November 29 is Giving Tuesday!
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Giving Tuesday is a day for people across the globe to give back to their communities through their time, talents, or financial contributions. By harnessing the power of “radical generosity,” Giving Tuesday invites people to give how and what they can to help create a better world.
For those looking to help mitigate the effects of climate change and to make a difference in the built environment, we would be grateful for your donation to Verdani Institute for the Built Environment (VIBE), Verdani’s non-profit. The built environment is currently responsible for almost 40% of global emissions. VIBE is dedicated to decarbonizing and scaling climate-friendly buildings as rapidly as possible by promoting green building education for current and future generations of commercial real estate (CRE) and sustainability professionals.
We are urgently working on a series of educational and workforce training resources that teach the critical aspects of sustainability of buildings and in the built environment. From an introduction to sustainable real estate, net zero, and resilience to green building strategies and ESG reporting frameworks, the book series will serve as the go-to resource for professionals, educators, students and all those inspired to take positive climate action through the practice of sustainable real estate.
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In connection with our book series, VIBE is also publishing a series of white papers. We released the first one, a comprehensive overview of ESG reporting frameworks, in September. The second white paper, focusing on best practices in sustainable real estate, will be available in early 2023. Sign up for an advanced copy of the white paper here.
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We offer various sponsorship levels from
$100
for individuals to
$440,000
for our entire book series.
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We are currently offering two holiday specials at the
$100 & $10,000
levels.
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For every donation to VIBE made through the end of the year, Verdani will provide a triple match (up to a total of $50,000) to amplify the impact of your gift.
As our gift to you, VIBE will be giving away free copies of the e-book version of "Earth's Climate Heroes" on Giving Tuesday, as well as offering a 20% discount on the print version throughout the holiday season. Written by Verdani’s and VIBE’s founder (and mom) Daniele Horton, Earth’s Climate Heroes is a powerful yet accessible story for young children on the causes of climate change, the solutions that exist to heal our planet, and how all of us can make a tangible difference in building a future that is vibrant, sustainable, and equitable. These books make a great holiday gift and can be ordered in bulk for gifts, classrooms, or children's groups.
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Thank you for supporting VIBE & climate education!
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Verdani Gives Back to Communities in Need
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Verdani team members continue to show how much we care about the world around us, even beyond our climate work. From sending supplies to areas impacted by hurricanes, to donating to Make-A-Wish Foundation, our team has stepped up to make a difference for those in need.
Several team members from our Carlsbad, California headquarters, participated in volunteer shifts at +BOX, an organization which helps fight food insecurity by delivering fresh, healthy foods to students and families. We look forward to continuing to engage with +BOX and other community support initiatives in 2023! |
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Insights, Inspiration and Connection at Greenbuild 2022
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The Verdani team had a wonderful time at Greenbuild catching up with old friends, meeting new thought leaders, and soaking in knowledge from speakers from across the industry and beyond.
In the spirit of giving, here are a few key insights our team members learned during the conference:
1. USGBC is moving firmly into the ESG space. It means that they are looking more at strategies beyond environmental, asset-level solutions and are now taking a much broader view, including
- Portfolio-level strategies
- Green financing
- Expanded focus on social issues, including equity in the built environment
- Decarbonization
- Investor concerns
- Resilience
- Regenerative development
- Science-based targets
2. Culture is the driver of sustainability/ESG
- This applies to program implementation, as a company culture that truly embraces sustainability will be much more successful in integrating something like a recycling program.
- This also extends to the most significant component of an ESG program to drive meaningful change: Governance. Investors will look more heavily at a company’s governance to understand if the structure (‘business culture’) is in place to make improvements. Without strong governance, environmental and social acts come across as random acts of good (while still nice, it does not encourage investors who are looking for more secure vehicles).
3. A lot of excitement, optimism, and renewed motivation is building around the new wave of climate funding provided by the Inflation Reduction Act. This is a unique moment where federal funding/ motivation to act on climate is aligned with private sector green finance .
4. Equity in green building space is maturing to consider issues such as a just transition, serving underserved communities, and incorporating principles of inclusion in design.
- There is opportunity to direct funding toward underserved communities such that funding can synergistically enable economic opportunities for communities that need it most and achieve our GHG reduction goals (I.e., Just Transition).
- There is a new push to involve communities holistically throughout the process, before any design work on the project has occurred so that the community’s input, culture, needs, wants are reflected in the finished project.
- More developments and research are emerging on designing for neurodiversity in the workplace
- New V5 LEED equity language is coming.
5. CRE companies need to get ahead of scope 3 expectations—expectations to report scope 3 are coming so its advantageous to determine where scope 3 emissions need to be measured, monitored, or excluded. There is an impetus for the industry to collaborate and openly share methodologies on how to identify and measure relevant scope 3 emission categories for CRE.
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