Global Building Alliance launched at COP21; RICS founding member

Governments, building and construction organisations and funding agencies have come together to launch a Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction, of which RICS is a founding member.

The alliance is a worldwide building sector network backed by the governments of France, Germany, Japan, United Arab Emirates, Cameroon and Senegal amongst others.

It was launched at the first-ever United Nations Buildings Day, held on Thursday as part of the 21st Conference of the Parties (COP21), where governments are negotiating a new agreement to mitigate climate change. The alliance is a joint initiative between the French Government as host of COP21 and the UN’s Environment Programme.

The alliance is committed to:

–Helping to put the buildings and construction sector on the “below 2 °C path”

–Aligning existing initiatives, commitments and programmes to achieve greater scale and increase the pace of efficiency actions

–Catalysing stronger collaboration and targeting sectoral and cross sectoral climate action and solutions for all

RICS professionals will play a central role in mobilising capital for investment in energy-efficient and sustainable buildings.

Commenting about the importance of climate change commitment in India, Sean Tompkins, CEO, RICS, said. “India is at the forefront of the Climate Change commitments. Having met officials from Ministry of Environment today, Government’s focus on education & skills development to meet its smart cities ambition and climate change commitments is clear.”

Sachin Sandhir, Global Managing Director – Emerging Business, RICS, said. “Indian buildings and cities are large contributors of CO2. India’s announcement to invest of INR 9500 million in sustainable cities is commendable. As a public interest body, RICS strives to support government by contributing professionals who can deploy this money efficiently & shape these future cities.”