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GlobalABC events & regional roundtables

Advancing Building Decarbonization and Resilience in LAC Through International Cooperation
| 10:30-11:30 Eastern Standard Time

Contadora III, Mariott Panama Hotel, Panama City, Panama

Latin America and Caribbean Climate Week (LACCW 2023), Panama City, 23-27 October, hosted by the government of Panama, this event will be organised in parallel with the XXIII Meeting of the Forum of Ministers of Environment of Latin America and the Caribbean (24 - 26 October 2023). UNEP and GlobalABC will be co-leading an Action Track Event on buildings, titled "Advancing building decarbonization and resilience in LAC through international cooperation", under Track 2 (Cities, urban and rural settlements, infrastructure and transport).

  • Time: 26 October 2023, 10:30-11:30 Eastern Standard Time
  • Where: Contadora III, Mariott Panama Hotel, Panama City, Panama
  • Organizers: United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP); Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction (GlobalABC)
  • Partners: Costa Rica Green Building Council; Chile Green Building Council
  • Register here

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Overview

Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), despite contributing only 3% to global CO2 emissions, experience a disproportionate impact from climate change. Half of Latin American citizens live in countries with high or extreme climate vulnerability. The current resilience of buildings against the escalating effects of climate change is low, particularly in informal housing where a quarter of Latin America’s urban population live. As population grows and markets develop, construction and urbanisation will peak, further intensifying the region’s vulnerability to climate change impacts.

With the built environment globally responsible for ca. 40% of annual global energy-related CO2 emissions, buildings offer an immense opportunity to drive transformative change and present the most cost-effective mitigation potential among all industrial sectors. It also brings opportunities of adopting building sustainability practices and increasing resilience. By 2050, the floor area in the LAC region is expected to grow by 65%, and the decarbonisation of the Latin American buildings and construction sector is valued at USD 4 trillion by 2030. The Latin American continent offers abundant opportunities in terms of land, geography, natural resources, untapped renewable energy potential, and a young and expanding workforce. This presents a real chance for the continent to leapfrog into a healthier and cleaner living environment.

Gathering speakers from national and local governments, civil society and the private sector, the event will demonstrate the importance of adopting multi-level and inclusive approaches to decarbonising the buildings and construction sector in Latin America and the Caribbean, and will showcase integrated and comprehensive strategies and actions to achieve the Paris Agreement objectives. It will also demonstrate the importance of international collaboration and collaborative models in bridging the gap between intention and action, and making this crucial decade a real tipping point in the creation of a more sustainable built environment.

Objectives 

  • Raise awareness on the importance of the buildings and construction sector in offering transformative change;
  • Explore opportunities for international and multi-level collaborations for more integrated and effective actions (e.g. policies, strategies and plans) in response to climate change;
  • Showcase localized tools and strategies, and build capacity for a sustainable and resilient built environment;
  • Encourage LAC countries to join the Buildings Breakthrough - an intergovernmental initiative on priority actions to make near-zero and resilient buildings the new normal by 2030.

Key Outcomes 

  • Increased collaboration with Latin American and Caribbean countries and initiatives to adopt best practices and accelerate progress
  • Improved sustainable and resilient building design and construction practices
  • Stronger building codes and regulations
  • Adoption of clean tech and energy-efficient building practices
  • Strengthened capacity, promoting research and innovation to transition to a low-carbon economy

Agenda 

Time (EST)

Topic

Speakers

10:30-10:35 (5 mins)

Welcome and setting the scene - Transforming the LAC region’s buildings and construction sector: opportunities and challenges

  • Presenting the state of buildings and construction in the LAC region, the urgency and benefits of decarbonising the sector and addressing climate change, and the current challenge and opportunities the sector can play in reaching climate goals.

Beatriz Martins, Regional Coordinator for Financial and Economic Transformations, Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean, UNEP

10:35-10:45
(10 min)

Unveiling the power of international cooperation for a decarbonized buildings and construction sector in LAC region:

  • Present some key elements of the GlobalABC Regional Roadmap for Buildings and Construction in Latin America.
  • Calling for a shared vision and international cooperation, presenting the Buildings Breakthrough initiative as an opportunity to accelerate the required systems transformation in the region and globally towards zero-emission and resilient buildings by 2030, and promotion of the Buildings and Climate Global Forum in March 2024, Paris.

Nicolas Ramirez, Deputy Director, Green Building Council Costa Rica

10:45-11:15
(30 mins)

Panel Discussion - Scaling up low-carbon and resilient construction in LAC

  • Discuss strategies and system change in making low-carbon and resilient construction more available, accessible, affordable
  • Role of multi-level collaboration among the various stakeholders and actors of the supply chain, and 
  • Role of initiatives in advancing targets
  • Role of the Buildings Breakthrough, a collaborative framework for effective change
  • Marta Raquel Bernal, Coordinator of Special Projects, National Energy Secretariat, Panama
  • Manuel Lascarro, Executive Committee Member, Concrete Sustainability Council; Director-General, FIHP (Iberoamerican Ready Mixed Concrete Federation) & Procemco (The Colombian Chamber of Cement and Concrete) 
  • Pamela Castellan, CEO, Guatemala Green Building Council; Chair, WorldGBC Americas Regional Network
  • Carolina Dantas, Project Coordinator for Latin America and the Caribbean, Building and Wood Worker’s International (BWInt)
  • Liliana Campos, Head of Project, GIZ Mexico
  • ModeratorNicolas Ramirez, Deputy Director, Green Building Council Costa Rica

11:15-11:20 (5 mins)

Q&A

With the audience

11:20-11:30
(10 mins)

Closing Remarks

  • Presentation of the importance of the Breakthrough Agenda and the Buildings Breakthrough as a comprehensive, inclusive and effective framework for international collaboration
  • Invite governments to collaborate and lead by example to catalyze transformative change 
  • Invite leading initiatives to join the Buildings Breakthrough
  • Presentation and invitation to the 2024 Paris Global Forum for Buildings and Climate to accelerate targets in the sector.

Yves-Laurent Sapoval, Senior Advisor, Ministry of Ecological Transition and Territorial Cohesion, France (online)

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Topics:
Adaptation/Resilience
Affordable housing
Appliances and Systems
Building operations
Circularity
Clean Energy
Embodied carbon
Existing buildings
Financing
Materials
New buildings
Urban planning