UKGBC publishes new guidance on embodied carbon emissions reporting for more rigorous carbon reduction strategy

UKGBC publishes new guidance on embodied carbon emissions reporting for more rigorous carbon reduction strategy

The UK Green Building Council (UKGBC) has launched new guidance on Scope 3 embodied carbon measurement and reporting, for stakeholders across the built environment. Scope 3 represents a proportion of an organisation’s indirect embodied carbon emissions that can constitute up to 80-95 percent of its total value chain footprint. Setting out a way to coherently align embodied carbon assessments, the guidance reframes Scope 3 reporting as a singular methodology rather than siloed efforts. More →

They call it mellow yellow. Issue 19 of IN Magazine lands

They call it mellow yellow. Issue 19 of IN Magazine lands

The new issue of IN Magazine has been published today.The new issue of IN Magazine has been published online today. In this issue: we ask why firms are so reluctant to change what they do; a dream of the past and future of work; Andy Lake talks about his new, visionary book; how AI might make cities worse; what inclusive design means; a panel of experts discuss what changing work practices mean for major business districts; why we must rethink how we light our streets and squares; how to strike the right balance when it comes to creating meetings in offices; and we take a grand tour through the Bucharest HQ of the world’s biggest travel group. More →

Navel gazing may not be the answer to the challenges facing workplace professions

Navel gazing may not be the answer to the challenges facing workplace professions

An adherence to strongly held beliefs can make people think and behave in peculiar ways and get them tangled up in peripheral issues that take on a great deal of significance. Early religious artists, for example, spent centuries wrestling with the seemingly intractable problem of whether to depict Adam and Eve with belly buttons or not. More →

What do we need offices for anyway? The Greeks had a word for it

What do we need offices for anyway? The Greeks had a word for it

offices - what is going onThe Greek word anagnorisis describes the sense of having just caught up with a truth that was always waiting for you. It’s a common literary and artistic device found in the plots of everything from Oedipus Rex to Macbeth, Star Wars and Fight Club, but it’s also a word that conveys a useful, complex idea that does not have an adequate English version. The mot juste, if you like. And it’s a useful idea when it comes to framing the current conversation we are having about offices and work more generally. More →

The hybrid working office: ushering in a new era for the workspace

The hybrid working office: ushering in a new era for the workspace

The increased adoption of hybrid working has led to a significant change in the way that people view a workplaceLife after COVID has led to a significant change in the way that people view a workplace. Working from home on a regular basis has become typical, not ad hoc or as required. Commuting five days a week to attend an office is no longer the norm and on the whole is no longer demanded – rather, we have seen organisations adopt hybrid working. This has meant the rationale for a physical office workspace has come under considerable scrutiny. Some organisations have gone as far as being completely remote and have released all office real estate. More →

Offices not geared up for hybrid working, poll claims

Offices not geared up for hybrid working, poll claims

Despite a huge increase in the number of businesses adopting a hybrid working model, a new poll from Crown Workspace claims that almost half (46 percent) of hybrid workers believe their office or workspace does not suit a hybrid working model and is in need of modernisation.Despite a huge increase in the number of businesses adopting a hybrid working model, a new poll from Crown Workspace claims that almost half (46 percent) of hybrid workers believe their office or workspace does not suit a hybrid working model and is in need of modernisation. More →

Less than a week to go before the Workspace Design Show opens its doors

Less than a week to go before the Workspace Design Show opens its doors

In just a few days the eagerly-awaited Workspace Design Show, the trade show that brings together the UK workplace interiors community, will open its doors.In just a few days the eagerly-awaited Workspace Design Show, the trade show that brings together the UK workplace interiors community, will open its doors. Held at London’s Business Design Centre, handily placed in the heart of Islington, from 27-28 February 2024, the event offers attendees the chance to explore the latest industry trends, see the latest products, and find inspiration in the thought-provoking talks programmes. More →

Going with the flow … with Domino Risch

Going with the flow … with Domino Risch

Sharing a hot drink separated by numerous time zones, Domino Risch chats with Mark Eltringham about what firms get wrong about hybrid and in-office work, the best places to have ideas and how hard the modern world makes it to achieve flow statesDomino Risch uses her new found freedom to discuss the limitations of relying on a single place to get work done. Sharing a hot drink separated by numerous time zones, she chats with Mark Eltringham about what firms get wrong about hybrid and in-office work, the best places to have ideas and how hard the modern world makes it to achieve flow states. They discuss the potential of anthropology to change the way we work. And what the current news about Deutsche Bank’s insistence people come into the office on Mondays and Fridays tells us about the avoidable tensions that exist in the tedious debate about remote work and so-called return to office mandates. More →

“Security-by-design” aims fall short, and building costs spiral as a result

“Security-by-design” aims fall short, and building costs spiral as a result

A report claims that despite an increased commitment to “security-by-design” principles, the industry is still spending significant time and money post-build to fix issuesA new report from Brivo claims that, while security is a new priority in building design, a mismatch between ambition and reality can lead to spiralling costs. The results of its research into integrated physical security in building design by Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) practitioners have been published in a report called The State of ‘Security-by-Design’: Is Security an Afterthought in Building Design?[registration]. The report claims that despite an increased commitment to “security-by-design” principles, the industry is still spending significant time and money post-build to fix security issues, risking dire retroactive effects. More →

Why changing with the seasons is key to the all-weather workplace

Why changing with the seasons is key to the all-weather workplace

Building in flexibility within workplace strategy and office design is a way to ensure working environments remain a magnetic destinationLove it or hate it, weather chat is part of Britain’s day to day – yet in the world of work it’s not just casual small talk. In fact, the seasons have a real impact on how we feel and perform. The change in seasonal characteristics influences what employees need from where they work. Looking after employee wellbeing and putting individuals in the best position to be productive at work means different things throughout the year. Building in flexibility within workplace strategy and office design is a way to ensure working environments remain a magnetic destination that support people all year round…but what does this type of flexibility look like? More →

Helsinki announces plans for new Museum of Architecture and Design

Helsinki announces plans for new Museum of Architecture and Design

Helsinki City Council has agreed to part fund a new national museum of architecture and design. Design competition also announcedHelsinki City Council has voted to provide a donation of 60 million euros to the foundation responsible for establishing the new national museum of architecture and design. The Finnish state will match this funding, with an additional 30 million euros to be raised from private donations. With these commitments in place, an international design competition for the new museum building will be launched in April. The new museum will sit at the heart of a new pedestrian-friendly district in Helsinki’s South Harbour. More →

Changing shape of workplace is creating new opportunities for property market

Changing shape of workplace is creating new opportunities for property market

A new report claims that changing approaches to the workplace will create new opportunities for the quickest and smartest to adaptAfter a challenging environment for commercial real estate in 2023, its fallout provides investors, developers and corporate occupiers with significant opportunities for value creation and transformational organisational change in 2024, says leading property management and investment firm, Colliers (EMEA) in its new market commentary: ‘Engage, activate and accelerate performance: next generation real estate strategies’ [registration]. The report claims that new approaches to the workplace will create new opportunities for the quickest and smartest to adapt. More →