This week Edwin Ndeke @edwinoblak will share his series on recent flooding in...

Every Day Climate Change 2 years ago

This week Edwin Ndeke @edwinoblak will share his series on recent flooding in Kenya: Edwin writes: In March all through to May Kenya saw some of its most catastrophic weather for years. Torrential rains caused devastating floods, at least 228 people died, thousands were displaced and nearly 2,000 schools were affected. Poorer communities were disproportionately affected. Mathare , with roughly 70,000 residents, is just one part of the densely populated “informal settlement” in Nairobi, and people are still reeling from the impact of the flood. Unplanned or illegal housing developments that obstruct the flow of water, settlements on riverbanks, and poor drainage systems worsened flood impacts Because About 70% of Nairobi’s residents live in informal settlements, which occupy about 5% of the city’s land. Congested living conditions push the poorest residents to the margins of the settlement, where they are most vulnerable. These photos paint a picture of how important it his to fight climate change & effects it has to humans. Captions: 1. Jane Kalekye at the door of her flooded house in the Mathare Slums on 01/05/2024 as the East african country experiences heavy long rains in Nairobi, Kenya 2. Jane Kalekye stands opposite her flooded house in Mathare Slums on 01/05/2024,Nairobi, Kenya as the country experiences heavy long rains. 3. Jane Kalekye and her son, Francis ochieng,help their neighbour remove a sofa that has blocked her house in Mathare Slums on 01/05/2024, Nairobi, Kenya as the country experiences heavy long rains. #climatechange #globalwarming #climatecrisis #Kenya #Africa #eastafrica #flooding #torrentialrain #rain #poverty #informalsettlements

layersDaily Sustainability Digest

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A tightening regulatory and technical landscape is redefining sustainable construction across the UK and beyond. The Building Safety Act is reshaping project governance by requiring transparent reporting and accountability that link safety with environmental sustainability in construction. Compliance processes are driving a shift toward whole life carbon assessment, embedding sustainable building design principles at the earliest design stage and quantifying both operational and embodied carbon.

Digital systems such as the government’s waste‑tracking initiative are enabling circular economy in construction practices, mandating traceable material flows and revealing the carbon footprint of construction through verified lifecycle assessment. These data‑driven mechanisms enhance resource efficiency in construction and reinforce the wider transition to low embodied carbon materials and eco‑friendly construction.

Investment is converging on decarbonisation at scale. A new £120 million waste‑to‑hydrogen facility is designed to transform residual waste into clean fuel, supporting low carbon design and resilient net zero carbon buildings. Growth in grid‑balancing storage improves the stability of renewable‑powered operations, a prerequisite for energy‑efficient buildings and low carbon building performance across portfolios.

Governance frameworks are also advancing. The creation of a dedicated leadership structure for the Greenhouse Gas Protocol elevates global consistency in measuring whole life carbon and encourages transparent benchmarking using environmental product declarations (EPDs). This maturity strengthens sustainable building practices, fosters green construction aligned with BREEAM v7 standards, and supports decarbonising the built environment through life cycle cost and performance management.

The cumulative effect signals a transition to net zero whole life carbon imperatives governed by robust data, certified materials, and measurable outcomes. The progress may appear administrative, yet it represents the essential infrastructure of sustainable material specification, circular construction strategies, and long‑term green infrastructure supporting a truly carbon neutral construction sector.

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