Canadian Environment Week with KPMB Lab

June 19, 2024

For Canadian Environment Week earlier this month, we reflected on our commitment to sustainable design. We recognize the profound impact our industry has on the planet and took the opportunity to foster dialogue and encourage action for a more sustainable future.  

KPMB Lab hosted guest speakers from Ha/f Climate Design and Shoshanna Saxe (Associate Professor, University of Toronto and Director, Centre of the Sustainable Built Environment) — who shared their expertise and knowledge with us through presentations and workshops. 

Made up of several researchers and partner organizations, including KPMB, the Centre for the Sustainable Built Environment (CSBE) is a research centre at the University of Toronto developing new, innovative ways to meet the demand for housing and public infrastructure without further exacerbating climate change. 

Saxe’s presentation, Building More with Less: Embodied GHG and the AEC Industry, explored how the CSBE identifies opportunities and pathways to build more with less and reduce greenhouse gas pollution in the built environment. 

Embodied carbon in the building industry currently accounts for 15% of global carbon emissions. During Ha/f Climate Design’s presentation on the concept of Whole Building Life Cycle Analysis (WBLCA), Kelly Doran, Juliette Cook, and Rashmi Sirkar reviewed why embodied carbon accounting is important for the built environment and for the future of our planet.  

WBCLCA shows us the environmental impacts of our buildings. Recently, KPMB Lab presented a study on the interior life cycle analysis of KPMB’s King East office. The study highlights the importance of interior design elements on the total life cycle embodied carbon of buildings and demonstrates how different design choices can reduce a building’s environmental impacts. 

Learn more here.