The 28th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP28) has now concluded. Taking place in Dubai, a country known for its oil production and high rise buildings, meant that there was a big focus on both these issues - ones which we know are critical to decarbonise if we are to limit the impacts of global warming.
So, what was announced? And what does it mean for the built environment?
What was pledged?
The Global Stocktake
The first Global Stocktake (GST) took place this year, which is a process for countries to see where they’re collectively making progress towards meeting the goals of the Paris Agreement – and where they’re not – then take action to ensure we are meeting our targets. A key area to be agreed on was whether we should “phase down” or “phase out” fossil fuels.
After much toing and froing about this wording, a historic agreement to deliver a new era of climate action was agreed. It’s the first time that a COP outcome has acknowledged the need to move away from fossil fuels – a truly welcome and positive shift.
The GST also included a pledge to triple renewable energy capacity globally and double the global average annual rate of energy efficiency improvements by 2030. This is positive and will help spur on retrofitting of our building stock.
The Buildings Breakthrough
A particular highlight for me was attending the launch of the Buildings Breakthrough. The UK, and more than 20 other countries, signed the pledge to ensure “near-zero emission and resilient buildings are the new normal by 2030”.
Covering both new and existing buildings, the target requires countries to consider whole lifecycle approaches. Positively, it also requires solutions to make our buildings more resilient to a changing climate. Something that we know is vital to reduce overheating and the impacts of flooding while also helping to improve the longevity of our building stock.
How we embed this “new normal” is now key. The Buildings Breakthrough defines this to mean that these concepts are common in buildings both through formal (legislation) and semi-formal (standards) means.
We continue to work with the UK government to deliver whole life carbon regulation for our buildings.
Cooling in a warming world
As the world warms, cooling will become more important. In the UK, our summers are getting hotter and hotter, with the temperature reaching over 40°C for the first time last year.
The pledge by 63 countries to reduce cooling-related emissions by 68% from launch to 2050, with efforts to ramp up access to sustainable cooling by 2030, is welcome. We know that architects have a vital role to play in designing buildings with passive cooling solutions, so we will be integral to achieving this ambition.
Increasing the use of timber in the built environment
The UK was part of a coalition of 17 countries that signed-up to advance policies and approaches supporting the use of timber in the built environment.
This means committing to advancing policies that support low carbon construction and increase the use of wood from sustainably managed forests by 2030.
This was a welcome announcement as we have been working with the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) on its Timber in construction roadmap for England, published earlier this week.
From insurance to embodied carbon, the roadmap looks at key issues and which policy levers can be pulled to increase the use of timber in the built environment.
We are pleased that the report highlights our RIBA 2030 Climate Challenge, which we launched in 2019 to set targets to reduce embodied carbon.
RIBA at COP28
It was a busy two weeks for our delegation on the ground in Dubai. I was joined by our sustainability experts, Duncan Baker-Brown and Sumita Singha, and our Chief Executive, Valerie Vaughan-Dick, to promote the vital role that architects play in building a sustainable future.
With a packed schedule of private briefings, keynote speeches, and panel events, we highlighted the importance of whole life carbon regulation, fostering collaboration, and ensuring that we have the skills we need to meet the challenge ahead.
We also engaged with Ministers, Members of Parliament, global leaders, and civil servants. Catch up on what we all got up to at COP28.
I also heard about other ideas and projects from around the world that we must learn from. For example, Retrofit Melbourne, developed in partnership with industry, is the City of Melbourne’s comprehensive plan to support commercial building retrofits, showcasing exactly what can be done on a city-wide level.
A personal highlight for me was speaking in the Blue Zone’s Buildings Pavilion with other built environment professionals from across the world.
How we foster collaboration and embed resilience was the theme of the discussion and our work with the Commonwealth Association of Architects (CAA) and improving the climate literacy of our members were of key interest to audience members.
We also renewed our longstanding partnership with the American Institute of Architects (AIA) – an opportunity to reflect on our strong history of cooperation and championing excellence. I look forward to working together to deliver a more sustainable built environment through best practice.
What’s next?
The pledges announced this year are welcome, but they alone will not limit the warming of the planet to 1.5°C. As we look ahead to COP29, there is a huge amount of work to be done.
Architects have the knowledge and skills to help decarbonise the built environment and forge a greener future. As a sector, we must work together to pick up the pace of change.
The RIBA Policy and Public Affairs team will continue to work with the government to regulate and reduce the whole life carbon impacts of the built environment ensuring that procurement and planning policies embed sustainability at their heart.
