Which is your favourite? 🤍 ad @ourplanet_eu Some of the most incredible...

EU Environment and Planet 5 months ago

Which is your favourite? 🤍 ad @ourplanet_eu Some of the most incredible places in Europe are also important areas for our and our planet’s wellbeing 🌿🌍 🐝 We all depend on nature for our food, air, water, energy and raw materials Natura 2000 is the world’s largest network of nature sites created to protect threatened species & sensitive habits all over Europe 🤍 The locations 1. ⛰️Dolomites, South Tyrol: breathtaking mountains, turquoise lakes & stunning hiking opportunities 2. 🍷Cinque Terre, Liguria: colourful towns along the Ligurian coastline & terraced vineyards 3. 🌊 Amalfi Coast, Campania: stunning coastal strip and the true sea dream. Great for scenic hiking & living la dolce vita 4. 🌋 Etna, Sicily: one of the most unique places in Europe. Including lava fields, picturesque small towns & a scenic train you can ride around the Volcano 5. 🏰 Rhein River: beautiful river with many stunning towns, vineyards and castles on hills The 21st of May is the European Natura 2000 day — so find your nearest protected nature area & go out, celebrate our beautiful nature 🌳🕊️ Find more than 27,000 natura areas in Europe, most likely you’ll have one within kilometers from you #natura2000

layersDaily Sustainability Digest

Published about 7 hours ago



A surge of innovation is redefining sustainable construction, with projects across the UK demonstrating how environmental sustainability in construction can merge with design excellence and performance resilience. At the forefront is the shortlisted “upcycled skyscraper”, a striking case of circular economy in construction where existing structures are adapted rather than demolished. The project exemplifies low carbon design by reusing steel and concrete frames to reduce embodied carbon in materials and limit the carbon footprint of construction. Through a robust whole life carbon assessment, the scheme proves that sustainable building design can embody elegance and cost-efficiency while advancing the goal of net zero whole life carbon in urban regeneration.

The Medworth Energy from Waste Combined Heat and Power facility in Wisbech represents a parallel movement toward decarbonising the built environment. By transforming residual waste into usable energy, the ÂŁ500 million investment underscores how sustainable building practices contribute to green infrastructure and long-term resource efficiency in construction. Designed to power more than 80,000 homes with low-carbon electricity, the facility highlights how lifecycle assessment and low carbon construction materials factor into environmental product declarations (EPDs) and end-of-life reuse in construction plans. It demonstrates that whole life carbon reduction can be achieved when energy generation is woven into the broader framework of sustainable urban development.

Heritage buildings are equally central to this transition. G F Tomlinson’s retrofit of Barnsley College’s University Centre into the South Yorkshire Institute of Technology embodies life cycle thinking in construction and shows how low-impact construction methods can rejuvenate older assets. The project integrates renewable building materials and green building products while preserving the structure’s Art Deco façade. It stands as an archetype of eco-friendly construction and sustainable material specification, proving that a low carbon building can bridge history and high performance without undermining architectural integrity.

Industry analysis reveals that the private sector is expanding its commitment to net zero carbon buildings, embedding BREEAM and emerging frameworks like BREEAM v7 into procurement and reporting systems. Corporations are prioritising life cycle cost evaluations and circular construction strategies to ensure that every design stage addresses embodied carbon and operational efficiency. In shifting toward carbon neutral construction, these firms are retooling supply chains and adopting low embodied carbon materials tailored to each project’s environmental impact of construction metrics. The movement marks a clear pivot from voluntary green construction efforts toward measurable and verifiable sustainability outcomes.

Prince William’s advocacy for scalable sustainable design through initiatives such as the Earthshot Prize captures a global mood: carbon footprint reduction must be inherent to every phase of eco-design for buildings, from concept development to building lifecycle performance analysis. The momentum now depends on how effectively policymakers and developers align lifecycle assessment methodologies with on-site practice. With the integration of circular economy strategies and net zero carbon benchmarks, sustainable construction is emerging not as an alternative niche but as the foundation of future-ready, low carbon, energy-efficient buildings. The shift signals a systemic commitment to transforming the environmental sustainability of construction into a central metric of progress, setting a new global standard for how we build, adapt and sustain the built environment.

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Whole Life Carbon is a platform for the entire construction industry—both in the UK and internationally. We track the latest publications, debates, and events related to whole life guidance and sustainability. If you have any enquiries or opinions to share, please do get in touch.