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In this experience, you’ll discover how sustainable construction is essential for reducing environmental impact and protecting our planet. You’ll examine traditional construction methods and why the industry is moving away from them, instead opting for more sustainable materials and innovative methods of construction. You’ll also learn about career pathways into sustainable construction, such as an HNC, and how these qualifications lead to various roles in construction. You’ll discover how sustainability is measured through tools like EPC ratings and also consider when not building might be the most sustainable option, such as allowing natural processes to take precedence. You’ll explore the waste hierarchy - reduce, reuse, recycle - as a key principle in minimising environmental impact in construction. In episode three, you’ll analyse three case studies demonstrating different approaches to sustainable construction such as the Vertical Forest in Milan and how it integrates greenery into high-rise living, improving air quality, reducing heat islands, and supporting urban biodiversity.
Deborah BunceUniversity College BirminghamBusiness and management studies
All episodes
1. What is Sustainable Construction
2. What Does Sustainable Construction Look Like?
3. Case Studies
4. Practical Activity
About the university
University College Birmingham
Based in the heart of the UK’s second biggest city, with over 10,000 students from around 90 countries, University College Birmingham is highly respected by employers and industry for providing career-focused education and training. Investing £200 million in its campuses, their degrees are shaped by the needs of industry, while its award-winning support helps students to reach their full potential. University College Birmingham is surrounded by booming businesses, gorgeous green spaces and vibrant nightlife, plus a magnificent mix of cultures right on your doorstep and fantastic connections to the rest of the UK and the world.
Meet the academic
Deborah Bunce
Deborah Bunce is Head of Sustainable Construction at University College Birmingham, responsible for managing courses from Level 1 trade through to Level 7 MSc in Construction Project Management. She has a master’s in civil engineering and has been Chartered with the Institution of Civil Engineers since 1991. For over 20 years she has worked in industry for both contractors and consultants specialising in environmental design with notable projects including the reclamation of Pride Park Derby and remediation of the land for Reading football club. She also spent several years working with the EU providing institutional strengthening support to Eastern European countries including Belarus, Poland, Estonia, Czech and Slovak Republics. Prior to this she worked in a design department working on bridges in steel, concrete and glass-reinforced plastics. Since 2010 Deborah has been teaching initially in the maths department but latterly leading Built Environment teams focussed on developing students to join ICE, CIOB, CIAT, RICS and CIBSE. At University College Birmingham she is leading a sustainable construction department in a recently retrofitted former print works. She is passionate about sustainability and the need to adapt existing infrastructure to reduce its carbon footprint and to meet the needs of a world with a changing climate.
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