Better Homes 2020

Date/Time
Date(s) - 27/11/2020
9:00 am - 11:30 am

SCHEDULE
SPEAKERS
SPONSORS
BOOKINGS

Green Finance – Green Homes

We cannot meet climate neutrality with just energy efficiency. Meeting the housing need in Ireland will have its own impact adding over one and a half million tonnes of carbon to the atmosphere each year just from construction-related activity. This year’s Better Homes Conference looks at the imperative to fully decarbonise new home building across the full life cycle in order to meet the Paris Agreement. Better homes means zero carbon homes across the full life cycle in car free 15minute walkable communities. How can the finance sector help us get there? What impact will the new EU Taxonomy have? What will be the impact of Covid 19 on the design of homes?

SCHEDULE

9.00am	Introduction
9.20am	Minister Darragh O’Brien TD, Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage
9.30am	Niels Kristien Johne, Pension Denmark	Sustainability is now a major concern for institutional investors. How are European pension funds driving change? Why is embodied carbon and Life cycle assessment now considered essential to the investment process?
9.45am	Andrew Waugh, Waugh Thistleton Architects	Is engineered timber construction a route to Net Zero Carbon buildings across the full life cycle? What are the benefits for speed and modular construction? What are the challenges?  Case study on climate positive apartments.
10.05am	Laura Heuston, Sustainability Works	The EU taxonomy regulations were approved by the European Parliament in 2020. How will this impact the mortgage market and investment in Green homes and help transition to net Zero and move beyond just energy efficiency?
10.15am	Panel Discussion Andrew Waugh Niels Kristien Johne Phelim O’Neill, Land Development Agency Ivan McCarthy, Sisk Living	What is the direction of travel for investment in new homes for Ireland? What impact will Green Taxonomy have on investment? Are we ready to move beyond nZEB for Net Zero and holistic assessment of environmental impacts?
End 11.15

This conference is part of the SMARTER initiative funded by EU Horizon 2020 program grant no. No.847141

SPEAKERS

Niels Kristian Johne, PensionDanmark

Niels has worked as project manager for the Danish Pension Fund PensionDanmark for the last 5 years, building their real estate portfolio. The focus has been greenfield development of residential buildings with a sustainable profile. Niels has a masters in Economics from the University of Copenhagen and has worked with real estate financing for the last 25 years for Danish and international banks. Niels is on the European Advisory board of the Smarter finance for families project.

Laura Heuston, Sustainability Works

An accountant and tax expert by training, Laura pivoted her career to focus on renewable energy and sustainable finance. She has worked with many companies in the sustainable energy sector on international M&A transactions, finance and corporate structures. Laura has in-depth knowledge of the global sustainable finance landscape and has used this knowledge to raise awareness in Ireland around the jobs and business opportunities linked to this sector. Laura previously worked with KPMG, Airtricity, and Sustainable Nation Ireland.

Darragh O’Brien TD, Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage

Darragh is an elected TD for the constituency of Dublin-Fingal. Prior to his election to the Dáil in 2007, he worked mainly in Financial Services. He was elected to Seanad Éireann in 2011. He has held various positions within the Oireachtas including Opposition Frontbench Spokesperson on Dublin, Foreign Affairs and Housing. Minister O’Brien is committed to examining the best way forward in terms of housing and accommodation solutions and enabling people to live fulfilling lives, in a safe, sustainable and environmentally-friendly manner.

Phelim O’Neill, Land Development Agency

Phelim is Head of Property at the LDC, previously he held senior positions at the National Asset Management Agency including Head of Property and Development and Senior Divisional Manager (NAMA). Prior to joining NAMA he worked in the property industry in various development and project management roles.

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Andrew Waugh, Waugh Thistleton Architects

Andrew is a founding director of Waugh Thistleton Architects, a practice dedicated to designing buildings and places of the highest architectural quality that acknowledge their impact on the environment. He is a world renowned spokesman for low-impact materials and innovative methods in architecture. A pivotal player in the global uptake of engineered timber, Andrew is known for his research and leadership on sustainability and lobbies and lectures internationally, communicating the urgent need for change to mitigate the climate crisis.

Khurram Shahzad, Design Manager, Sisk Living

Khurram’s area of expertise is Building Design, BCAR, Sustainability and Green Building. He is a Civil Engineer with masters in CPM from Queens University, he is also HPI Assessor and certified Passive House Designer. Currently, he is progressing with another postgraduate qualification in NZEB Design. Khurram is a Design Manager in Sisk Living since 2019. Recently 3 projects completed by Sisk Living under Khurram’s supervision were awarded HPI certification including Silver for Convent Lands and certified for Dunleer and Craddockstown.

This conference counts for 2.5 RIAI CPD Points

SPONSORS

Xtratherm manufactures a wide range of technically engineered high-performance insulation solutions. As a leading investor within the insulation sector, Xtratherm remains at the forefront of energy efficiency and sustainable construction. Specifying Xtratherm products is one of the most effective ways to reduce energy consumption – in fact, after just eight months the energy saved far outweighs the energy used in production.

BOOKINGS

Bookings