SDGBC Webinar: Embodied Carbon Reduction

Embodied Carbon Reduction: We Can’t Fully Decarbonize Buildings Without It

As the need to decarbonize the buildings that we live and work in becomes critical, understanding the carbon footprint of materials and processes used to design, construct, and operate buildings needs to be quantified and understood. Additionally, the need to analyze the end of life considerations for building materials needs to be quantified. Performing Life Cycle Analyses (LCAs) on project materials using Environmental Product Declarations (EDP) gives designers critical data they need to understand a project’s embodied carbon footprint. By understanding the carbon footprint of the materials used in construction projects, project developers can make informed decisions about which materials to use in order to reduce the carbon embedded in the complete life cycle of buildings. The presenters for this webinar will discuss the tools used to compute embodied carbon and discuss several case studies where these tools were used and how the data influenced design decisions and materials used in order to meet embodied carbon reduction goals.

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Seminar Highlights: 

• Discuss what is embodied carbon
• Discuss how to calculate the embodied carbon of a project through Life Cycle Analysis (LCA).
• Discuss how to use Environmental Product Declarations (EDP) and Product Category Rules (PCR’s) are used in LCA reporting
• Presenters will discuss local case studies that showcase the tools to calculate embodied carbon and how those results influenced material selection to reduce the embodied carbon of each project

Learning Level: Intermediate

Speakers:

Vaclav Hasik, PhD, LEED AP BD+C

Vaclav Hasik is a Data and Methodology Manager at Building Transparency, the non-profit organization behind the EC3 Tool. Vaclav was previously a sustainability analyst and Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) expert at Urban Fabrick, where he managed projects pursuing LEED certification and helped design teams address embodied carbon through whole-building LCAs. Vaclav also worked as a researcher at the University of Pittsburgh, where he was involved in university-wide carbon accounting, sustainability planning, and research on data and methods for LCA of buildings. He is an active member of the Carbon Leadership Forum and a founder of its San Francisco Bay Area hub.

Megan Stringer, SE, LEED AP BD+C

Megan Stringer is an Associate Principal with Holmes in their San Francisco office. Motivated by our impact on the built environment, Megan is at the forefront of reducing structural embodied carbon. She champions Holmes’ commitment to SE 2050 and gets sustainable structures built at impressive scales. Megan has overseen mass timber construction at Microsoft, low-carbon concrete pours at Intuit, and many life cycle assessments. Megan also serves as President of the Structural Engineers Association of Northern California and has chaired numerous committees.

Andres Gutierrez

Andrés performs life cycle assessments to measure the impact structures have on the carbon footprint of the built environment. Combining his technical background in structural design with a desire to create more sustainable cities, Andrés collaborates with clients to ensure projects meet the most complex and rigorous environmental certifications so firms can achieve ambitious decarbonization goals. His experience volunteering with Bridges to Prosperity instilled in him the importance of human-centered decision-making, so he makes it the central pillar of his approach to work.​

Prior to joining Stok, Andrés worked as a structural engineer for Thornton Tomasetti where he focused on the design of sports venues and retail facilities. In addition, as part of the Property-Loss Consulting team he provided forensics engineering services in response to natural disasters. This combination of behind-the-desk and in-the-field experiences fostered his analytical and detail-oriented mindset.​

Brittany Tse  LEED AP BD+C, Parksmart Advisor, Certified Passive House Consultant

Brittany Tse manages complex green building programs for clients across California and around the world. She specializes in supporting clients in measuring and reducing the embodied carbon of their building designs by creating whole building lifecycle assessments (WBLCAs) and with tools like EC3. At Brightworks, Brittany works frequently with public and private clients and on numerous high-performing office tenant improvement projects within the Salesforce Global Workplace Program.

Prior to Brightworks, Brittany managed eight LEED certification programs for San Francisco International Airport. In previous positions in the fields of green building, construction, and engineering, she also provided preconstruction cost estimates, Property Condition Assessments (PCAs), and due diligence services to anticipate future costs for lenders and investors.