Date13.09.24
Location Europe
Event
In the era of climate change, the global built environment faces an incredible challenge. Research suggests that the urban built environment contributes (directly or indirectly) to 75% of annual global greenhouse gas emissions, with buildings and conventional construction alone generating nearly 40% of the sector’s solid waste. However, and to meet global demand, that built environment is projected to grow by the equivalent of an entire New York City every month, between now and 2060. The question of how to manage this growth sustainably will determine whether the global community can reach net zero in time to avoid the worst effects of climate change.
With every new project, one of the most significant questions which stakeholders face is the “new or renew?” dilemma: whether to repurpose existing built assets to meet new demands or whether to construct entirely new buildings. Both options have their advantages and disadvantages. While repurposing existing buildings certainly saves on new materials, existing buildings – especially older built stock – is often difficult to operate sustainably. New buildings, on the other hand, may be designed to be high-performance buildings with low-embodied carbon, but they would still require new raw materials and resources, along with construction and transportation emissions.
Under the theme of exploring these challenges and opportunities and showcasing the industry’s latest thinking and best practices, the Council for Tall Buildings and Urban Habitats will hold its annual international conference in London and Paris, from the 23rd until the 27th of September. For the third consecutive year and building on a partnership established for three decades since 1994, Dar is sponsoring this critical conference, which will seek to identify strategies for transformation and growth that can revitalise and enhance urban life in communities around the world.
Within the core conference, Dar’s Director of Planning and Urban Design and the Managing Director of Dar’s design centre in London Daniel Horner will chair a session within the conference track focused on “New or Renew: Technical Innovation.” The session – titled Innovative Smart Districts and New Developments – spotlights the importance of measuring and tracking metrics in urban life, from the perspective of technological leaders and planning professionals who are delivering planned developments that emphasise walkability, sustainability, accountability and capacity for change. The session will feature:
- Swinal R Samant, Visiting Associate Professor from the National University of Singapore, Reimagining the high-density, vertical 15-minute city.
- Kai Sheng, Founder and President of AKAIA Architecture, with a presentation on two strategies, implemented by the cities of Seoul and Shenzhen.
- Dmitri Jajich, KPM’s Global Director of Structures, with contributions on tall residential structures and wind.
- La-ead Kovavisaruch, the Chief Executive Officer of Vimarin Suriya Company Limited, focusing on how to transform a legacy into a market-shaping development.
Dar’s Christelle Elchemaly – a senior structural engineer with extensive expertise in tall buildings – will, for the second consecutive year, be joining the conference as a jury member for CTBUH’s prestigious Best Tall Building Award for the Middle East and Africa. Christelle – along with a selection of jurors from across the industry – will select a project that has made extraordinary contributions to the advancement of tall buildings and the urban environment and that have advanced sustainability and human wellbeing.