Session Objective & Outline
The objective of this session is to introduce attendees to the EDGE Certification (Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies) system. The session will provide an overview on the benefits of EDGE Certification, focusing in particular on how it unlocks opportunities in green financing to encourage sustainable development. Attendees will hear from three consultant practitioners (EDGE Experts) who will highlight how they have successfully integrated EDGE expertise into their consultant practices to support architecture, construction and design across the Commonwealth to facilitate sustainable urbanisation and development.
Outline
[Outline here]
Learning Outcomes
Lessons Learnt
The sessions learning outcomes were:
- Be introduced to the EDGE (Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies) Certification system, including its underpinning principles, the metrics measured in determining sustainable performance outcomes for a project and the benefits of using EDGE Certification.
- Be introduced to the importance of ‘Green Financing’ and how the use of EDGE Certification and demonstration of tangible financial benefits of green building and high-performance building can lead to better environmental and financial outcomes for developers, unlocking opportunities for green financing to encourage sustainable development.
- Understand how EDGE Certification may be integrated into an existing architectural/ design / construction business or consultancy through engagement with real-world professionals, to examine how EDGE Certification may provide new opportunities forbusiness growth and diversification.
RIBA Core Curriculum Topics
- Business, Clients & Services
- Design, Construction & Technology
- Sustainable Architecture
SDG Learning Outcomes
- SDG9 – Industry, Innovation & Infrastructure
- SDG11 – Sustainable Cities & Communities
- SDG17 – Partnership for the Goals
CPD Learning Questions
To test your learning and understanding from this session, we encourage participants to respond to the following CPD reflection questions:
- What are the three resource areas that EDGE measures to determine a building’s sustainability performance?
- What is the percentage increase a building must achieve compared to the EDGE baseline in order to achieve EDGE Certification?
- What are some of the elements that make up the EDGE baseline?
- What do you see as a key challenge in your home country or practice environment which is preventing further progress towards ecologically sustainable development and achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)?
Presenters
Julia Evans
Julia Evans holds a Master’s degree in Environment, Politics and Globalisation from King’s College London and has over five years of experience in green building performance within the built environment.
She plays a key role in the commercial team at Sintali, promoting IFC’s EDGE green building program globally. Sintali is a certification partner for EDGE. Sintali has issued over 260,000 EDGE Certificates across 90 countries, aiming to bring transparency and rigour to sustainability in the built environment.
Jose Bonivento
Sintali
Peter Oborn (Session Moderator)
Peter is CAA Immediate Past President and is a member of the UN Habitat Stakeholder Advisory Group. He is former RIBA Vice President International and UIA Council Member, was lead author of the Survey of the Built Environment Professions in the Commonwealth, and has been an active contributor to the Call to Action on Sustainable Urbanisation across the Commonwealth.
Additional Resources
Sintali
Launched in 2020 by Tom Saunders and Eleni Polychroniadou, Sintali was born from a passion and care for planet and people, with the motivation to create a company that genuinely does good for the world and brings ethics into business. Focused on decarbonising the built environment as a key impact area in the climate crisis, Sintali recognizes that with buildings contributing over a third of all global greenhouse gas emissions, ensuring green buildings are rolled out in the most simple and scalable way possible is essential to achieving maximum impact.
Sintali’s purpose as an organisation is to make sure that every piece of infrastructure across the world—whether it’s an individual building or part of the broader built environment—is green. Sintali aims to catalyse this effort through improved education, reducing barriers to entry for stakeholders, and ensuring these efforts are done in a credible and verified way. The name “Sintali” combines “sin” and “tally,” meaning “ever accounting”—reflecting our dedication to transparency and accountability as we encourage progress towards environmental goals for ourselves and those around us.
For more information on Sintali and their education and training programmes, including how to become an EDGE Expert, please follow this link: https://www.sintali.com/
EDGE: Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies
EDGE Certification is a green building certification system developed by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, designed to help emerging markets scale up resource-efficient buildings in a fast, easy, and affordable way. The certification enables developers and builders to identify the most cost-effective strategies to reduce energy use, water use, and embodied carbon in materials by requiring a minimum projected reduction of 20% in each category compared to standard local buildings. Using the free web-based EDGE App, projects can quickly determine optimal building design strategies for the best return on investment, with efficiency simulations built into the platform and certification achieved through existing documentation. EDGE certification is administered globally by Green Business Certification Inc. (GBCI) and provides internationally recognized validation of green building achievements at a modest cost for both new and existing buildings across nearly all building types.
For More Information on EDGE Certification, please follow this link: https://edge.gbci.org/