First Virtual Green Building Congress 2020 Gets Unprecedented National and International Participation

KOCHI:
The 18 th edition of Green Building Congress 2020, India’s flagship event on Green Built Environment organised by CII—IGBC, was conducted virtually for the first time, and was inaugurated by M Venkaiah Naidu, Vice-President of India. In his inaugural address on 29October 2020, the Vice President encouraged all stakeholders to scale up greening measures, and also suggested that governments and Urban Local Bodies can offer tax incentives to catalyse the green buildings movement.

The Vice President released IGBC Coffee Table Book volume 4 and three new IGBC GREEN rating systems, one each for Healthcare, Logistics Parks &
Warehouses and Net Zero Water. CII Hive, the platform hosting the Green Building Congress 2020, received unprecedented response. More than 4,200 delegates from 54 countries registered to witness the holistic deliberations on 23 unique topics related to green built environment.

The Indian Green Building Council (IndiaGBC) is a founding member of the World Green Building Council (WorldGBC), a global network of around 70 countries leading the transformation of built environment, to make it healthier and more sustainable. WorldGBC was the supporting partner for IGBC’s Green Building Congress 2020. The three-day international conference also had support & active participation from 13 countries through their respective green building councils. This way, the Green Building Congress 2020 facilitated knowledge sharing and business networking on a global scale.

India ranks among the top three countries in the world in terms of built-up area of green developments. As on date, there are 6,055 green projects, equivalent to 7.61 billion sq ft, in the country.

A 30-day online Green Building Expo showcasing the latest green building technologies, green products and services that have applications in both residential and commercial spaces is open until 27 November 2020. The recorded sessions from the three-day conference are available on the CII HIVE platform. The expo is a great opportunity for Architects, engineers, developers, consultants, corporates, research scholars, MEPs & facility managers across India to get acquainted with the latest technologies in the industry, and take advantage of the underlying business opportunity.

Expressing delight over the learnings from the 3-day conference, B R Ajit, Chairman, IGBC Cochin chapter, recollected the past memories of several editions of Green Building Congress held in various cities in India. He noted that Kerala has been one of the fast-rising states in terms of green building projects. “The acceptance among the Government & Developers to adopt sustainable design, construction and certification is gaining ground. Awareness among the public has now spread beyond the boundaries of Cochin city into other districts and suburbs,” he said.

Overall, Kerala has more than140 IGBC green building projects today. Landmark IGBC green government projects in the state include Kochi Metro Rail Limited’s office building adopting Green and undergoing IGBC certifications, Kannur International Airport limited certified IGBC Gold rating etc. Also, private projects from all leading developers in Cochin and beyond have gone the IGBC way.

S Lava Krishna & Mathew, Co-chairs, IGBC Cochin chapter underlined that healthy buildings have emerged as part of the solution under today’s ‘new normal’. “Various sessions at the Green Building Congress echoed this opinion and focused on improving the occupant’s quality of life by addressing ways to enhance indoor air quality such as using non-toxic materials, better acoustics & ergonomics, improving visual / thermal / olfactory comfort, and above all, maintaining strict hygiene and sanitation,” he said.