The VELUX Group and partners open the doors to Living Places Copenhagen – seven prototypes that show how we can develop sustainable buildings with a three times lower CO2 footprint and a first-class indoor climate. Living Places concept holds the lowest CO2 emissions in Denmark, demonstrating that we do not have to wait for future technology to build more sustainably.
The building industry accounts for 34% of the global energy consumption and 37% of the global CO2 emissions, and in the latest report from the UN’s climate panel, it is clear that low carbon solutions must be scaled and implemented – also in the building industry. One of those solutions can be experienced in Copenhagen from today. With the groundbreaking project Living Places Copenhagen, the VELUX Group and its partners, demonstrate how to build homes with a CO2 footprint of 3.8 kg/CO2/m2/year – three times lower than the current Danish legislation of 12 kg CO2/m2/year – and to a price that matches the market price for a one-family house or rowhouses at scale. Furthermore, Living Places Copenhagen is designed with a strong focus on creating a healthy indoor climate using daylight and fresh air and it delivers best in class indoor climate.
“As part of an industry that accounts for a large part of the global CO2 emissions, we wish to take responsibility for finding ways to build more sustainably. With this project, we show how it can be done already today. I’m very proud of the results we have created with Living Places Copenhagen together with our partners. This project is a good example of how building more sustainable, healthy homes can both address climate challenges within our industry and improve peoples’ health. After all, we spend 90% of our time indoors, so a healthy indoor climate in our home is crucial,” says Tina Mayn, Executive Vice President for Products at the VELUX Group.
Living Places Copenhagen is the first prototype showcasing the overall concept – Living Places – which was initiated by the VELUX Group, EFFEKT and Artelia. The vision is to lead the way within the building industry and show how rethinking buildings can help solve some of the global climate and health challenges. The concept is based on five key principles: homes should be healthy, affordable, simple, shared over time and scalable. These principles can be applied to new or existing buildings and communities.
The materials, solutions and knowledge are already here
As a part of The Living Places Copenhagen project, the VELUX Group, EFFEKT, Artelia and Enemærke & Petersen, have carried out a complete Life Cycle Assessment. This means that each material, design and building technique has been carefully considered and mapped in terms of the emissions they project compared to a typical Danish household. Based on this, the partnership have built prototypes, showing that we do not have to wait for future technology to build homes that benefit both people and the planet.
“The monitoring and thorough assessment of every product and process has been crucial to reach the results that we are able to present with this project. The fact that we have been able to reach these record results with Living Places Copenhagen is proof that we don’t have to wait for future technologies to build more sustainable buildings. The materials, solutions, and knowledge are already here – we just need to enable and scale them. I hope that we can inspire the building industry to follow,” says Lone Feifer, Director of Sustainable Building at the VELUX Group.
Living Places Copenhagen showcases a total of seven prototypes – five open pavilions and two completed full-scale homes which open to the public on Earth Day on the 22nd April. As an official partner to the UIA World Congress of Architects in Copenhagen, Living Places Copenhagen will host a programme of debates and activities designed to drive and accelerate change in the building industry.
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