Carbon is one of the most important words in the world of sustainability. Take a typical building with a 60-year lifespan, the operational carbon of the building is a large contributor to carbon emissions. Where as, in a high-performance building, the operational carbon is a very small component, and the embodied carbon is a larger portion of the overall percentage of emissions. With the global response to emissions and sustainability, emissions cuts of about 7.5% every year are continuing. By 2040, two-thirds of the building stock will be existing, this offers an enormous opportunity to optimize these buildings for performance starting with the envelope. There’s a belief: The most sustainable building is the one that is already existing. Architects and contractors interested in decarbonization should join this session!
Learning Objectives:
- Why optimizing the Existing Building Stock important.
- Embodied Carbon Reduction strategies.
- Carbon sequestering materials for renovations.
- Discover how to optimize systems for high performance buildings.
- Legislative landscape for Embodied Carbon reduction.
Continuing Education Credits:
1.0 AIA LU HSW 
Hafsa Burt
President, HB+A Architects
Hafsa Burt is a seasoned architect whose portfolio includes work at the San Francisco Airport, institutional buildings, multifamily buildings, hospitality, retail, and medical office buildings. She also founded a development arm for the firm called Box Lab which is focused on the development of zero energy/ zero carbon buildings. Her focus includes eliminating toxins with indoor air quality as a specialty. She actively speaks on the topic of indoor air quality as it relates to the practice of architecture and is an industry expert on “Healthy Building Practices”. She is actively involved with the American Institute of Architects and is a member of the AIA California Climate Action Committee which looks at legislative decisions as they relate to the building environment, and has been involved in advocating for de-carbonizing the built environment and is working with a group on policies that address Embodied Carbon and Life Cycle Analysis of projects. Burt has been awarded the title of ENR’s 20 Under 40 Construction Professionals in California and the American Institute of Architects’ coveted Young Architects’ Honor Award.
