Harness the power of sustainable buildings
Take your real estate one step into the future by implementing green practices that don’t cost people or the planet.
Sustainable buildings are developed using renewable and recyclable materials with one fundamental goal: to benefit the future of our planet by harmonizing with local communities and the environment. But, what makes a home sustainable, and how can we make greener real estate choices? From the initial planning process to operating efficiency, innovations in monitoring and data collection make it easier than ever to create and maintain green buildings.
What makes a home sustainable?
Planning
Every building is unique and comes with its own set of demands and challenges on the road to sustainability. The planning stage is integral to success, from analyzing the optimal construction site, to implementing green operational processes.Materials
Sustainable buildings use environmentally friendly, recyclable and ideally energy efficient materials. For example, sun control glass was designed to reduce the amount of heat passing through your windows, reducing energy consumption and costs.Construction
The real estate construction industry is aiming for net zero construction. This means using electric vehicles, generators, and machinery over petrol-powered ones, using green building materials, and modernizing construction methods (e.g. modular construction).Systems
An effective renewable energy system makes monitoring, managing, and controlling energy consumption in buildings simple. Harnessing the power of data, indoor climate, and screen services help better identify and resolve energy wastage.Practices
Sustainability benchmarking through organizations such as GRESB and BREEAM is essential for assessing and reducing a building’s environmental impact while complying with ESG standards means enhanced business opportunities and profit.Start making real estate sustainable
Sustainable buildings examples
There are so many impressive sustainable buildings examples in the world, from towering skyscrapers to unique museum designs. To meet net-zero by 2050, the real estate industry has to meet significant hurdles, taking actionable steps to construct green buildings with zero carbon footprints and transforming current buildings to meet energy efficiency goals.
Here are some of the world’s most inspirational green buildings.
Manitoba Hydro Place, Canada
Built towards the end of 2009, Manitoba Hydro Place has become one of the leaders in energy and environmental design by using 70% less energy than other offices using a conventional design. Incorporating a large number of passive systems to keep energy usage down and make a positive impact on its surroundings, the building boasts south-facing winter gardens, natural daylighting, and a 115-metre-long solar chimney.
Alongside the dimmable, programming lighting, the Manitoba Hydro Place offers a wide range of atria water features to help keep employees cool in summer and accessible rooftop areas to provide a breathable meeting area. This keeps employee satisfaction high and overall costs low.
Vertical Forest, Italy
The Vertical Forest in Milan is a biodiversity hotspot that considers both human usage, and the welfare of other living species in the area. The two towers of this bespoke property take greenery to the extreme with a total of 800 trees protruding from each level.
The incredible amount of flora and fauna surrounding the building meet the request for more greenery in the area, and the plants are also able to regulate humidity by producing an excess of oxygen and lowering levels of carbon dioxide. This makes it the perfect project to enhance the health of those inside it and encourages a better environment.
Floating School, Nigeria
Ever wanted to attend school on water? Visit the floating structure in the heart of Lagos, Nigeria. Built using only locally-sourced wood and employing a large number of local residents to help build the school, it has become a historic structure in Nigeria’s largest city.
Consisting of 256 plastic drums, the building easily rests on top of the water and doesn’t take up much space on the limited land in the area. The project was completed with a wide range of different rooftop solar panels which provides all the energy needed to operate the structure, and rainwater is used to keep the toilets in operation.
Pixel Building, Australia
The Pixel Building in Melbourne, Australia isn’t just aesthetically stunning, but has managed to accumulate a perfect 105 Green Star points and 105 LEED points, making the structure the first carbon-neutral office in the country. Costs are kept low and efficiency is high as the property generates all its own water and power on-site.
By integrating a wide range of sustainable building technologies such as a water capturing system, solar and wind harnessing, and thermal cooling, employees are perfectly comfortable throughout the work day and can feel at ease knowing they are helping the environment simultaneously.
Museum of Tomorrow, Brazil
Designed with the future of our planet in mind, The Museum of tomorrow in Rio de Janeiro focuses on water conservation by using water from Guanabara Bay. Every drop of water gathered has a purpose, whether keeping the inside of the building cool for its visitors or supplying water for the surrounding reflecting pools.
But the sustainability practices don’t stop there as the structure also consists of mobile PV solar panels which can be moved and adjusted throughout the day depending on the placement of the sun for the ultimate energy efficiency. Visited by people all over the world, this is one of the most stand-out sustainable building examples.