Search results

We work to create a healthy, sustainable built environment that promotes well-being for all . More about us here. Opið er fyrir tilnefningar til Grænu skóflunnar 2024! Tilnefnið mannvirki hér. Laust starf hjá Grænni byggð! Við tökum á móti starfsumsóknum í tölvupósti til 31.07.2024. Frekari upplýsingar um starfið hér.

World Building Council The Green Building Council Iceland is a member of the World Green Building Council (WorldGBC) since November 2018. WorldGBC is an umbrella organisation of over 70 Green Building Councils around the world enabling its members to work closely on reducing emissions from the building and construction sector by 2050. If you want to know more about the WorldGBC and its activities, courses, and events, click here . From World Green Building Councils AGM, which GBCI's CEO, Áróra Árnadóttir, and GBCI´s project manager, Katarzyna Jagodzińska, attended. Europe Regional Network WorldGBC network is divided into five regional networks as different regions face different challenges. We are a part of the Europe Regional Network (ERN), gathering not only European Green Building Councils but also key regional partners from the construction and materials sector, and thousands of other members. The ERN's mission is to ensure that sustainability is embedded across the whole sector value chain by leveraging the power and knowledge of our network to transform the European buildings market. To know more about ERN activities, click here . From World Green Building Councils AGM, which GBCI's CEO, Áróra Árnadóttir, and GBCI´s project manager, Katarzyna Jagodzińska, attended.

Past events - Before 2021 The renovation of Swan-certified office building 12/11/2020 On September 18, Reitir received a Swan certification for the renovation of the Environment Agency's (Umhverfisstofnun) office building at Suðurlandsbraut 24. The construction was the first to receive certification according to Swan standards for environmentally certified renovations. During the briefing, the experience and lessons learned from the project were reviewed. The moderator was Þórhildur Fjóla Kristjánsdóttir, manager of Green Building Council Iceland. Slide presentations from the meeting can be found below (in Icelandic ): → Svansvottaðar endurbætur - hver eru viðmiðin fyrir vottun (Guðrún Lilja Kristinsdóttir, Team leader, Umhverfisstofnun); → Lærdómur eiganda hússins (Íris Þórarinsdóttir, Environmental manager, Reitir); → Reynsla framkvæmdaraðila (Þráinn Fannar Gunnarsson, Project manager, THG arkitektar). ​ Office of the Environment Agency - video with the Director General Green operation of apartment buildings at the Living better conference 31/10/2020 Green Building Council Iceland gave a presentation on the Green operation of apartment buildings at the Living better conference on health and environmental issues. Housing associations can have a very positive impact on the environment, whether it is related to maintenance, waste management, common property, transport or gardening. Þórhildur Fjóla and Elísabet Sara tell about the many ways you can go, and some advice is also relevant for those who live in a single-family house, two-family house or three-family house. The lecture was prepared based on the guidelines for Green apartment buildings that GBCI prepared in 2019 (available here - in Icelandic ). The presentation can be watched here: Green bonds and real estate 28/10/2020 Morning session on the value of environmentally certified buildings for investors, was organised in collaboration with IcelandSif. Þórhildur Kristjánsdóttir, CEO of GBCI, opened the meeting and introduced different certifications, e.g. BREEAM, Leed and the Swan. Members from both Regin and Reitum review their experience with such certificates - their advantages, disadvantages and benefits for property owners. Gréta Þórsdóttir Björnsson, architect at the Environment and Planning Department of the City of Reykjavík also gave a talk. Slide presentations (in Icelandic ) can be found below: → Vottanir bygginga (Þórhildur Fjóla Kristjánsdóttir, Green Building Council Iceland); → BREEAM vottun (Baldur Már Helgason og Sunna Hrönn Sigmarsdóttir, Reginn); → Reynsla Reita af Svansvottun endurnýjunar skrifstofuhúsnæðis (Einar Þorsteinsson, Reitir); → Reynsla Reykjavíkurborgar ( Gréta Þórsdóttir Björnsson, Reykjavík City's Department of Environment and Planning). Annual Green Building Council Iceland Meeting 11/09/2020 The GBCI general meeting was held on Friday, September 11 at 12-2 pm in Hannesarholt, Grundarstíg 10. The usual general meeting activities took place. ​ The meeting minutes can be found here. Green Building Day 2020 10/09/2020 The annual Green Building Day was held in Reykjavík City Hall's Tjarnarsal on Thursday, September 10, 2020. As in previous years, interesting talks were given by leading professionals from the fields of design, planning and civil engineering, where sustainability in the built environment will be the guiding principle. Among the speakers is the Norwegian architect Tine Hegli, who can be considered one of the world's leading experts in the field of carbon-neutral design. Facebook event can be found here . ​ Full live video can be found here. Slides and presentation recordings can be found below. The event was held in Icelandic with one presentation in English. Agenda → Welcoming (Moderator, Kristjana Ósk Jónsdóttir, GBCI Board member and marketing director, Reitir) ; ​ → Opening speech (Ásmundur Einar Daðason, Ministry of Housing in Iceland); → Carbon neutral buildings ( in English; video recording is missing ) (Tine Hegli , Architect, Snøhetta and professorr, the Oslo School of Architecture and Design) ; ​ → Grænni byggingar hjá borginni (Dagur B. Eggertsson, the Mayor of Reykjavík); ​ → Reynsla verktaka af BREEAM (Bjarma Magnúsdóttir, Project manager, ÍAV); → Græn skuldabréf og fasteignir (Hrefna Ösp Sigfinnssdóttir, Managing Director, Landsbankinn); → Umhverfisstefna BYKO (Sigurður Brynjar Pálsson, CEO, BYKO); → Aðlögun að loftslagsbreytingum með grænum lausnum (Halldóra Hreggviðsdóttir, General manager and founder, Alta); → Kolefnisspor viðmiðunarhúss á Íslandi (Ólafur H. Wallevik, Professor, Háskólinn í Reykjavík and Director of the Construction Industry Laboratory, NMÍ); → Vistvænn vegvísir fyrir byggingariðnaðinn (Þóra Margrét Þorgeirsdóttir, Specialist, Húsnæðis- og mannvirkjastofnun); → Vistvottun skipulags (Íris Þórarinsdóttir, Environmental manager, Reitir); → Loftslagsáskorun arkitekta (Björn Guðbrandsson, Architect, ARKÍS); → Grænni byggð og loftslagmálin (Ragnar Ómarsson, Construction engineer, Verkís and chairman of the GBCI Board); Nordic Climate Forum for Construction 27/08/2020 Nordic Climate Forum for Construction was held online on August 27, 2020 from 8:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Icelandic time. It was organised by Trafik-, Bygge and Boligstyrelsen in Denmark in collaboration with other housing and infrastructure organizations in the Nordic countries, The Swedish Life Cycle Center in Sweden and the Nordic Council of Ministers. Húsnæðis- og mannvirkjastofnun (HMS) is the Icelandic partner in this Nordic collaboration. Its purpose was to have a conversation about how the Nordic countries can better control the environmental impact of the construction industry and reduce emissions from construction. The detailed agenda can be found here . The presentation recordings are available here . Rafhjólavæðingin - Hádegisfundur 25/08/2020 Græna Orkan, GBCI, and Hjólafærni hosted a lunch meeting on the electric bike market in Iceland at Green Energy (Orkustofnun). The event was held in Icelandic. Moderator : Anna Margrét Kornélíusdóttir, Project manager, Græna Orkan. Agenda: → Reynslan hjá Reykjavíkurborg (Kristinn Eysteinsson, Project manager, Reykjavíkurborg); → Rafhjólareynslan hjá Norðurorku (Erla Björg Guðmundsdóttir, HR manager, Norðurorku); → Örflæði: Lítill mótor fyrir stuttar ferðir (Jökull Sólberg Auðunsson); → Aðstaða við verslunar- og þjónustukjarna (Baldur Már Helgason, Managing director, Reginn); → Rafhjól: Þjónn á þeytingi (Sesselja Traustadóttir, Hjólafærni). ​ Upptökur frá viðburðinum : Morning talk: Travel habits in urban environment after Covid 19 23/06/2020 The event was held in Icelandic. Agenda: → Skipulagsmál, loftslagsmál og endurskoðun langtímamarkmiða eftir Covid19 (Hrafnhildur Bragadóttir, Skipulagsstofnun); → Hvað segja tölurnar um ferðavenjur á höfuðborgarsvæðinu (Daði Baldur Ottósson, EFLA); → Græni stígurinn í Græna treflinum (Þráinn Hauksson, Landslag); → Sveigjanlegri ferðavenjur og grænir innviðir (Ólöf Kristjánsdóttir, Mannvit); → Kófið, lýðheilsan og skipulagsmálin (Matthildur. Kr. Elmarsdóttir, Alta). Leap towards sustainability after Covid19 15/05/2020 GBCI had a tpresentation on Green infrastructure (Grænir innviðir) at the climate strike's lunch meeting on Leap towards sustainability after Covid19. ​ The presentation can be found here (in Icelandic ). 07/05/2020 BREEAM - Annexe Green Building Council Iceland presented a summary of the results of research projects on the BREEAM certification system and ideas from the BREEAM - IS annexe. BREEAM in the UK has approved this work and will review the GBCI 2020 proposals. Sustainability in the construction industry - Course 29/04/2020 The course was held in Icelandic by IĐAN in cooperation with Green Building Council Iceland. There are four lectures which were: → Sjálfbærni í mannvirkjagerð - almenn yfirferð ( Ragnar Ómarsson); → Stig - Ný sjálfbærni viðmið Evrópusambandins (Levels) (Ragnar Ómarsson); → Bundið - kolefni (Embodied carbon) (Ragnar Ómarsson); → Hringrásarhagkerfið í byggingariðnaði - áskoranir og möguleikar (Þórhildur Fjóla Kristjánsdóttir). The 10th anniversary of Green Building Council Iceland! 24/02/2020 Presentations (event held in Icelandic ): → Niðurstöður rannsóknarverkefna Þórhildur Fjóla Kristjánsdóttir); → Myndir frá starfinu við ávarp frá Hlökk Theodórsdóttur → Loftlsagsmál og byggingar (Harpa Birgisdóttir). Morning meeting: Icelandic glulam, wooden buildings and furniture 05/12/2019 The morning meeting was organised in Hafnarborg (Strandgatu 34, Hafnarfjörður). The moderator was Ragnar Ómarsson, chairman of Green Building Council Iceland and construction engineer at Verkís. The event was held in Icelandic. The Facebook event can be found here. Agenda: → Umhverfisáherslur fyrir byggingar í Hafnarfirði (Sigurður Haraldsson, Chairman of Hafnarfjörður Environment and Planning Department); → Framleiðsla á límtré úr íslensku timbri - niðurstöður rannsókna (Logi Unnarson Jónsson, Construction engineer, LímtréVírnet); → Hönnun timburbygginga á Íslandi (Sigurður Einarsson, Architect, Batteríið arkitektar); → Timburbyggingar (Svava Björk Hjaltalín Jónsdóttir, Architect) → Að hanna húsgögn úr íslensku timbri (Björn Steinar Blumenstein, Designer) → Staða nytjaskóga á Íslandi (Hlynur Gauti Sigurðsson, CEO, Landsambands skógareigenda). Conference - Indoor air quality, energy efficiency and environmental certification 14/11/2019 GBCI's autumn conference on indoor air quality, energy efficiency and eco-certification (in Icelandic) . See event on Facebook here . Agenda: → Af hverjum erum við hér í dag? Áskoranir varðandi loftræstingu og orkunýtni (Björn Marteinsson, Associate professor, Háskóli Íslands); → Orkuhermun og Raunnotkun – Er gott samhengi þar á milli? (Sveinn Áki, Engineer, VSB Verkfræðistofa); → Loftræstilausnir í BREEAM verkefnum (Brynjar Örn Árnason, Engineer; EFLA); → Loftræsting og loftgæði í skólum: Svansvottaðurskóli á Íslandi (Alma Dagbjört Ívarsdóttir, Engineer, Mannvit); → Áherslur Betri Bygginga (Ólafur H. Wallevik, Director of the Construction Industry Laboratory, NMÍ); → SIMIEN Orkuútreikningar fyrir BREEAM verkefni (Bjartur Guangze Hu, Engineer, VSÓ Ráðgjöf); → Betri byggingar (Sylgja Dögg Sigurjónsdóttir, Construction engineer, EFLA); → Rekstur loftræstikerfa og orkunýtni á Íslandi (Karl H. Karlsson, Blikksmiðjan and HR). Workshop on BREEAM 31/10/2019 Workshop on BREEAM in the context of Icelandic conditions. How is adaptation to local conditions generally managed? What is the experience with BREEAM in Iceland and how can the requirements of BREEAM be adapted to Icelandic conditions? Experts shared their experience with BREEAM and how its requirements can be met, taking into account Icelandic conditions. This was a closed workshop among members of the Green Building Council Iceland. Educational session on BREEAM 31/10/2019 GBCI organised a meeting with BREEAM expert Glen Watts in the Verkís office. The discussion included trends and trends in new construction and in-use versions of BREEAM environmental certification and how BREEAM adapts to Icelandic conditions. BREEAM is one of the world's best-known and most widely used environmental certification systems. The system covers many factors related to the impact of a building on the environment, but the number of Icelandic buildings with BREEAM certification is increasing rapidly every year. ​ See the Facebook event here . What to do with the methane? 23/10/2019 Græna orkan, Green Building Council Iceland and Orkustofnun organised a lunch event entitled "What to do with the methane?" Wednesday, October 23. Ways to increase the utilization of methane in this country, and its role in the energy exchange, were discussed, especially in light of the planned increase in its production. Also, Sorpa's gas and composting plant was introduced. The chairperson was Fundarstjóri var Þórhildur Fjóla Kristjánsdóttir, CEO of GBCI. The event was held in Icelandic. The prelegents were as follows: → Björn Halldórsson, Managing director, Sorpa; → María Jóna Magnúsdóttir, Executive director, Bílgreinasambandsins; → Hafsteinn Helgason, Head of development, EFLA; → Auður Nanna Baldvinsdóttir, Business development manager, Landsvirkjun and the chairman of the GBCI Board; → Guðmundur B. Friðriksson, Office manager, Office of Environmental Quality at the City of Reykjavík. Morning talk on the school grounds design for ecological transport 18/10/2019 Agenda (presentations in Icelandic ): → Ólöf Kristjánsdóttir - the transportation specialist at Mannvit Verkfræðistofa presented a presentation based on data from and work with Reykjavík City's Cycling Plan. → Herborg Árnadóttir from Alta ráðgjöf delivered a talk based on his project on active transport from the point of view of the movement and how to design an urban environment that encourages it. → Hermann Georg Gunnlaugsson from Teiknistofunni Storð gave a talk titled "The school site from the children's point of view - School site design and sustainable transport ". Hermann recently defended his Master's thesis in planning studies on the environment of preschools and the effects of built density on preschool sites. → Dagur Bollason from GBCI discussed what the involvement of administrative and planning authorities can be to better foster sustainable transport at all school levels. Morning talk on Swan certification 31/05/2019 Agenda (presentations in Icelandic ): → Guðrún Lilja Kristinsdóttir from the Environment Agency of Iceland (Umhverfisstofnun) discussed the Swan certification for Icelandic buildings in general. Umhverfisstofnun is working on Swan certification for the renovation of its office building owned by Reitir. → Finnur Sveinsson reviewed the experience of using the Swan certification both in his own single-family house and also the experience with the IKEA block that recently received Swan certification. → Björn Marteinsson from the University of Iceland (Háskóla Íslands) reviewed the energy solution that was chosen for Finnur and Þórdís' house (above). → Rakel Sif S. Thorarensen newly graduated construction technician, delivered a talk on construction waste in the context of a Swan-certified building. Morning talk on Oakland EcoBlock 30/04/2019 Gregory Thompson is an architect and analyst at the California Institute for Energy and Environment, a subsidiary of UC Berkeley. He discussed the Oakland EcoBlock project, where the goal is to implement a holistic solution to dramatically improve the ecological footprint of the already built environment. The moderator was Halldór Eiríksson from T.ark architects. The meeting was held in English. ​ Gregory's lecture is avialable here . Green Building Day 2019 11/04/2019 ​A conference on sustainability in the construction industry and planning was held in HT103 in Háskólatorgi. The conference was well attended and many informative talks were given. It was held in Icelandic with two presentations in English. ​ See the Facebook event here . ​ Presentations: → The Property Sectors Roadmap towards 2050 (in English ) (Katharina Bramslev, CEO, Norwegian Green Building Council); → Hugmyndir Byggingarfélags um bíllausan lífstíl (Magnús Jensen, Architect, Miðgarðs byggingarfélags); → European trends in Green Buildings (in English ) (James Drinkwater, CEO, European Green Building Councils); → Sjálfsþurft (Margrét Harðardóttir, Architect, Studio Granda); → Sjálf / bær (Anna María Bogadóttir, Architect); → Í eina átt (Ólöf Örvarsdóttir, Director of the Environment and Planning Department of the City of Reykjavík); → Grænar lausnir fyrir byggingar (Helga Jóhanna Bjarnadóttir, Engineer and director of the environmental department, EFLA); → Af hverju Vistvottun? (Jón Pálmi Guðmundsson, CEO, Urriðaholt); → Hvernig er að búa í vistvottuðu húsi? (Finnur Sveinssson, Environmentalist and project manager of the first swan-certified building in Iceland); → Ný rannsóknarverkefni um sjálfbærar byggingar ​(Ólafur H. Wallevik, Director of the Construction Industry Laboratory, NMÍ). Morning talk on the experience with the BREEAM eco-certification system 21/03/2019 Agenda (in Icelandic ): → Egill Guðmundsson , architect at ARKÍS discussed their experiences as ARKÍS took part in several projects including the BREEAM certification system. → Olga Árnadóttir , architect and project manager for environmental affairs at Framkvæmdasýslan, discussed the results of her Master's project: The environmental certification system BREEAM - Analysis of the adaptability of the assessment system to Icelandic conditions. → Karl Magnús Karlsson and Ólafur Axelsson from VA arkitektar discussed Hönnun á Sundhöllinni (the Design of the Sundhöllinn), which has recently received BREEAM design certification. → Elín Vignisdóttir , a geographer at Verkís discussed Consultants' experience in BREEAM projects. Morning talk about ALDIN Biodome, growing herbs and green walls 07/03/2019 Agedna (event held in Icelandic ): → Ræktun Kryddjurta (Auður Rafnsdóttir, Author of a book: Kryddjurtaræktun fyrir byrjendur); → Gróðurveggir, gerðir, upsetning og umhirða (Magnús Bjarklind, Horticulturist, EFLA); → Aldin Biodome verkefnið (Hjördís Sigurðardóttir, Organisational analyst). Morning talk on architecture, people's well-being and social sustainability 31/01/2019 Presenters: → Hildigunnur Sverrisdóttir; → Hildur Gunnarsdóttir ; → Áslaug Traustadóttir. Morning talk about the design of intersections for diverse modes of travel 06/12/2018 Agenda (presentations in Icelandic ): → Skipulagsmál og ferðavenjur (Sóley Ósk Sigurgeirsdóttir, Skipulagsstofnun); → Borgin, áskoranir og framtíðarsýn varðandi fjölbreyttar samgöngur ( Edda Ívarsdóttir, Reykjavíkurborg); → Hönnunarleiðbeiningar ( Bryndís Friðriksdóttir, EFLA); → Hönnun gatnamóta með áherslu á almenningssamgöngur ( Lilja Guðríður Karlsdóttir, Viaplan); → Hönnun gatnamóta með tilliti til hjólreiða ( Hörður Bjarnason, Mannvit); → Hönnun gatnamóta við þjóðvegi ( Erna B. Hreinsdóttir, Vegagerðin). Morning talk about criteria for ecological construction 22/11/2018 Here you can find the lectures from the morning talk about the criteria for ecological construction. We had lectures on: → Rýmisnýtingu og sveigjanleika - Anna Sigríður Jóhannsdóttir, VA arkitektar; → Efnisnotkun og úrgang - Gyða Mjöll Ingólfsdóttir, EFLA and Elín Vignisdóttir, Verkís; → Innivist - Sandra Rán Ásgrímsdóttir, Mannvit; → Lóðamál og vistvænar samgöngur - Ólöf Kristjánsdóttir, Mannvit; → Orkumál og stýringu - Þórhildur Fjóla Kristjansdóttir, Green Building Council Iceland. Conference on construction waste 08/11/2018 The conference on construction waste was a collaborative project between FENÚR, GBCI, and Samtaka iðnaðarins. The meeting was moderated by Bryndís Skúladóttir, a consultant at VSÓ ráðgjöf. The event was held in Icelandic. ​ Presentations: → Source separation and organization og the work on construction site (Eirik Wærner, Consultant, Multiconsult, Osló); → Niðurrif og nýbyggingar – staðan og áskoranir hjá Reykjavíkurborg (Rúnar Gunnarsson, Department head of Primary design, Reykjavíkurborg); → Getur BIM minnkað byggingarúrgang? (Ingibjörg Birna Kjartansdóttir, BIM development menager, ÍSTAK); → BREEAM verkefni hjá Framkvæmdasýslu ríkisins ( Olga Árnadóttir, Project manager for environmental affairs, Framkvæmdasýslu ríkisins); → Reynsla verktaka: Eyjólfur Bjarnason , Quality manager, Framkvæmdafélaginu Arnarhvoli; Örn Tryggvi Johnsen , Project and operations manager, ÞG Verk; → Endurvinnslufarvegur byggingarúrgangs ( Arngrímur Sverrisson, Operations manager, Gámaþjónustunni hf.); → Dæmi um endurvinnslu/endurnýtingu ( Harpa Þrastardóttir, Environment and quality Manager, Hlaðbæ Colas); → Reynsla úr norskum verkefnum ( Haukur Þór Haraldsson, Consultant, Verkís); → Efnismiðlun Sorpu (Guðmundur Tryggvi Ólafsson , Operations manager of recycling centers, Sorpa); → Leiðbeiningar um byggingarúrgang (J ón Guðmundsson, Professional director of the construction department, Mannvirkjastofnun). Business Environment Day 17/10/2018 The GBCI' CEO, Þórhildur Fjóla Kristjánsdóttir gave a lecture on Eco-friendly structures on Business Environment Day. Morning talk about ecosystem analysis and sustainability in the Greenlandic construction industry 17/08/2018 Agenda (event held in Icelandic ): → Vistferilsgreiningar í byggingariðnaði by Gyða Mjöll Ingólfsdóttur, Environmental engineer at EFLA. → ​Sjálfbærni áherslur í Grænlenskum Byggingariðnaði by Ragnar Ómarsson, Construction engineer at Verkís. Morning talk about transport agreements 01/03/2018 Do transport agreements work? From the morning talk of GBCI on March 1st about transport agreements (in Icelandic ): → Reynsla Orkuveitu Reykjavíkur by Hólmfríður Sigurðardóttir, Environmental manager at Orkuveita Reykjavíkur; ​→ Reynslan hjá Landspítalanum by Hulda Steingrímsdóttir; → Reynsla Reykjavíkurborgar by Lóu Birna Birgisdóttir; → Reynsla Verkís by Elín Vignisdóttir. Morning talk on Græna Stíginn í Græna Treflinum 31/01/2018 Presenters: → Brynjólfur Jónsson, manager of the Forestry Association of Iceland (Skógræktarfélags Íslands); → Þráinn Hauksson, landscape architect at Landslag.

Past events - 2021 Nordic GBC Webinar #3: Renovation of buildings and the Circular Economy 30/09/2021 The webinar was organised by Green Building Council Denmark within the Nordic Green Building Councils Network initiative. Arnhildur Pálmadóttir (architect at sap architects) and Sigríður Ósk Bjarnadóttir (the board member of Green Building Council Iceland and Docent at the University of Iceland) represented Green Building Council Iceland. Among other things, they presented a new BM Vallá's project on circular concrete. Slides from the event (in English) are available here: ​→ Introduction to circular economy (Lau Raffnsøe, Technical director, Green Building Council Denmark) ; ​→ Sweden: Recycle and reuse an entire building (Magnus Tengberg, Head of real estate, Gothenburg Region, Vasakronan) ; → Norway: First circular building (Trond Simonsen, Manager sustainability, Entra ASA) ; → Finland: Circular approaches to planning in Hartaanselänranta, Oulu (Tuuli Kassi, Circular economy specialist/Architect, Ethica Finland) ; → Iceland: Circular concrete (Arnhildur Pálmadóttir, Architect, sap architects & Sigríður Ósk Bjarnadóttir, Docent, the University of Iceland) ; → Denmark: Construction waste reused as resources in new constructions in the initiative City Loop (Klaus Kellermann, Sustainability architect, Roskilde Municipality). Nordc GBC Webinar #3 Nordic Climate Forum for Construction 2021 27/09/2021 The conference Nordic Climate Forum for Construction 2021 was held on September 27, 2021, at 8-13. The event took place in English. Further information can be found here . Agenda: ​→ Moderator's welcome (Sigríður Ósk Bjarnadóttir, Board member of Green Bulding Council Iceland); ​→ Opening words (Ásmundur Einar Daðason, Minister of Social Affairs in Iceland); → On time and water (Andri Snær Magnason, Writer); → Oslo: How to reduce GHG emissions by 95% by 2030? (Heidi Sørensen, Director of Oslo’s Climate Agency); → European Commission: Construction products regulation and Environmental product declarations (Tapani Mikkeli, Head of Sector, Sustainable Construction, European Commission, DG GROW); → Status and current issues from academia (Jukka Heinonen, Professor, University of Iceland and Aalto University in Finland); → Status and current issues from authority (Kristina Einarsson, Boverket, Sweden & Luzie Rück, Bolig- og Planstyrelsen, Denmark); → Status and current issues from industry (Björt Ólafsdóttir, Real Estate Developer, Iða and former Minister of the Environment in Iceland) ; → Implementation of limit values in the Netherlands (Jos Verlinden, Senior Advisor, Ministry of Interior and Kingdom Relations in the Netherlands) ; → Limit values in the Nordic countries (Matti Kuittinen, Senior advisor, Ministry of the Environment in Finland) ; ​ → Roundtable discussion: Limit values and Nordic harmonisation 20-24/09/2021 World Green Building Week 2021 In September every year, the so-called "Green building week" is organized by the World Green Building Council. This year, the main topic is "Building resilience", which deals with how to build resilience in the built environment. More information about the event can be found here . Green Building Day 2021 02/09/2021 The annual Green Building Day was held in IÐNÓ this year on Thursday, 2nd September. The talks were given by leading professionals in design, planning and civil engineering, where sustainability in the built environment will be the guiding principle. The event was held in Icelandic but two presentations was given in English. Unfortunately, the recording of the meeting was lost and streaming is not available this year. ​Facebook event can be found here . ​ Agenda: Moderator : Elín Hirst Opening speech : Katrín Jakobsdóttir, Prime Minister of Iceland ​→ Catastrophic warming as an icentive for change (in English) (Jukka Heinonen, Professor, Department of Environmental and Civil Engineering, the University of Iceland); ​ Jukka Heinonen's presentation: ​ ​→ Græn framtíðí í Hafnarfirði (Rósa Guðbjartsdóttir, Mayor of Hafnarfjörður); ​→ Tækifæri og áskoranir við það að fjármagna grænni byggð (Kristrún Tinna Gunnarsdóttir, Head of Strategy & Sustainability, Íslandsbanki); ​→ Grænþvotturinn leysir ekki loftslagsmálin (Þorsteinn Víglundsson, CEO, Hornstein ehf); ​→ Kynning á fagviðurkenningunni Græna skóflan (Ragnar Ómarsson, Chairman of the Green Building Council Iceland board); ​→ The change that has taken place in the Norwegian construction industry in terms of sustainability, and the drivers behind this change (á ensku) (Marit Kindem Thyholt, Chief adviser on climate and environment, Skanska); ​ Marit Kindem Thyholt's presentation: ​→ Grænir hvatar í tengslum við uppbyggingu og rekstur fasteigna með fókus á atvinnuhúsnæði (Friðjón Sigurðarsson, Executive director, Reitir); ​→ I nnri og ytri hvatar í umhverfismálum (Hrólfur Karl Cela, Architect, Basalt); ​→ Byggjum grænni framtíð, samstarfsverkefni stjórnvalda og hagaðila byggingariðnaðarins um vistvænni mannvirkjagerð (Þóra Margrét Þorgeirsdóttir, Specialist, Húsnæðis- og mannvirkjastofnun). 03/06/2021 Morning meeting - Energy transition at the construction site On June 3, Grænni organized an exciting seminar in collaboration with Landsvirkjun, Húsnæðis- og mannvirkjastofnun, and Green Energy. The topic of the seminar was energy transition at the construction site. The live video can be found here (in Icelandic ). Nordic GBC Webinar #2: How can we half emissions from construction in two? 27/05/2021 The webinar was organized by the Norwegian Green Building Council with the Nordic GBC Network initiative. Recordings of the presentations are available here: → Our sector as a solution to the Paris Agreement ( Katharina Th. Bramslev, CEO, Norwegian Green Building Council ) → Marked initiatives and common practice in our countries ( CEOs from the GBCs in Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland ) → Concrete goes low carbon in Denmark ( Jan Søndergaard Hansen, Managing director, Unicon A/S ) → Nordic collaboration for low carbon construction ( Matti Kuittinen, Senior advisor, Ministry of the Environment in Finland ) → Low carbon dwellings in Iceland ( Benedikt Ingi Tómasson, General manager, Vistbyggð ) → Lidl Visby and Noll CO2- why and how? ( Mattias Tas, Sustainability manager, Lidl ) Annual Green Building Council Iceland Meeting 21/04/2021 The meeting agenda depends on the general meeting duties according to the GBCI's bylaws and was as follows: 1. The board's report on the GBCI's work in the past year. 2. The board's work plan for the next working year. 3. The board's budget for the following operating year. 4. Invoice submission. 5. Proposals and changes to the GBCI's bylaws. 6. Election of the board of directors. 7. Inspectors' remuneration (cf. Article 9) 8. Other matters. ​ Minutes of the general meeting can be found here (in Icelandic) . Nordc GBC Webinar #2 Strategy meeting with GBCI' partners 17/03/2021 Lectures on sustainability in the construction industry 10/2020-02/2021 IĐAN educational centre and Green Building Council Iceland organised a series of lectures on the sustainability of the construction industry: 1. BYKO's sustainability and environmental strategy. 2. Purchase of building materials and Iceland's first Swan-certified residential building. 3. Swan-certified Kársnes School and Húsasmiðinn's environmental policy. 4. Socially certified Selfoss and vision of sustainability. 5. Innivist and the "unsustainable generation". 6. Garbage as a resource and reuse of structures. See all the lectures that have been given and recordings from them (in Icelandic ) on the IDUNNAR website here.

Green Building Council Iceland The Green Building Council Iceland (GBCI) is a non-governmental organisation (NGO) established in 2010 to encourage sustainable construction by inspiring and empowering people to work for the common goal of creating a healthy, sustainable built environment that promotes well-being for all. We realise our mission on multiple fronts by: - promoting environmental awareness and green action planning for the building and infrastructure sector; - lobbying authorities to pass legislation that will direct the market in a more sustainable direction; - educating, connecting, and motivating stakeholders involved in the urban planning and building sector. As one of over 70 members of the World Green Building Council, we share the goal of catalysing the uptake of sustainable built environments with the Green Building Councils' network. The main areas of our focus are: - decarbonisation of the built environment; - supporting resources regeneration by promoting circular economy principles in the construction sector; - encouraging a built environment that delivers healthy, resilient, and sustainable constructions. Currently, our organisation has arouhnd 60 members working towards their goal of making the building sector an active player in creating a more sustainable future and a healthier society. Our members Summary of our activities in three main areas: INFORMING → We produce and publish diverse educational materials. → We participate in various research and development projects. → We organise and participate in educational events, panel discussions, and public meetings on sustainable construction. ENCOURAGING → We encourage market players to contribute and show social responsibility in action. → We encourage the public sector to reward projects that meet certain environmental requirements with economic incentives. → We promote the circular economy to be used as a guiding principle in the design, construction, and operation of buildings. CONNECTING → We bring together people from all over the community with the goal of sustainability in the local environment. → We actively cooperate with our sister organisations, especially in the Nordic countries, through projects and events.

Documentation The bylaws of Green Building Council Iceland can be found here. Annual and financial reports, work plans (in Icelandic) 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 Annual report Annual report Annual report Annual report Annual report Annual report Annual report ​Annual report Annual report Annual report Annual report Annual report Financial report Financial report Financial report Financial report Financial report Financial report​ Financial report ​Financial report Financial report Financial report Financial report Financial report Annual meeting Annual meeting Annual meeting Annual meeting Annual meeting Annual meeting Annual meeting Annual meeting Annual meeting ​Annual meeting ​Annual meeting Annual meeting Founding meeting Work plan Work plan ​ ​ Board meeting minutes (in Icelandic) 2022 01/2022 02/2022 03/2022 04/2022 - 01 | 04/2022 - 02 05/2022 - 01 | 05/2022 - 02 06/2022 09/2022 10/2022 11/2022 2023 01/2023 02/2023 03/2023 04/2023 05/2023 - 01 | 05/2023 - 02 08/2023 09/2023 10/2023 12/2023 2024 01/2024 02/2024 03/2024 04/2024 05/2024 12/2022 2018 08/2018 09/2018 -01 | 09/2018 - 02 10/2018 11/2018 12/2018 2019 01/2019 02/2019 03/2019 05/2019 2020 01/2020 02/2020 03/2020 04/2020 05/2020 06/2020 08/2020 10/2020 11/2020 2021 01/2021 02/2021 03/2021 04/2021 05/2021 06/2021 - 01 | 06/2021 - 02 08/2021 10/2021 11/2021 12/2021 Other documents → Review of the updated action plan of the City of Reykjavík regarding climate matters (28/01/2021). Document in Icelandic. ​ → Review of the updated climate action plan (01/10/2020). Document in Icelandic. ​ → Comment on the climate-related action plan (01/10/2020). Document in Icelandic. ​ → Comments to the housing matters group on social sustainability and environmental priorities (10/01/2019). Document in Icelandic. ​ → Comment on a meeting with Minister of Transport and Local Government Sigurður Inga Jóhannsson (11/2018). Document in Icelandic. ​ → Comment on incentives to increase the number of green buildings. Document in Icelandic. ​ → Icelandic summary of the World GBC Report on Bringing Embodied Carbon Upfront (2020). Document in Icelandic. ​ ​ → The draft target plan of the Board . Document in Icelandic.

The Green Shovel Award Tilnefnið hér til Grænu skóflunnar 2024! The Green Shovel Award was awarded for the first time on Green Building Day 2022. It is a recognition of a structure that has been built with an excellent ecological and sustainable focus. The award has its roots in action 6.9. in the Roadmap to Green Building Construction 2030 (6.9. í Vegvísi að vistvænni mannvirkjagerð 2030 - in Icelandic): About the Award Last winter, a competition took place among the students of the Iceland University of the Arts (Listaháskóli Íslands) to design the prize. Hekla Dís Pálsdóttir won that competition, and the prize was based on her design. In 2022, the prize was made of Icelandic graystone. Arngrímur Guðmundsson was in charge of preparing working drawings, Steinsmiðjan was in charge of cutting the graystone, and Stálnaust did the water-cutting. 2023 Opið var fyrir tilnefningar mannvirkja til Grænu Skóflunnar frá því í lok apríl til 15. ágúst. Mörg framúrskarandi verkefni voru tilnefnd í ár, og voru mannvirkin fjölbreytt, allt frá stórum stofnunum til tilraunakenndra smáhýsa. Dómnefnd var skipuð stjórn Grænni byggðar, og voru verðlaunin veitt á Degi Grænni byggðar í lok september. ​ Í niðurstöðu dómnefndar segir um mannvirkið: Þessi bygging bar af. Allt frá upphafi markaðist hönnun mannvirkisins af sjálfbærni, hvort sem litið er til framkvæmda- eða rekstrartíma. Áhersla var lögð á efnisval, innivist, orkumál og góða umhverfisstjórnun. Lífsferilsgreiningar og líftímakostnaðargreiningar voru notaðar við ákvarðanatöku í hönnun. Dagsbirtugreiningar voru framkvæmdar ásamt hljóðvistagreiningum. Sem dæmi má nefna að hljóðverkfræðingur skoðaði sérstaklega kröfur um hljóðvist fyrir notendur með sérstakar heyrnar- og samskiptaþarfir. Segja má að einstakur metnaður hafi verið lagður í að tryggja vellíðan vistmanna samhliða því að draga úr neikvæðum umhverfisáhrifum byggingarinnar. Það var mikill samrómur innan dómnefndar og ég held að við séum sammála um að hér sé á ferðinni verkefni sem sýnir: • Framúrskarandi hönnun • Fer lengra en að uppfylla bara skilyrði • Setur ný viðmið fyrir aðbúnað hjúkrunarheimila með vistvænum áherslum • Tryggir samfélagslega sjálfbærni ​ Mannvirkið se m hlaut Grænu skófluna árið 2023 er Móberg - hjúkrunarheimili í Árborg. Móberg er í eigu Sveitarfélagsins Árborg og Heilbrigðisráðu neytisins, og er rekið af HSU. ​ Að hönnun og framkvæmd stóðu eftirtaldir aðilar: ​ → Umsjón hönnunar og framkvæmda: FSRE → Arkitektar: Urban arkitektar ehf. og Loop Architects (DK) → Verkfræðihönnun: Verkfræðistofa Reykjavíkur ehf. → Rafkerfahönnun: Liska ehf. → Ljósvistarhönnun: Liska ehf. → Brunahönnun: Mannvit hf. → Landslag: Hornsteinar arkitektar ehf. → Hljóðhönnun: Brekke Strand (NO) → BREEAM: EFLA hf. → Algild hönnun og ráðgjöf: Harpa Cilia Ingólfsdóttir → Aðalverktaki: Eykt ehf. Hönnunargögn og lýsing 2022 Early this summer, the nominations for the award were opened. Numerous nominations were received from various sources across the country, and the nominations spanned a very wide range of civil engineering, from smaller bridge projects, single-family houses and extensions, to large-scale service facilities and apartment buildings. After a review by a jury, which, this time, was made up of the board of Green Building Council Iceland, one structure was chosen to receive the prize. The jury felt this project stood out quite a bit in many areas. What the jury's verdict said about the structure: During the preparation of the structure, care has been taken in setting goals for the project, both in terms of the social activities that the structure accommodates and the specifications that should be included in its design. When solving the design, a life cycle analysis (LCA) was used for the structure as a whole, which supports the credibility that the building is environmentally friendly and prevents greenwashing. A comparison of the environmental impact of building materials was also made, and the designers' choice of materials was based on its results, which shapes the building's overall and natural appearance. The construction instructions and the project's goals were reflected in the contractor's work and the owner's follow-up with BREEAM certification of design and construction will confirm how the project's sustainability goals will be achieved. The project was a renovation of an older building, where every effort was made to make the best use of the existing concrete structure. This ensured that the construction process was easier than otherwise and prevented the unnecessary production and transportation of new building materials. As such, the building is a worthy model for future reconstructions of older structures. The structure that received the Green Shovel in 2022 is the Brákarborg preschool in Reykjavík at Kleppsvegi 150-152. Brákarborg is owned by the City of Reykjavík . ​ The following parties were responsible for the design and implementation: → Arkís arkitektar ehf. ; → Efla hf. supervised the life cycle analyses (LCA); → Arkamon ehf. was in charge of structural design; → Teknik verkfræðistofa ehf. designed the piping; → Liska ehf. designed the electrical system and lighting; → Kanon arkitektar ehf. were in charge of landscape design; → fire design was in the hand of Mannvit hf. ; → the contractor was Þarfaþing hf. ; → BREEAM certification was under the supervision of Verkís hf. Design data and description

Newsletter 16.06.2023 Helsinki Central Library Oodi The CIRCON compendium includes over 25 case descriptions representing circular construction aspects in practice. One is the Helsinki Central Library Oodi, an example of the design-for-adaptability principle combined with high sharing potential. The building’s structure has a form of an asymmetrical bridge consisting of steel trusses and beams supported by two massive steel arches. This solution resulted in a column-free interior space with high spatial flexibility and adaptability. As a result, the space has a unique, inclusive vibe attracting hundreds of visitors every day. Currently, it is used as, among others, a library, a conference and exhibition venue, a co-working space, a photo and recording studio, an office space, or a café and restaurant. More information about the building can be found here . The CIRCON project benefits from a € 361,422 grant from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA Grants and co-funding by the national funding of Poland. Co-funding from the Polish state amounts to € 54,213. 23.05.2023 Lecture on the circular economy in the construction sector We had the pleasure of giving a lecture to the students from Aalto University in Finland on circular construction. Besides discussing the general overview of the aspects of circular economy in the construction sector (e.g., design-for-adaptability or design-for-disassembly), we also tried to debunk some myths about circular construction – is it always more expensive than conventional construction or are all aspects of the circular economy always related to lower carbon footprint? We’ll discuss these issues further also in our meetings organised in the future. The CIRCON project benefits from a € 361,422 grant from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA Grants and co-funding by the national funding of Poland. Co-funding from the Polish state amounts to € 54,213. 10-11.05.2023 Partners' meeting in Poland Last year, in August, our Polish partners in the CIRCON project visited us in Iceland. Now it was our turn, and we went to Poland for our partners’ meeting last week. As we’re in the second part of the project already, we not only discussed our further steps but also celebrated our progress so far. We also had an opportunity to take a closer look at many old industrial buildings preserved as a part of the cultural heritage of the Silesian region in Poland. In the photo, you have an example of a multi-family house initially designed for industrial workers, typical for the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century in the industrial towns of Silesia. The CIRCON project benefits from a € 361,422 grant from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA Grants and co-funding by the national funding of Poland. Co-funding from the Polish state amounts to € 54,213. 28.04.2023 Second work package is completed By the end of April, the second work package in the CIRCON project will be completed. Recently, we had two working group meetings at which we predominantly discussed barriers (with their possible solutions) in implementing circular construction in Iceland. The outcome of these discussions will be published in the upcoming months. But maybe you have some ideas on how to facilitate circular construction and want to share them? The CIRCON project benefits from a € 361,422 grant from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA Grants and co-funding by the national funding of Poland. Co-funding from the Polish state amounts to € 54,213. 27.04.2023 Green Leap in Iceland’s construction sector Around 300 people took part in the Grænt stökk í mannvirkjagerð (Green Leap in Iceland’s construction sector) event discussing the transition to more sustainable and circular construction. The main message that can be taken from all of the speeches is: we can do it, but we have to work together to make the transition happen . The key lecture was given by Anders Lendager, the CEO at Lendager , who proved that circular construction is possible and dispelled the myth that circular building is always much more expensive than conventional one. His partner in Iceland, Arnhildur Palmadottir , showed her projects proving that circular construction is possible also in Iceland by playing with locally available materials. In the same subject, we presented a brief overview of new challenges and changes in the roles of stakeholders when switching to more circular construction, one of the outcomes of the CIRCON project. We also discussed other ongoing and recently completed projects, with an emphasis on those related to the Byggjum grænni framtíð - Roadmap towards sustainable construction . The recording of the meeting can be found here . The event was organised by Húsnæðis- og mannvirkjastofnun with Samtök iðnaðarins and Green Building Council Iceland. The CIRCON project benefits from a € 361,422 grant from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA Grants and co-funding by the national funding of Poland. Co-funding from the Polish state amounts to € 54,213. 08.12.2022 Last CIRCON meeting in 2022 At the last meeting within CIRCON this year, we discussed the first draft of the compendium of knowledge with our partners - Polish Green Building Council and Silesian University of Technology . But now, as Christmas is closer and closer, we want to wish you all the best over the holidays. See you in 2023! The CIRCON project benefits from a € 361,422 grant from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA Grants and co-funding by the national funding of Poland. Co-funding from the Polish state amounts to € 54,213. 01.12.2022 Nordic Circular Summit Despite the break in our meetings in the CIRCON project, we are not sleeping. Last week we participated in #NordicCircularSummit – the biggest conference on circular economy in the Nordics organised in beautiful Stockholm. There were so many insightful presentations regarding circular construction that it is hard to mention them here. For those who could not attend, keep an eye on the event’s website – presentations should be uploaded in the nearest weeks. But two blunt end messages need to stay with us: 👉🏻As Kari Herlevi from Sitra said: “It is not just about maximising value; it is about reducing the negative impacts and then moving on to being nature positive ”, and, following Nancy Bocken from Maastricht University: “There is no business to be done on a dead planet, so focus on regeneration! ”.👈🏻 Last but not least, the next #NordicCircularSummit 2023 will be in Reykjavik! The CIRCON project benefits from a € 361,422 grant from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA Grants and co-funding by the national funding of Poland. Co-funding from the Polish state amounts to € 54,213. 31.10.2022 First work package is completed With the end of October, the first work package in the CIRCON project is completed. As the last part of the first work package, we had two working group meetings at which we discussed the created circularity indicators, which will be a part of the primary project outcome - guidelines on the circular design. The proposed circular indicators 🏠 take into account the following: - the amount of secondary materials used in the construction or renovation process; - the amount of waste reduced during the demolition or renovation process; - building's adaptability and disassembly potential; - the potential for sharing space; - building's energy efficiency. The guidelines with the circularity indicators should be published at the latest in summer 2023. The CIRCON project benefits from a € 361,422 grant from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA Grants and co-funding by the national funding of Poland. Co-funding from the Polish state amounts to € 54,213. 05.08.2022 Our visit in Drangar As a part of our partners' meeting in Iceland, we visited one of the rare European examples of rural buildings redefined and reconstructed in the spirit of the circular economy - Drangar. Drangar, located in Skógarströnd, is a complex of former farm buildings (a tractor shed, a cowshed, a farmhouse, and a barn) built in the 1980s and operating as such until 2001. After 12 years of falling into disrepair, the new owners brought it back to a new life by cooperating with architects from Studio Granda. Now, the buildings serve as guesthouses (former tractor shed and cowshed) and private accommodation (former barn and farmhouse). * Myndin að neðan: Dawid Franke. Preserving the character of the buildings' was the idea standing behind the renovation. That is why the primary structure, the shape, and arrangement of windows and doors, were kept. Furthermore, even though some of the roofs had to be replaced, they were not wasted. Their elements were used - the corrugated tin was used as shuttering for new concrete walls, and the timber structure was transformed into solid dining tables. The floor in the cowshed, crossed by concrete slats and steel grills, was replaced by a terrazzo floor, while the concrete slats and the steel grills were used as terrace paving and headboards in the guestrooms, respectively. Last but not least, most of the existing concrete walls remained. The materials preservation involved not only the construction materials themselves. For landscaping, earth from the site was used. Also, the manure from the cowshed was used as a fertiliser around the property in the owners' ambitious forestry project, currently scoring at around 50,000 trees and seedlings planted. The last stage of the project was renovating the old farmhouse, which was designed solely by the Drangar owners, naturally using the remaining materials left from the previous renovations. So now, only one non-restored element in Drangar – is a hay tower from the 1950s. When asked about it, one of the owners said, 'every respected guesthouse or hotel needs to have an old ruin, so we also have one'. This, however, does not mean the end of the Drangar project, as the owners are full of energy and motivation to continue developing their premises. ​ More information about Drangar: Home The CIRCON project benefits from a € 361,422 grant from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA Grants and co-funding by the national funding of Poland. Co-funding from the Polish state amounts to € 54,213. 04.08.2022 Partners' meeting in Iceland After a short summer break, CIRCON started again. We started with a partners' meeting in Iceland. At the meeting, we discussed data on the Polish and Icelandic construction sectors collected so far. We also discussed real-life examples of implementing circular economy principles in construction and the main project outcome - the compendium of knowledge. Eventually, we planned our further steps. The CIRCON project benefits from a € 361,422 grant from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA Grants and co-funding by the national funding of Poland. Co-funding from the Polish state amounts to € 54,213. 15.07.2022 July's partners' meeting Even during summer CIRCON team does not rest. Today we had a partners’ meeting with PLGBC Polish Green Building Council and the Silesian University of Technology. We discussed a draft version of the circularity indicators, which will be part of the main project’s outcome – guidelines on the circular design of buildings. The CIRCON project benefits from a € 361,422 grant from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA Grants and co-funding by the national funding of Poland. Co-funding from the Polish state amounts to € 54,213. 15.06.2022 Time for a summer break – three working group meetings already behind us On 15th June 2022, we met for the third time and intensively discussed existing circularity indicators found in the open literature (and there are many of them - around 30!). We also tried to formulate the main criteria that should be considered when assessing circularity in the Icelandic context. And now it’s time for the summer holidays! The CIRCON project benefits from a € 361,422 grant from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA Grants and co-funding by the national funding of Poland. Co-funding from the Polish state amounts to € 54,213. 15.06.2022 Can the circular economy help solve the Icelandic construction sector’s challenges? The construction sector is facing increasing pressure due to the urgent need for more housing available in the capital area and the inevitability of the transition to circular and sustainable solutions. Can CIRCON contribute to easing this burden? A small piece of information was published regarding that in Frettabladid under the link: Link The CIRCON project benefits from a € 361,422 grant from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA Grants and co-funding by the national funding of Poland. Co-funding from the Polish state amounts to € 54,213. 07.06.2022 Our second working group meeting On 7th June 2022, we met for the second time. This time we discussed the role of different stakeholders in implementing circular economy principles in the construction and at which stage of building life implementing them has the highest potential. Eventually, as there is no universal definition of a circular building, we debated what it really means that a building is circular. The CIRCON project benefits from a € 361,422 grant from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA Grants and co-funding by the national funding of Poland. Co-funding from the Polish state amounts to € 54,213. 25.05.2022 The first working group meeting is behind us On 25st May 2022, our working group of experts representing the cross-section of the Icelandic construction sector met for the first time. We discussed the importance of implementing a circular economy in the construction sector, the main obstacles/challenges related to that and how we can accelerate the transformation of the sector into a more circular one. In the photo, you can see our views on the primary motivations for circular economy implementation in the construction sector. Can you think of any other one? The CIRCON project benefits from a € 361,422 grant from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA Grants and co-funding by the national funding of Poland. Co-funding from the Polish state amounts to € 54,213. 04.05.2022 A new project on circular economy started in GBCI On 1st April 2022, GBC Iceland launched a new project on circular economy CIRCON - The circular economy in construction: eco-design of circular buildings. The project will be realised for 2 years with two Polish partners - the Polish Green Building Council and the Silesian University of Technology. The CIRCON project benefits from a € 361,422 grant from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA and Norway Grants and co-funding by the national funding of Poland. Co-funding from the Polish state amounts to € 54,213.

Green Building Council Iceland members in 2022 The following companies, organizations, institutions, and individuals are members of Green Building Council Iceland: 1. Flokkur BM Vallá Eik fasteignafélag Húsnæðis- og mannvirkjastofnun Heimar fasteignafélag Reitir fasteignafélag Verkís verkfræðistofa Framkvæmdasýslan Ríkiseignir 2nd Category Fasteignir ríkissjóðs Landsvirkjun Tark-Teiknistofan 3. Flokkur Alta ráðgjöf Alverk Arkís ehf ASK arkitektar Basalt Arkitektar Byko Eignaumsjón exa nordic HJARK Hornsteinar Húsasmiðjan Iðan fræðslusetur Íslandsbanki Íslenskir aðalverktakar Jáverk Klasi ehf. Landslag ehf. Langeldur Límtré Vírnet Lota ehf Maison Mannvit verkfræðistofa Pago Samstæða Orkuveitu Reykjavíkur Skipulagsstofnun Steinull hf. Steypustöðin Teiknistofan Tark ehf. Teiknistofan Tröð ehf. THG arkitektar Umhverfisstofnun Urriðaholt ehf. VA Arkitektar Vegagerðin Vista verkfræðistofa VSB verkfræðistofa VSÓ Ráðgjöf 4th Category - Arnhildur Pálmadóttir - an architect at Studio Arnhildur Pálmadóttir; - Finnur Sveinsson - environmental scientist at Visthús; - Hildur Ýr Ottósdóttir - an architect at Ydda arkitektar; - Magnús Jensen - an architect and chairman Miðgarðs byggingarfélags; - Sigríður Maack - an architect at Arktika ehf.

Environmental product declaration (EPDs) - Building blocks in Iceland Steypustöðin Bakki aggregate Steypustöðin Hólabrú aggregate Steypustöðin Vatnsskarðs aggregate Jarðefnaiðnaður ehf. Pumice and scoria (hekluvikur)

Certifications There are many different types of environmental certificates for buildings, but in general, it can be said that the goals of using them are to: - Increase the quality of buildings. - Reduce negative environmental impact. - Build healthy and safe buildings. - Reduce operating costs. In Iceland, two certification systems have been extensively used to certify buildings and areas: BREEAM and the Nordic Swan. BREEAM BREEAM is one of the most well-known environmental certification systems for buildings today, which encourages sustainable building design and ecological management during construction and operation. The BREEAM certification system uses a recognized requirements framework to assess the performance of a building's design, construction time and operating time, taking into account numerous factors, from ecology to energy consumption. These factors are included in the form of nine environmental sections having varying degrees of weight, as can be seen below: More about the BREEAM certification can be found here . BREEAM-certified buildings and construction in Iceland can be found here . The annexe for the BREEAM certification of Sundhöll Reykjavíkur (swimming pool in Reykjavik) in Icelandic can be found here . THE NORDIC SWAN ECOLABEL The Nordic Swan is a co-Nordic certification system that can be seen widely on products of various kinds. The Swan's certification system is rapidly growing buildings in the Nordic countries and elsewhere. In Iceland, the Environmental Agency is the coordinator of the Swan, and its staff is responsible for assisting companies through the certification process and granting permission to use the logo. More information on the Swan certification and the list of Swan-certified buildings can be found here . Other certification types LEED Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a green building rating system commonly used in the U.S. and Canada. It was created in the early 90s by the United States Green Building Council. More information on LEED can be found here . Level(s) Level(s) is a framework developed by the European Commission to assess and report on the sustainability performance of buildings. More information on Level(s) can be found here or in the video below.

Construction and demolition waste 2022 GBCI received a grant from the Ministry of the Environment, Energy and Climate through the Housing and Infrastructure Agency to work on the mapping and preparation of guidelines on the possibilities of using construction waste. The project is part of action 4.2. in the Icelandic roadmap to ecological construction (Byggjum grænni framtíð) . GBCI got VSÓ Ráðgjöf on board to do the analysis. The results of the research project can be seen below (in Icelandic). Planning and guidance on the utilization potential of construction waste 2019 In cooperation with the celandic Civil Engineering Agency (Mannvirkjastofnun ), Green Building Council Iceland (GBCI) launched the project on the preparation of guidelines for the handling of construction and demolition waste. GBCI and Mannvirkjastofnun were responsible for project management, and the project was realised in cooperation with EFLA , VSÓ Consulting , and Verkís . The project results can be seen below. The circular economy and the construction industry (in Icelandic) The guidelines for the management of construction and demolition waste (in Icelandic) Construction and demolition waste mapping (in Icelandic) The assessment of hazardous substances in construction and demolition waste and a plan for their treatment (in Icelandic)