How will the poorest and soon-to-be most populous region in the world lift its people out of poverty and navigate a net-zero transition simultaneously?

Buildings play a key role in this transition hence the focus on net zero buildings for this discussion.

The panel comprised Smita Chandra Thomas, Founder and Principal of Energy Shrink, USA; Pauline Anaman, External Advisor Africa: EU H2020 Negative Emissions (NEGEM) Project; Alexi Miller, Associate Technical Director, New Building Institute (NBI), USA; and Solome Girma, Program Management Director, DC Sustainable Energy Utility (DCSEU), USA.

Smita, an expert in energy efficiency in buildings at the cutting-edge of green technology and energy management strategy, brought to the table a wealth of experience on Integrated Design and Net Zero. She pointed out that there is a strong business case for green buildings in emerging economies because:

• Buildings consume large amounts of energy
• The demand for new buildings, especially housing, is booming. Africa is one of the fastest growing regions in the world, and the African construction market is expected to grow at a rate of 6-7% over the next 5 years.
• The utility costs for both residential and commercial sectors is very high. In housing, annual energy savings in homes can cost more than a month of rent.

According to the 2016 IFC Report ‘Climate Investment Opportunities in Emerging Markets’, green buildings are a multi-trillion-dollar opportunity. In addition, GDP and energy use have been decoupled in almost all advanced economies – with GDP continuing to increase, while energy use is decreasing.

Net zero makes enormous sense for these reasons. Examples around the world show that net zero buildings can be attractive, modern, and built at commercially competitive costs. They can even come in under budget if the project team utilizes integrated design principles from the project outset. Commenting that designing for net zero is both an art and a science, Smita emphasised that an understanding of how a building interacts with the grid can produce even better results.

Looking back on the Ghana Green Building Summit, she observed

It was really heartening to see the high attendance and interest in net zero buildings at the Ghana Green Building Summit. Such events can be really effective in helping interested parties to network with each other, and in demystifying some of the newer concepts.

Alexi then contributed his insights about cutting-edge technologies and strategies, as part of a wide-ranging effort to improve the energy performance of the built environment. The central theme in his presentation were the five foundations of the Zero Carbon building policy – namely Energy Efficiency, Renewable Energy, Grid Integration + Storage + EV, Building Electrification, and Life-Cycle Impacts.

Commenting on the GGBS he says: “We know from experience, drawing from our database of 700+ Zero Energy buildings in North America, that there are many pathways to a green building, starting with energy efficiency. A wide range of proven and emerging solutions are available to make buildings more efficient, cleaner, more affordable, healthier, and safer. African zero carbon building professionals have the opportunity to learn from past successes and challenges, both at home and abroad, to leapfrog past many of the dead ends in order to make buildings part of the solution to the climate crisis. The Ghana Green Building Summit showcased a wide range of solutions and actionable steps that local and far-flung buildings industry players can use to lead by example and do well by doing good.”

The importance of efficiency first was really brought home by Chilufya as the moderator, who summarised the discussion:

We saw first-hand examples of just how energy efficient buildings have to be to achieve net zero. The efficiencies reported were 40 to 60% improvement over one of the most stringent energy codes in the world (Ashram 90.1). We also saw the important role that building codes can play in setting the right environment for energy savings.

The race to Net Zero is definitely not a fad. It is an opportunity to not only solve a serious environmental issue but also to create a building stock that is energy efficient enough to solve energy supply issues that are a burden to development in Africa.

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The 3rd Ghana Green Building Summit in 2020 was adapted as a virtual summit, taking place online only, in order to observe safety protocols in the fight against the global pandemic. The aim of the event was to reduce the negative impact of real estate projects on the environment while conserving natural resources.

The premise for the 2020 Summit’s theme was that, in the near future, greenness will rank far higher on the purchase and letting decision-making process of prospective property owners. The main theme was ‘BEYOND COVID-19: is a pandemic-proof architecture a reality?’, which was discussed under the sub-themes of Design, Innovation, Certification, Finance, and Sustainable Cities.

Chilu introduced his talk by identifying a major focus shift that has taken place over the last five months towards a greater awareness of health and indoor air quality; decentralised renewable energy networks; and socio-economic imbalances.

He said, “In our pre-Covid19 reality, commercial buildings guaranteed a degree of security around energy and IT infrastructure. But fresh air, thermal comfort and an environment conducive to motivation and productivity were not guaranteed. We spend 90% of our time indoors, and our environment is the largest determinant of our overall health. Yet indoor air quality is 2 to 5 times worse than outdoor air quality; indoor air pollution is ranked in the top 5 environmental risks to public health; and 50% of illnesses are known to be caused by aggravated indoor air pollution. Despite this knowledge, in most buildings, there is little to no awareness of the quality of the indoor environment being provided.

The pandemic and resulting lockdown displaced people from commercial buildings. Where were we displaced to? Many employees who previously had access to equal resources in their places of work found that they did not have the requisite infrastructure at home to continue to be productive.

“So, the current context has highlighted not only the need for healthier, more self-sufficient buildings, but also equal access to healthy places that are conducive to wellbeing and productivity. In responding to these demands – essentially the demands of a better-informed workforce – the future office will therefore have to deliver fresh air and a high indoor air quality, as well as thermal comfort, energy security and IT infrastructure – in order to ensure motivation and productivity.

“In future, there are a number of things we look forward to seeing. These include companies providing little pods for home offices (4mx2m). This solution helps with controlling your own indoor environment, providing energy security and the kind of IT infrastructure that you need. We expect to see more commercial clients actually willing to offset the cost of home offices or places for employees to work.”

It is interesting to note that most countries do not yet have legislation on air quality. In the new, healthier normal, good air quality will become non-negotiable. Reporting of building performance will have to include data on the quality of indoor air being provided to occupants. And the private and public sectors will have to work together proactively in defining and developing appropriate policies that address air quality and, indeed, all aspects of occupant health and wellbeing.

Download Ghana Green Building Summit 3 Report

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The keynote address was delivered by the Minister of Works and Housing, Hon. Samuel Atta Akyea, who charged some of the relevant professional bodies to ensure extensive training and adoption of green building principles and technologies by their members. He also intimated that government was willing to support green building projects with land and other resources.

The Honourable Minister was among eight other speakers and eight panelists who made presentations and discussed alternative material use, rating and certification, green finance and the creation of sustainable smart cities. Chilufya Lombe, Director at Solid Green, presented on ‘High Performance Buildings for Ghana’ and conducted a post-summit workshop that looked at the detailed application of building physics for improving performance of buildings.

Chilufya Lombe, Director at Solid Green, presented on ‘High Performance Buildings for Ghana’

The event aims to continue to engage key stakeholders to achieve the main target of public sensitisation, access to green funding, and certification of residential and non-residential developments. The Summit was organised by Yecham Property Consult, with the IFC-EDGE as major partner.

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