August 26, 2021
Search Results for: climate change
While the built environment is going in the right direction, it is still not moving fast enough to decarbonise building stock, according to the latest annual sustainability report produced by 
July 13, 2021
Purpose, responsible business and diversity key priorities for companies
Organisational purpose, responsible business practices and diversity are growing in importance at Board level and for HR teams, as employers make the connection between good environmental, societal and governance practices and business growth, according to survey findings from the Reward & Employee Benefits Association (REBA) and Mercer Marsh Benefits (MMB). (more…)
June 14, 2021
Businesses call on Government to put net zero and nature at the heart of planning system
More than 100 business leaders have written to the Prime Minister calling for the net zero transition, nature’s recovery, and climate resilience to be at the heart of the UK’s new planning system. (more…)
May 25, 2021
Public concerned about risk of unemployment, day to day living costs, and economic growth
A large majority of the public are concerned about rising unemployment (82 percent), day to day living costs (80 percent), and low economic growth (77 percent), according to a PwC survey of 2,000 people across the UK. Pandemics and other health crises (84 percent), cyber crime (82 percent), and climate change (81 percent) were other key concerns according to the research, which looks at the UK public’s attitude to risk.
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May 17, 2021
Long working hours increase deaths from heart disease and stroke, says WHO
Long working hours led to 745,000 deaths from stroke and ischemic heart disease in 2016, a 29 per cent increase since 2000, according to the latest estimates by the World Health Organization and the International Labour Organization published in Environment International today. In what the authors claim is the first global analysis of the loss of life and health associated with working long hours, WHO and ILO estimate that, in 2016, 398 000 people died from stroke and 347,000 from heart disease as a result of having worked at least 55 hours a week. Between 2000 and 2016, the number of deaths from heart disease due to long hours increased by 42 percent, and from stroke by 19 percent. (more…)
May 4, 2021
New guidance to increase natural settings into urban spaces
The UK Green Building Council (UKGBC) has published its ‘Principles for delivering urban Nature-based Solutions’ (NBS), to help developers and owners increase the incorporation of NBS within the construction and operation of built assets. The report claims that the development and function of the built environment has significant impacts upon both climate and biodiversity, locally and globally, and the pressure for our industry to be part of the solution is accelerating. The recommendations of the Taskforce for Climate-related Financial Disclosure (TCFD) have led to a growing requirement to measure and mitigate the physical risks to built assets from climate change, such as flooding and overheating. (more…)
April 28, 2021
Global real estate CEOs plan for industry transformation
The real estate industry needs to transform to serve the needs of people and cities in the next decade, according to a new report released by the World Economic Forum. COVID-19 has revealed vulnerabilities throughout the real estate industry, ranging from indoor air quality problems to excess supply and accelerated underlying demand drivers, which need to be addressed for buildings and cities to be healthier, prosperous and more sustainable. (more…)
April 23, 2021
Pandemic drives shift in attitudes to sustainability
The COVID-19 pandemic has elevated consumers focus on sustainability and willingness to pay out of their own pockets – or even take a pay cut – for a sustainable future, according to a new IBM Institute for Business Value (IBV) survey of over 14,000 consumers in nine countries. (more…)
March 31, 2021
Business leaders share lessons in resilience from the Covid crisis
Most businesses were ill-prepared to deal with the pandemic and muddled though the challenges stemming from it, according to new report ‘Resilience reimagined: a practical guide for organisations’, produced by Cranfield University, in partnership with the National Preparedness Commission (NPC) and Deloitte. (more…)
March 24, 2021
Major firms lose appetite for office downsizing as they plan what happens next
A new report from KPMG suggests that half of major corporations do not expect to see a return to any sort of ‘normality’ until 2022 when half of the general population has been vaccinated. The report also claims that there has been a steep decline in the appetite of the global executives who took part in the survey for office downsizing as the firms reconsider the need for in-person business to resume when countries emerge from the pandemic. (more…)
March 10, 2021
Siemens commits to making Smart Infrastructure HQ carbon neutral by 2023
Siemens Smart Infrastructure plans to transform its global headquarters in Zug, Switzerland, into a carbon neutral location by 2023. To achieve this, a comprehensive renovation of an existing building on Theilerstrasse 1c will commence in May 2021 for a period of two years. Siemens has earmarked around EUR 63 million (CHF 70 million) for the refurbishment works. (more…)
July 2, 2021
If you’re certain about the changing world of work, you’re certainly wrong
by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Working culture