Wednesday 3.11.2021

Title: Business panel discussions on commitments to reduce carbon emissions

Time: 15:30-16:30 GMT

Location: Nordic Pavilion

Topic: Our cities house the majority of the world population and the building sector accounts for more than 40% of total carbon emissions. The Built Environment Day at the Nordic Pavilion will bring forward solutions to reduce carbon in buildings and construction.

Speakers: Kurt Emil Eriksen, Senior Policy Advisor, VELUX Group, plus representatives from other Nordic industries.

Follow the event: Nordisk Samarbejde / Nordic co-operation - YouTube or COP26 Backdoor

Friday 5.11.2021

Title: Decarbonising buildings: The importance of energy efficiency and low-carbon construction materials

Time: 14:30-15:30 GMT

Location: EU Pavilion

Topic: Decarbonising our buildings play a key role in achieving climate neutrality. Putting energy efficiency first will allow to cost-effectively reduce energy demand while using low-carbon construction materials will drastically cut buildings’ embodied emissions. Solutions to achieve the decarbonisation of buildings, which today are responsible for 39% of global emissions. will be presented and debated.

Speakers: Ingrid Reumert, VP External Relations and Sustainability VELUX Group; Celine Carre, Public Affairs Manager, Saint Gobain;  Brian Motherway, Head of Energy Efficiency IEA.

View the programme: European Union side events at COP26

Saturday 6.11.2021

Title: Evidence-based, national energy scenarios that help deliver agreed NDCs

Time: 15:00-16:00 GMT

Location: Nordic Pavilion

Topic: Methodologies and cases for developing national energy and climate plans, which support governments and policymakers to meet their NDCs and achieve the Paris Agreement goals. The plans include a focus on energy efficiency in buildings and suggest levels for energy requirements for the renovation of the existing building stock

Speakers: Kurt Emil Eriksen, Senior Policy Advisor, VELUX Group; Beatriz Fernandez, Associate Programme Management Officer UNEP; Alana Collis, Policy Manager, Institution of Chemical Engineers, UK; Jonathan Symonds, Managing Director, Products Division, Combustion, United Kingdom.

Follow the event: COP26 Backdoor

Monday: 8.11.2021

Title: Panel debate on creating liveable spaces: Homes, heating, cooling, retrofitting

Time: 11:45 – 12:30 GMT

Location: Sustainable Innovation Forum

Topic: This panel will discuss the way forward to a carbon neutral and healthy built environment. What will be the key drivers in successfully decarbonising buildings and how can we engage with homeowners to modernise and renovate buildings to be more efficient and healthier to live in?

Panellists: David Briggs, CEO, VELUX Group; Max Viessmann, Co-CEO, Viessmann Group, CEO, Viessmann Climate Solutions; Cristina Gamboa, CEO, World Green Building Council; George Oliver, Chairman & CEO, Johnson Controls.

Monday: 8.11.2021

Title: Scope 3: Advancing faster forward together

Time: 14:00 – 15:00 GMT

Location: We Mean Business/Building Alliance Pavilion

Topic: Only by catalysing action and engaging in deep partnerships across the entire building value-chains can we decarbonise the building and construction sector by 2050. This invitation only roundtable brings together leading actors at the decision-making level, representing the entire building value-chain, to discuss the concrete steps that we must take to jointly raise our ambitions and advance faster forward together as we embrace the complexities of reducing our upstream and downstream scope 3 emissions.

Speakers: David Briggs, CEO, VELUX Group; Dr Alan Belfield, Chair of Arup Group; Helen Clarkson CEO, The Climate Group (RE100); Mark Watts CEO C40; Carolina Duran, Secretary for Economic Development, City of Bogota; Roland Hunziker WBCSD’s director of sustainable buildings and cities.

Monday: 8.11.2021

Title: A nature positive planet – our common objective

Time: 15:30 – 16:30 GMT

Location: US Climate Action/WWF Panda Pavilion

Topic: The objective is to demonstrate how companies can take action for a nature-positive future through NGO/Private sector partnerships. The session also aims to inspire other companies to make bold commitments that are in line with climate science and can contribute towards reversing nature loss.

This panel will discuss the potential role of companies and NGO/Private sector partnerships in achieving a climate and nature positive planet.

• What has VELUX done to take responsibility for its climate footprint?
• How does WWF work with corporate partnerships and how do corporate partnerships – like the one with VELUX - contribute to meeting WWF’s mission?
• What is the impact of NGO/Private sector partnerships locally?

Speakers: David W Briggs CEO VELUX Group; Marco Lambertini, CEO WWF International; Tom Okello, Executive Director of National Forestry Authority in Uganda.

Tuesday: 9.11.2021

Title: Decarbonise the supply chain in the construction sector

Time: 11:30 – 13:00 GMT

Location: State of Green Pavilion

Topic: Only by catalysing action and engaging in deep partnerships across the entire building value-chain can we decarbonise the building and construction sector by 2050. This roundtable brings together leading companies that have signed up to the SBTi targets and are committed to reducing their emissions in the entire building's value chain. They will discuss their ambitions and the pathways we must take to jointly raise our ambition and advance faster forward together as we embrace the complexities of reducing our upstream and downstream Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions.

Speakers: David W Briggs, CEO VELUX Group; Benoit Bazin, CEO Saint Gobain; Jens-Peter Saul, CEO Ramboll Group; Dr Alan Belfield, Chair of Arup Group; Diederik Samsom, Head of Cabinet of European Commission Executive Vice President Frans Timmermans; Lila Karbassi, Chief of Programmes at the UN Global Compact and SBTI Board Chair.

View the programme: COP26: Tuesday, November 9th

Wednesday: 10.11.2021

Title: Beyond carbon credits: high-quality interventions that work for people, nature and climate

Time: 8:00 – 9:00 GMT

Location: WWF Panda Pavilion

Topic: Given the growing interest from both the public and private sectors to scale nature-based solutions, it is vital that this flow of capital is directed towards the highest quality interventions – those that support people’s livelihoods and protect nature, while also mitigating and adapting to climate change. This event will showcase WWF’s guidance to ensure the right quality and integrity are met and will allow corporate and government speakers to share examples of what best in class nature-based interventions look like in practice. 

Speakers: Ingrid Reumert, VP External Relations and Sustainability, VELUX Group; Vanessa Pérez Cirera, Deputy Practice Leader, Climate & Energy, WWF-International; Milagros Sandoval Diaz, Director of Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, Ministry of Peru (MINAM).

Moderator: Josefina Braña Varela, VP and Deputy Lead, Forests WWF-US

Wednesday: 10.11.2021

Title: Strategy for sustainable buildings

Time: 11:00 – 12:30 GMT

Location: State of Green Pavilion

Topics: The event will focus on the strategy for sustainable buildings, mainly the CO₂ requirement for new buildings, but also circularity and renovation. It will give guidance for other countries to follow. The recently published IEA report on Zero 2050, includes ambitions for the built environment and will be a starting point for the discussions; It shows the urgency for actions. The event will firstly introduce the Danish requirements, followed by discussions on how it is a solution to the IEA recommendations and how similar requirements can be introduced in other countries. 

Speakers: Ingrid Reumert, VP External Relations and Sustainability, VELUX Group; Roland Hunziker WBCSD’s director of sustainable buildings and cities, plus representatives from governments and industries.

View the programme: COP26: Wednesday, November 10th

Wednesday: 10.11.2021

Time: 13:00 – 14:00 GMT

Location: State of Green Pavilion

Title: EU Fit for 55 - Energy efficiency

Topics: How shall the EU Fit for 55 be implemented in EU member states

Speakers: Emil Fannikke Kiær, Deputy Director General, Danish Industries; Danish Minister for Climate Dan Jørgensen (TBC); Pernille Weiss, Member of the European Parliament; Ingrid Reumert, VP External Relations and Sustainability, VELUX Group; Klaus Winther Ringgaard, COWI; Michael Simmelsgaard, COO Ramboll; Anthony Abbotts, Director Group Public Affairs & Sustainability ROCKWOOL. Moderator: Nana Bule, CEO of Microsoft.

Thursday: 11.11.2021

Title: Health and comfort in sustainable buildings

Time: 10:00 – 11:00 GMT

Location: State of Green Pavilion

Topics: Buildings are mainly designed for people to live, work and be educated in and as people in the northern part of Europe spend 90% of their time inside those buildings, it is of high importance that our future new and renovated buildings are designed with a focus on human health and comfort. This session will discuss solutions and multiple benefits by focusing on health and comfort in building design. The VELUX Healthy Home Barometer has created awareness in the UK and will be presented in short.

Speakers: Neil Freshwater, Public Affairs UK manager and Eire VELUX GBI; Schmidt Hammer Lassen, Danfoss; ROCKWOOL

View the programme: COP26: Thursday, November 11th

Thursday: 11.11.2021

Title: Multistakeholder partnerships promoting climate adaptation

Time: 13:30 – 14:30 GMT

Location: Danish Pavillion

Topics: Open discussion revolving around the question "how can multistakeholder partnerships promote climate action in developing countries?"

Speakers: Birgitte Qvist-Sørensen, General Secretary, DanChurchAid; Ian de Cruz, Global Director, P4G; Ulrich Bang, Head of Market, Danish Chamber of Commerce; Kurt Emil Eriksen, Senior Policy Advisor, VELUX Group

Moderator: Mattias Söderberg, DanChurchAid

Friday: 12.11.2021

Title: BACA event with WWF Belgium-WWF India

Time: 12:00 – 13:00 GMT

Location: Benelux-EIB Pavilion

Topics: How companies take action and commit to reducing their own carbon emissions, through co-operation with other companies and working with Science-Based Targets SBTi

Speakers: Kurt Emil Eriksen, Senior Policy Advisor, VELUX Group, plus a representative from WWF India.

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