Supporting Action to tackle Climate Emergency

THE IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE is clear, present and dangerous.The capacity of industry and markets to respond however have been described by Mark Carney as the

tragedy of the horizon … once climate change becomes a defining issue [for financial stability], it may already be too late

The built environment sector holds the knowledge and some of the skills to address climate emergency, however its current lack of pace sadly mirrors Carney’s prophesy.

In recognising the urgency to change behaviours, the London Energy Transformation Initiative (LETI) have launched their Climate Emergency Design Guide. This guide represents a clear ‘call to action’, outlining the approach, targets and benchmarks that new developments in the UK need to achieve to reach Net Zero in operation.

The Guide covers 5 key areas: operational energy, embodied carbon, the future of heat, demand response and data disclosure. More importantly it reaffirms the timeline that by 2025 the requirements must become standard design practice to meet our collective responsibility in the climate crisis.

At Akerlof, we care about how the built environment shapes society and have chosen to apply our skills in supporting our clients to create sustainable value that maximises positive economic, social and environmental impact.

Recognising our responsibilities and demonstrating leadership, we unite with those determined to implement positive change.  We therefore pledge our support to LETI and encourage others to join the collaboration, in striving to realise a zero carbon future.

The LETI guides are available to download here

Jamie Hillier

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With a penchant for tweed and jackets with leather arm patches, Jamie began his career as a quantity surveyor, before climbing the ladder to lead major projects for a Tier 1 contractor.

Eventually expanding his book collection beyond copies of SMM7, Jamie has interest in a broad range of subjects linked to delivering better outcomes for society and the environment.

His strategic insights on MMC and behavioural science have made their way into numerous government, industry and academic publications, including the Construction Playbook, Transforming Infrastructure Performance Roadmap to 2030, the Platform Rulebook and the RIBA DfMA Overlay.

John Handscomb

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Construction is in John’s blood. Learning from his father who was a planner and project manager, John began his career by working on some iconic projects in both the public and private sector.

As a procurement expert and integrator of new ways of working, John has pioneered the integration of platform principles, DfMA processes and supply chain within over £5bn projects in the last 15 years, for some of the largest building programmes in the UK. Despite his considerable expertise, John keeps it simple, communicating complicated ideas with ease and helping to equip the industry with new knowledge and skills.

Outside of Akerlof, John enjoys his executive role with technology start-up ScanTech Digital, spending time with his family, taking trips down the football, playing a bit of golf with friends and the odd pint. 

Our name is shared with George Akerlof, a Nobel Prize-winning economist.

His seminal paper, Market for Lemons, demonstrated the devastating consequences of making decisions under the conditions of quality uncertainty and unequal information between buyers and sellers, increasing the chance of buyers ending up with a ‘lemon’.

This 50-year-old concept continues to retain parallels within the construction industry.

Through our insight and experience, we can rebalance this information asymmetry on behalf of our clients, levelling the playing field to deliver better outcomes.