NOTHING gives a city its identity than its buildings: Shanghai and Dubai with their ultramodern towers, their historic skyscrapers, Paris and Las Vegas with their bright and sparkling edifices.
But while buildings may indicate how a city has prospered, they are somehow being blamed for the demise of the environment.
This is because buildings, on annual basis, could consume around 40 percent of the energy and around 70 percent of the electricity generated, guzzle up around 14 percent of the supply of potable water, be responsible for the 30 percent of the waste produced as well as generate up to 38 percent of the carbon dioxide (the primary greenhouse gas associated with climate change) found in the air.
?Because the construction and the operation of buildings have such a huge impact to the environment, everybody should start rethinking how these buildings are made as well as how they should be operated,? said Lilibeth Ducut-Abais, managing director of LA Ducut & Co., which organizes Construction Show Manila 2009 (ManilaCon ?09), slated on September 3-6 at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City.
To push its advocacy for a healthier and ecologically sustainable built environment, the ManilaCon ?09, collaborated with the Green Architecture Advocacy Philippines (GreenAP) and the United Kingdom Trade and Investment in organizing the Green Forum.
Important venue
?The Green Forum should be considered as an important venue for building industry professionals, academe (faculty), property developers and owners to hear experts discuss green and sustainable design and building practices,? Abais explained.
In a separate interview, GreenAP Chairman Ega Reformado said it was interesting to note that despite the hard economic times, more and more building owners were continuing to allocate funds and resources to ?green? their properties.
?A lot of them learned that those who have tried doing energy and cost savings, enjoyed healthy return on investments and have realized that green investment in buildings is a smart business decision in any economic climate,? Reformado said.
Those invited to speak during the Green Forum include architect Robert Mirafuente of the United Architects of the Philippines, architect Jason Pomeroy, director of Broadway Malyan Asia Pte Ltd., Colin Somerville, managing director of Seacon Environment Ltd., architect Julian Bot of Cundall Hong Kong, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Accredited Professional (LEED AP), and lawyer Antonio Oposa Jr., president of Batas ng Kalikasan and a 2009 Ramon Magsaysay awardee.
Aside from the Green Forum, the ManilaCon ?09 is also hosting the 1st Green Architecture Student Symposium.
?We realized that if you want to make more professionals to imbibe the values, and behavior required for a sustainable future, you also need to groom the next generation of ?green thinkers,?? Abais said.
She added that while most people would readily associate global warming and other environmental problems with gas-guzzling vehicles, they should realize that buildings are actually producing more greenhouse gases and waste and that the awareness of this fact, would greatly alleviate the environmental crisis we are now experiencing.
