Record green building certifications as commercial property sector greening gains momentum

One hundred and forty (140) buildings were certified over the past year – a record number, showing growing momentum of green building. The announcement was made during the GBCSA’s flagship Green Building Convention, held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC).

“Certified green buildings held their own as far as vacancy and return rates go over the past year. Property owners, tenants and investors are now insisting on better, certified green buildings, as the environmental and financial benefits of these become indisputable. To date, the GBCSA has certified 740 buildings since 2009,” said GBCSA CEO, Lisa Reynolds.

Reynolds said that the 140 certifications during a challenging Covid year was significant and spoke to a growing green building movement. She also commended the built environment community for driving the movement, saying “we do the certifications, but you make the commitment”.

It was also announced that Giles Pendleton, who is the Chief Development Officer at Attacq Limited, will remain as the Chairperson of GBCSA for another year.

The Green Building Convention hosted several keynote international and local speakers, including Nigerian architect, Kunlé Adeyemi, whose ‘African Water Cities’ have garnered him worldwide acclaim; Dutch bio-designer, Teresa van Dongen who shared the ground-breaking work she is doing in combining nature and science into her design; and Mashudu Ramano, entrepreneur in transition to a regenerative and sustainable future, bringing home our undeniable connection to and reliance on the environment.

“Our programme was curated around this year’s theme – One – One Planet. One Chance. It comprehensively looked at the critical role of the green building community and the need for us to come together as one powerful movement to effect positive change that counts.

“The theme spoke to the need for decisive and immediate action to mitigate the effects of climate change and to save our one planet for future generations. This is not something we can do alone – we need everyone to commit to a future where people and the planet thrive,” Reynolds added.

GBCSA also thanks its sponsors for making this year’s Convention possible.

“To our lead sponsors – Nedbank, Rand Water and Vodacom Business and all our other sponsors and supporters, thank you for partnering with us and investing in the green building movement. Partnerships are key to achieving the SDGs and we are in great company as we drive sustainable changes in the built environment,” said Reynolds.

GBCSA CEO Lisa Reynolds addresses delegates gathered in-person and virtually at the 14th Green Building Convention.