The Pathway to Resilience and Carbon Neutrality

Seattle, WA – May 24, 2021 – The Pacific Northwest Building Resilience Coalition, in partnership with the Pacific Northwest Economic Region, is hosting four distinct webinars on the Pathway to Resilience and Carbon Neutrality starting June 8, 2021.

The webinar series will focus on how the cement and concrete industries provide resilience to the effects of climate change while lowering CO2 emissions in line with national and international Greenhouse Gas emissions reduction targets.

It will feature presentations by some of the world’s leading experts on how construction practices in the future will affect what and how we build and how the cement and concrete industries will reduce CO2 and other GHG emissions to address climate change.

“As governments move toward rebuilding resilient infrastructure and economies after COVID-19, we must ensure that recovery plans can shape our current and future economies in ways that are clean, green, safe, and above all resilient,” said Willian Larson, Chair of the Pacific Northwest Building Resilience Coalition.

“Our members are committed to furthering the planning, development, and construction of buildings and associated infrastructure better able to recover from and to adapt to the growing impacts of an ever-changing urban and physical environment.” He added.

The first webinar on June 8, will feature three industry experts discussing how circular economy principles will change how we build and operate our built environment, which makes up a significant part of our economy, our resource consumption, and our impacts on the environment.

It will be followed each week by webinars on how new building materials can maximize resilience, performance and deliver lasting economic and environmental value; how using concrete can help meet GHG reduction targets and lower embodied carbon in buildings; and how resiliency planning can reduce the impact of extreme weather incidents and natural disasters, saving lives, properties, and communities.

Full details on each webinar and the presenters are in the Backgrounder attached.

The Webinar Series is a sponsored prelude to Pacific Northwest Economic Region (PNWER) 30th Annual Summit taking place in Big Sky, Montana, August 15-19, 2021. The 2021 Summit promises robust in-person and virtual content and networking opportunities that will allow our in-person attendees to enjoy all that Big Sky has to offer as well as the opportunity to reach a broader audience virtually throughout the region and as far away as Ottawa and Washington, D.C.

About the Pacific Northwest Building Resilience Coalition: The Pacific Northwest Building Resilience Coalition is a gathering of organizations, primarily in the cement, concrete, and masonry industries, committed to furthering the planning, development, and construction of buildings and associated infrastructure better able to recover from and to adapt to the growing impacts of an ever-changing urban and physical environment. Learn more here:

About the Pacific Northwest Economic Region: The Pacific Northwest Economic Region (PNWER) Foundation is a statutory public/private nonprofit created in 1991 by the U.S. states of Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Montana, and Washington and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, and Saskatchewan and the territories of the Northwest Territories and the Yukon. Learn more here:

Further information on the Webinar Series is available from Mr. William Larson, Chair, Pacific Northwest Building Resilience Coalition c/o larsonwr@verizon.net

The Pathway to Resilience and Carbon Neutrality – Backgrounder

With consideration of state and pending federal legislation such as the Washington State, “Climate Commitment Act” and state and federal “Buy Clean” legislation, building material manufacturers will require adaptation to stricter greenhouse gas emission regulations.

The environmental impact of those materials during manufacture, while in the use phase, the end-of-life phase and beyond, will play an important role in attaining our GHG goals going forward. The Pacific Northwest Building Resilience Coalition, in partnership with the Pacific Northwest Economic Region, is hosting four free webinars on the Pathway to Resilience and Carbon Neutrality starting on June 8, 2021, that will address these critical issues.

Webinar1:         June 8, 10:00 AM PST – Achieving Resilience and Climate Targets: Cement and Concrete Pathways to Carbon Neutrality.

Constructing and operating our built environment makes up a significant part of our economy, our resource consumption, and its environmental impact. ? Do not miss this chance to hear from three of the world’s top experts on how the circular economy, biodiversity crisis, and carbon challenge, together in a changing world, all impact on the answers to these important questions. How will environmental considerations and construction practices in the future affect what we build and how we build? What are the cement and concrete industries doing to reduce CO2 and GHG emissions to address climate change? Featured Presenters Include:

• Dr. Andrew Minson – Concrete and Sustainable Construction Director, Global Cement and Concrete Association – London, UK
• Richard Bohan – Vice President, Sustainability, Portland Cement Association – Chicago, IL USA
• Adam Auer – Vice President, Environment and Sustainability – Cement Association of Canada – Ottawa, ON, CA

Webinar 2:         June 15, 10:00 AM PST – Concrete Innovations – Environmental Impacts of Building Materials.

In addition to performance, budget, and aesthetics, policymakers and design professionals are now being asked to evaluate the environmental burdens of their design choices. Measuring the impacts of buildings, assemblies and products can be complex. Every design decision, from material and product selection to envelope design and construction can have an impact on the environment, and the methods used to evaluate those decisions are still not widely understood. This webinar will address critical issues policymakers and design professionals should consider as they evaluate the environmental impacts of building materials to maximize resilience, performance and deliver lasting value.

• Feature Presenter: Tien Peng, the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association’s (NRMCA) Senior Vice President of Sustainability, Codes, and Standards, is the industry’s leading advocate for codes and green building protocols

Webinar 3:         June 22, 10:00 AM PST – Using Concrete to Meet GHG Reduction Targets-Embodied Carbon, Life Cycle of Concrete and Carbonation.

. This webinar by the Concrete Sustainability Hub at MIT addresses the carbon footprint of the concrete industry. Achieving global sustainable development goals depends on the expansion of infrastructure and housing that depends upon concrete. This presentation will discuss both critical strategies to reduce emissions from concrete production and cases where concrete application leads to emission reductions during infrastructure use.

• Featured Presenter: Randolph E. Kirchain, Ph.D., Co-Director of the Concrete Sustainability Hub at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Webinar 4:       June 29, 10:00 AM PST – The Resilience Advantage – Economic and Environmental Benefits of Disaster Resilient Design

This timely presentation prepared by the U.S. Resiliency Council explores research and case studies from various reliable sources to demonstrate that the economic and environmental impacts of disaster-resistant buildings are a sound economic investment for business and government entities, particularly those that serve, employ or house large numbers of people. The growing impact of extreme weather incidents and climate change makes resiliency planning and the use of more resilient building materials a critical imperative.

• Featured Presenter:  Evan Reis, SE, PE Executive Director, and co-Founder, U.S. Resiliency Council

Persons interested in any or all of these FREE Webinars can register here:    bit.ly/resiliencepathway

Further information on the Webinar Series is available from Mr. William Larson, Chair, Pacific Northwest Building Resilience Coalition c/o larsonwr@verizon.net