January 2, 2024

We are not blank slates and we don’t adapt to change in predictable ways

by Mark Eltringham • Features, Flexible working, Wellbeing

An idea that has never really gone away, but which seems to be enjoying a new lease of life is the tabula rasa. The conception of people as a blank slate is something that has crept back into mainstream political and social thought for a variety of reasons. Arguably, it is also behind many of the most misleading notions about work and workplace design, perhaps most importantly that a change to some single element or characteristic of a working environment will lead to a specific outcome in the behaviour of people. More →

December 18, 2023

For all its flaws, COP28 still gives us a route to a greener future

by Anna King • Company news, Environment

As COP28 drew to a close, it gave those attending or observing from around the world the chance to reflect on the global commitments towards building a greener future. The UAE played host to two weeks of debate over climate change as COP28 recently rolled into town. While some questioned this region’s suitability – it being a centre of the fossil fuel industry – perhaps there is an argument to be made that this is exactly where you should hold it – to bring the issues into sharp relief. More →

December 13, 2023

It will take more than government funding for the world to reach net zero

by Jayne Smith • Environment, News

Climate finance was central to discussions at COP28 in Dubai and funding to reach net zero and restore biodiversity is still falling short. A new report from the World Economic Forum highlights the priorities for action and sets out how partnerships between organisations from the philanthropic, private and public sectors can create what it refers to as a positive domino effect, cut emissions at speed. More →

November 9, 2023

Economies need to cut carbon emissions by 7 percent annually to hit Paris target

by Neil Franklin • Environment, News

In the lead-up to the UN’s COP28 climate conference, the world’s largest CEO-led community committed to accelerating the net-zero transition is calling on businesses and governments to further slash global carbon emissions to meet the Paris Climate Agreement goals. According to a report by the Alliance of CEO Climate Leaders, in collaboration with the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), emissions must be cut back by 7 percent each year from now until 2030 to limit global warming to 1.5°C, as agreed in Paris in 2015. More →

October 3, 2023

Investment and new powers essential to unleash the vast potential of UK cities

by Neil Franklin • Cities, News

Unleashing the potential of the UK’s cities is critical to boost growth, repair their social fabric and meet our net zero targets according to a new report, produced in partnership between the Royal Society for Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA) and Core Cities UK. The report calls on the government to move away from the current trend of short-termism, witnessed in recent weeks in debates on HS2, net zero and the future of local government. More →

September 27, 2023

Act now on retrofitting if you want to boost commercial property values, new report argues

by Neil Franklin • News, Property

For European real estate owners and investors already on a journey to net-zero-carbon through retrofitting, upfront spending has the potential for long-term rent and capital-value accumulation, according to a new report from Colliers. Europe’s Renovation Wave [registration] explores the regulatory and societal pressures the authors claim is now driving an era of accelerated asset renovation, and the proactive actions investors, owners and occupiers can take to make sure their assets are not ‘left behind and stranded’ in the race to decarbonise the built environment by 2050. Retrofitting is also the subject of a special supplement published in the new issue of IN Magazine. More →

September 18, 2023

Smart technology needs to start with people if it wants to get smarter

by David Sharp • Features, Technology, Wellbeing

“My engineering students had come to class with technology on their minds.” So says artist and design researcher Sara Hendren, author of What a Body Can Do: How we Meet the Built World. It’s a fascinating book in which she consciously pushes back against the prevailing narrative that so-called smart technology has a fix for every problem. As a professor teaching design for disability at Olin College of Engineering, Massachusetts, Hendren draws attention to the assumptions that drive normative behaviours to define what is a ‘problem’ in the first place. More →

September 5, 2023

From ego to eco – a universal approach to workplace transformation

by Eugenia Anastassiou • Comment, Environment, Everything Omni

You might quite rightly be thinking about the relevance of such a ‘hippy, dippy’ soundbite on the hard-hitting world of work and the workplace, especially in this climate of uncertainty with a myriad of challenges facing business, the workforce and commercial real estate globally. I first heard the phrase ‘going from ego to eco’ at a series of presentations cum incubator events EverythingOmni ran with participants of all ages/backgrounds/career levels representing 18 countries on the Uncertainty of Work.

July 31, 2023

Digital nomads are starting to price out local communities around the world

by Dave Cook • Cities, Comment, Flexible working

For eight years I have studied digital nomadism, the millennial trend for working remotely from anywhere around the world. I am often asked if digital nomads are driving gentrification. Before COVID upended the way we work, I would usually tell journalists that the numbers were too small for a definitive answer. Most digital nomads were travelling and working illegally on tourist visas. It was a niche phenomenon. Three years into the pandemic, however, I am no longer sure. More →

July 11, 2023

Berlin ranked top smart city in Europe, report claims

by Neil Franklin • Environment, News, Technology

A new report claims that Berlin is the smartest city Europe based on its transport, energy strategies and a number of other factors. The Smart cities market: growth, trends & market forecasts 2023-2028 report [paywall] from Juniper Research, selected the German capital ahead of London, Barcelona, Rome and Madrid. The rankings are made on an evaluation of a range of smart city features, including transport and infrastructure, energy and lighting, city management and technology, and urban connectivity. More →

May 10, 2023

WorldGBC launches Circular Built Environment Playbook

by Jayne Smith • Environment, Facilities management, News

The World Green Building Council (WorldGBC) and its network of over 75 Green Building Councils are launching the Circular Built Environment Playbook. The organisation claims this is ‘a critical guide for the building and construction sector around the world to accelerate the adoption of circular economy and resource efficiency principles’. More →

May 3, 2023

Around a quarter of jobs will shift over the next five years, WEF report claims

by Neil Franklin • News, Workplace

Almost a quarter of jobs are expected to switch in the next five years according to a new report from the World Economic Forum. Its Future of Jobs Report for 2023 suggests that employers anticipate 69 million new jobs to be created and 83 million eliminated among the 673 million jobs corresponding to the dataset, a net decrease of 14 million jobs, or 2 percent of current employment. The data is an extrapolation of data from 803 employers employing around 11 million people. More →