Business View Oceania - Oct 2023

33 BUSINESS VIEW OCEANIA VOLUME 5, ISSUE 10 NEW ZEALAND GREEN BUI LDING COUNC I L While we’d like these certifications to be redundant, the reality is that until our building regulations require healthy, sustainable building, we must continue to rely on our sector to show leadership and step up to the mark. Certifications like Green Star and NABERSNZ provide a framework for things like reducing waste, energy and water consumption. In the last year we’ve released key guidance for the sector and an embodied carbon calculator to help the industry understand and tackle emissions associated with materials and products. We’re observing a huge interest in measuring and reducing these emissions. There is also an increasing interest in reducing waste to landfill and improving circularity. The reality of a changing climate is starting to hit. With the impacts of climate change already evident, there can be little question as to why we’re seeing growing demand and action when it comes to sustainable buildings. New Zealand has experienced very abnormal weather patterns in the past few years that have adversely impacted many communities, from catastrophic flooding in our largest city; Auckland, to Cyclone Gabriel wreaking havoc on much of the North Island. Across the globe we are witnessing heatwaves, unprecedented storms and raging bush fires in the likes of Greece and California, displacing people and signalling that the mercury is truly rising. Four global climate records have been broken that truly demonstrate the tangibility of climate change – the hottest day on record, the hottest June, extreme marine heatwaves (with ocean temperatures up to 5 degrees Celsius warmer) and record low Antarctic Sea ice. When you face these facts it’s obvious why we are witnessing a collective shift in the way we approach sustainability – but as with any industry precedent, there is an economic benefit too. The risks associated with the changing climate present a challenge for companies and their directors. Here in New Zealand, the government has mandated 200 entities to produce climate related disclosures in line with the recommendations of the Task Force of Climate-