday. 

Eco-Business

Canada’s first zero-waste grocery store opens

The country’s first permanent zero-waste grocery store has opened on Salt Spring Island. Green, which was created by Crystle Lehky, opened to customers in June.

Global News

Former stadium to be transformed into “green hill”

Maison Edouard François and ABC Architectes recently won a competition created to determine what the former Ray Stadium in Nice, France would become.

Building Design + Construction

Green building ratings

Top Drawer first Canadian carbon neutral ad agency

After a rigorous three-month third party audit process, Top Drawer Creative is pleased to announce that it has become the first full-service, integrated advertising agency in Canada to achieve 100% carbon-neutral certification through Climate Smart.

CSR Wire

Corporate Sustainability

When to act on corporate sustainability

As investors continue to push for metrics to show progress on sustainability, it can be tempting for businesses to jump quickly to meet their demands.

Green Tech Media

Financial institutions must account for climate risk

This year’s G20 summit may go down in history as a watershed moment in how global leaders treat climate and other environmental issues in the context of the global economy.

Eco-Business

Sustainable lifecycle rating could pay off for retail

Simple lifecycle assessments for fitouts, a focus on energy reduction, product stewardship for materials, and a switch to gross leases could radically increase return on investment for retail shopping centre owners, says lifecycle expert Dr Caroline Noller.

The Fifth Estate

Transit, bikes and transportation

London rolls out electric bus fleet

The first two all-electric bus routes in central London will be running by the end of the year, Sadiq Khan and Transport for London (TfL) announced as the first nine vehicles of the capital’s huge new electric bus fleet were unveiled on Friday.

Business Green

Water Management

Canada announces major funding for water research

Today, the Government of Canada announced a $77.8 million investment into water research at the University of Saskatchewan through the Canada First Research Excellence Fund.

Water Canada

Waste Management

Cross-border tension arises over waste dispute

Manure is hitting the fan in an escalating border dispute between B.C. and Washington state.

Vancouver Province

N.S. residents turf construction waste management facility

Residents on Nova Scotia’s Eastern Shore who opposed the creation of a construction waste processing facility are rejoicing that the project is no longer moving forward.

CBC News

Vancouver edges closer to decision on wastewater plant site

After several years of deliberation and much community debate, the Capital Region District of Vancouver has come one step closer to making a decision about where to build a new tertiary treatment of wastewater system.

Water Canada

Other

Conference to focus on maritime clusters for sustainable development

The role of Maritime Clusters in advancing sustainable development will be a special feature of the Sustainable Ocean Summit (SOS) – the annual gathering of the global ocean business community, taking place this year in Rotterdam, 30 Nov-2 Dec.

Eco-Business