The UK Chapter Focus for 2023

UK Chapter Focus Areas for 2023

The UK Chapter is involved in reviewing several focus areas this year by several committee members and has outlined their intentions for 2023.

Hybrid Working

Working patterns are changing. Sped up by the global pandemic and cost of living crisis, employees now have more freedom over how and where they work. From an office, to home, to a co-working space, or pretty much anywhere else in the world you can think of, hybrid working is here to stay.

The big question is, what long term impact will COVID-19 have on the shape of our cities, and the buildings that punctuate their skylines?

Through this initiative, we are conducting research on the future of hybrid working and how it will affect occupier demand for workplaces, in order to better understand the likely impact on the development and use of buildings in our cities.

Once we have the results of the survey, we will publish our findings in a short summary. We will then hold a podium discussion with developers, occupiers, investors and designers, to debate the challenges and opportunities that emerge from the research findings.

CTBUH UK Chapter committee members involved: Jon Varthalis, James Souter, and Alexander Dietrich

Carbon Data

As we work towards a more sustainable future, the importance of how we design and build our cities, especially our tall buildings, becomes increasingly relevant. Accountability is a fundamental aspect in driving change, and carbon data plays a crucial role in this.

Through this initiative we are exploring some of the challenges the built environment is facing with carbon counting, such as data availability, uniform means of measuring, and disclosure. We are working with our wider industry to understand the obstacles, as well as the successses, in low-carbon construction and the data that surrounds them.

In addition to our successful round table event on Environmental Product Declarations this year, we are putting together a series of events that will allow us to engage with our industry, as well as seek out synergies across our other initiatives, such as re-use and regenerative design.

CTBUH UK Chapter committee members involved: Sukriye (Rae) Robinson , Simon Baxter and Doug Baldock

Regenerative Design

The Council for Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat UK chapter have been investigating the prominent topic of Regenerative Design. Through this, we seek to discover if truly Regenerative Design really is possible.

Throughout our preparatory research, we identified many definitions, primarily in association with environmental sustainability and climate change adaptation. However, we also discovered strong links to wider regeneration principles, such as social regeneration and regenerative finance. Donut economics is an example that connects the key principles of environmental, social and economic regeneration.

In order to develop further insight into this emerging topic and bring relevant people into the discussion, we are assembling a panel in the new year. This will be comprised of experts from the environmental sustainability, regenerative finance/economics or impact investing and social regeneration/value fields. Hosted by the CTBUH, with a prominent chairperson, they will discuss their experiences and views on this topic, and aim to establish if truly Regenerative Design is possible.

CTBUH UK Chapter committee members involved: Doug Baldock, Vince Ugarow and James Pinkerton

Adaptation and Re-Use of Tall Buildings

Achieving a sustainable circular economy requires the built environment sector to dramatically reduce its reliance on carbon-intense materials, improve design efficiency and accelerate the refurbishment and adaptation of existing building stock. The adaptation and reuse of tall buildings approaching the end of their design life presents both great challenges and opportunities that the CTBUH is seeking to examine, through convening a roundtable discussion with industry leaders throughout 2023.

CTBUH UK Chapter committee members involved: Tom Bradley

Timber

High-rise design has historically been based on traditional structural materials such as steel and reinforced concrete. As the construction industry strives towards a more sustainable future, various low carbon alternatives are becoming increasingly viable replacements.

Timber construction is a developing industry in the UK, and provides many opportunities for innovation on emissions, practicality, and programme savings. This initiative aims to map out the opportunities and barriers to expansion, specifically in response to the bespoke challenges of the high-rise construction sector.

We are organising an expert round table in Q1 2023, comprising a wide selection of important stakeholders in the timber and property sectors. We will share the outcomes in a series of events designed to provoke discussion and expansion of timber within tall building design. The CTBUH is also organising a series of timber building tours to complement the panel discussions and hear from successful examples already in operation in the UK.

CTBUH UK Chapter committee members involved: Marc Easton and Sofia Papageorgiou