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Striving for Sustainability Measuring our Progress

Thriving Sustainably

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PowerPoint Presentation prepared and presented by President of Carroll Properties Corporation- Elizabeth Belenchia exploring the Real Estate Industries' opportunity to be leaders in the global economy- a driving force for eco-friendly properties and ventures.

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Page 1: Thriving  Sustainably

Striving for Sustainability

Measuring our Progress

Page 2: Thriving  Sustainably

What is Sustainable Building

• Sustainability as a word evolved in the 1980’s to describe a phenomenon that would address renewable natural resources, as well as the full integration of architecture, landscape architecture, urban design, industrial design, urban planning, engineering, graphic design and interior design.

• It would create intergenerational equity to insure that health, diversity, ecological integrity, and environmental factors would be included in the valuation of assets and services.

Page 3: Thriving  Sustainably

Initial Actions Social and Environmental

• Business and political leaders watched the momentum build but the strength did not force immediate action. Most people watched and waited to see the reactions.

• Scientists gathered data and offered it to the political and business communities. The information was considered debatable and so the implementers debated issues.

Page 4: Thriving  Sustainably

Like a great MYSTERY STORY

• Industry began looking at its ecology because regulators said “you cannot pollute your workers neighborhood”

• Energy costs began to fluctuate widely • Entrepreneurial remedies to cash flow evolved• Investors in public companies began to look at the

integrity of “Supply Chains”.• The “Green Movement” evolved. • People sensed a loss of Harmony with Nature.• Water quality was questioned• Air caused asthma or lung diseases.• Quality of life was changing and the source was sought.

Page 5: Thriving  Sustainably

Who would lead the Charge?

• Who are the trusted advisors of multi-national corporations?

• Who holds the key to the solutions?

• Who manages the development team?

• Who communicates globally?

• Who measures performance and equity?

• Who can assess present value and future value?

Page 6: Thriving  Sustainably

The Real Estate Community

• The real estate community must become the leading force in restoring the earth. With 40 percent of carbon emissions coming from commercial buildings and 30 percent from automobiles, the traditional “location, location, location” has a stronger market definition. A sustainable property is part of a globally holistic measure. The basic development is an investment that must be designed to last. Therefore it must be located in an area free from political conflict, serve an economically viable purpose, and provide enhancement to the lives of its users.

Page 7: Thriving  Sustainably

Why should we be “Green”?

• Some people have always lived in complete harmony with the earth. They recycle everything they use, sleep in a tent, grow their own food, teach their children at home, use only solar energy, drink from a mountain stream, compost their waste, breathe only clean air, never extract minerals from the earth, avoid disease, and live in peace with neighbors.

• You can measure the impact of your lifestyle, it is called your “Carbon Footprint”.

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What is a Carbon Footprint?• A Carbon Footprint is an overall measure of your personal,

community or corporate environmental impact on the earth.• Why would you want to know your Carbon Footprint?• The first step in problem solving is to evaluate the problem.

• The “New Economy” calls this your “CARBON FOOTPRINT”.www.earthday.net/footprint/index.asp will give you the guidelines to establish your baseline.

• Please take your measurements and write them down. Challenge your colleagues to do theirs. This is your beginning.

• Now explore ways you, your family, community or business can take steps to set priorities for managing change in activities affecting results also known as “Output”.

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Output begins with Intake

• Intake measures the resources going in.

• These include energy, land, people, water, money, supply chain, leadership, strategy and efficiency.

• Output is the result of the intake process.

• It may include waste, carbon, water, energy, productivity, brand, social factors, health, governance and profit or loss.

Page 10: Thriving  Sustainably

Inputs are Holistic

• Quality indoor air is proven to make a more productive work force

• Locally grown organic food, in season saves emissions and improves health.

• Educated architects, planners and contractors build buildings that save energy or generate more than they use.

• Sustainable input is thought prior to construction and doesn’t have to be more expensive.

• Money and resources are saved when implementing sustainable development.

Page 11: Thriving  Sustainably

Leadership before Governance

• Business leaders are stepping forward to lead sustainable initiatives because they save money, make stockholders happy, and it is the right thing to do.

• Governments are forming alliances to support the efforts of business and provide measurements and rewards for performance.

• Many global organizations recognize projects that are leading the “Sustainable Way”.

• If business does not do what is right governments will create demands and reporting.

Page 12: Thriving  Sustainably

Social Anthropology Approach

• Brownfields (contaminated or perceived to be contaminated industrial sites) and historic properties are being converted to sustainable properties by following rigorous guidelines developed by groups like the US Green Building Council’s LEED EB (Existing Building) Certification Program. This is bringing many existing buildings into contemporary service creating urban revitalization, and restoring some rural communities. Some inner city properties are being converted to mixed use to minimize transportation cost and energy utilization. History and romance are being salvaged for future generations.

Page 13: Thriving  Sustainably

Case Study• Hearst Corporation brought a cluster of 12 publication staffs

together and re-developed an historic building on 57th Street in New York City. They cleaned out the shell of the base and built a new LEED Certified building inside the shell. Water was re-utilized throughout the building and lights managed with systemic controls and sun screens on the floor to ceiling windows. Air quality was balanced and temperatures controlled. Building materials had to be sourced within a 500 mile radius. Organic food was brought to the cafeteria from local farms and a weekly “Farm Market” made available for employees. A fitness and wellness program was implemented for employee health. The building has become a model for other employers and instills pride in the employees and demonstrated the owners commitment to quality. The company is saving 30% of the energy cost of a comparable building. Now employees are happy, productive, healthy and the company is saving money. This is the potential outcome of thoughtful input.

Page 14: Thriving  Sustainably

EcoIndustrial Waste Exchange

• There are creative ways for companies to save money. Some waste items can be the raw materials for another company.

• Industrial parks called Eco Industrial Parks invite companies that can utilize each others waste.

• This creates new avenues of doing business and re-using materials.

• Recycled materials can be saved from demolition of buildings and used in new buildings.

• Buildings Certified Green get credits for using re-cycled materials.

Page 15: Thriving  Sustainably

Supply Chain Analysis

• The holistic approach means assessing the suppliers of materials going into products that are used in construction.

• One contaminated product will disqualify the project from being Sustainable just like one piece of rotten fruit will spoil the rest of the basket.

• A Certified Building will have to record the history of production methods from all its suppliers.

Page 16: Thriving  Sustainably

The Global Compact Option

• Launched in 2000, the UN Global compact brings business together with UN agencies, labor, civil society and governments to advance ten universal principles in the areas of human rights, labor, environment and anti-corruption. Through the power of collective action, the Global Compact seeks to mainstream these ten principles in business activities around the world and to catalyze actions in support of broader UN goals. With over 4000 participating companies from more than100 countries, it is the world’s largest voluntary corporate citizenship initiative. Companies interested in participation can contact www.globalcompact.org

Page 17: Thriving  Sustainably

Global Compact Principles

The United Nations Global Compact asks companies to embrace, support and enact, within their sphere of influence, a set of core values in the areas of

Human Rights

Labor Standards

Environment

Anti-Corruption

Page 18: Thriving  Sustainably

The Global Reporting Initiative

• The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) vision is that reporting on economic, environmental, and social performance by all organizations becomes as routine and comparable as financial reporting. GRI accomplishes this vision by developing, continually improving and building capacity around the use of the GRI’s Reporting Framework, the core of which are the Sustainability Reporting Guidelines. An international network of thousands of people from business, civil society, labor, and professional institutions create the content of the Reporting Framework in a consensus-seeking process. Tools for involvement are available at www.globalreporting.org

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The CEO Water Mandate

The CEO Water Mandate seeks to build an international movement of committed companies, both leaders and learners. In this spirit, the initiative is open to companies of all sizes and from all sectors, and from all parts of the world. The initiative requires the endorsement of a company’s Chief Executive Officer, or equivalent. Please endorse The CEO Water Mandate and indicate your company’s commitment at the UN Global Compact website at: www.unglobalcompact.org

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You can be a Winner

• The world population and the emerging middle class is growing. This is the time for talents and resources to be directed toward preserving our cultures, recycling our buildings, protecting and restoring our “Green Space” and for smart development to be our mandate. We must provide the options for thriving rather than surviving as we “Care to Win” for our children.

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About the Author

• Elizabeth Belenchia is a Child of the World with a passion for sustainability in its holistic form. She serves as V P of Legislative/Environmental Committee of FIABCI (The International Real Estate Federation). FIABCI has appointed her a delegate to the UN in New York where they are a member of The Global Compact. She is a futurist and visionary who has always focused on what can be and not what is.

• Elizabeth welcomes your comments at [email protected]