With increasing concerns around the pressing environmental crisis, there is a growing demand for more sustainable construction approaches and the building industry has a responsibility to develop methodologies that accelerate the transition towards a more sustainable and decarbonized practice.

Over the past two decades, the VELUX Group has embarked on more than 30 demonstration projects in 22 countries, advocating for healthier and more sustainable building practices through full-scale experiments. Building on this legacy of learning and innovation, the Living Places project shows that it is possible to build affordable and healthy buildings with an ultra-low carbon footprint using standard materials, methods and technologies available today.

The publication of "Living Places: Principles and Insights for a New Way of Thinking Buildings" signifies that VELUX is committed to leading the way within the building industry by sharing knowledge that shows why industry actors need to adopt new building principles and adapt to a new way of thinking about buildings.

A book for use
The book takes an open-source approach to sharing the knowledge gained by all partners throughout the Living Places project. Beginning with the ways of working and transformative partnerships, the book unfolds the Living Places concept through its principles and People and Planet Methodology and finishes with an explorative review of the first prototype Living Places Copenhagen.

The book is published by the Danish Architectural Press and will be available to purchase at retailers around the world from June 21^st.

Read more about Living Places: Principles and Insights for a New Way of Thinking Buildings
Buy the book here: https://arkitektensforlag.dk/shop/p/living-places

The Architizer A+Awards is one of the largest award programs focused on promoting and celebrating the year’s best architecture. The “Sustainable Private House” category awards private housing projects that incorporate sustainable systems and materials, and follow best practices within ethical design, construction, and operation. The “Architecture+Innovation” category is dedicated to projects that unlock new ways to build, including incorporating new, experimental, or unconventional design concepts and materials, or rethink traditional approaches in pioneering ways. The Architecture+Innovation award is based on public voting.

In 2023, Living Places Copenhagen won the EY Sustainability Award in the innovation category, the Innovative Design Award of the Bo Bedre magazine, as well as the “Sustainable Future Award” and the “Merit Award for Architecture” from the American Institute of Architects. In March 2024, Living Places Copenhagen won the “Active House Radar Master Award” and the MIPIM 2024 award for “Best Residential Project”.

About Living Places Copenhagen
In April 2023, the VELUX Group, EFFEKT architects, Artelia engineers, and Enemærke & Petersen contractors opened the doors to Living Places Copenhagen in the Railway District in Copenhagen – the first prototype of the overall Living Places concept. The vision behind the project is to lead the way in the building industry and show how rethinking buildings can help solve some of the global climate and health challenges. The concept is based on five key principles that aim to make homes that are healthy, adaptive, simple, shared over time, and scalable. These guiding principles are relevant to both new constructions and established communities.

See the virtual tour of Living Places Copenhagen and read more about Living Places
Read more about the Architizer A+ Award

The VELUX Group will strengthen its sustainability efforts with a new profile.

Wouter de Groot, 41 years, joins VELUX as Head of Sustainability on May 1, 2024. He comes from a position as Vice President of Sustainability, Marketing and Public Affairs at FLSmidth, where he led the company’s award-winning sustainability programme.

In 2023, VELUX fully integrated sustainability into its corporate strategy, ensuring that sustainability is at the very heart of the business – from selecting suppliers and designing products through to end-of-life handling.

Wouter de Groot looks forward to joining VELUX
Prior to joining FLSmidth, Wouter de Groot held various sustainability and marketing leadership roles at Danish beer company Carlsberg between 2008 and 2019. He was part of the team that started the company’s global sustainability strategy. He also worked with global production, procurement and logistics to build a dedicated sustainability approach and held various in Carlsberg’s marketing department integrating sustainability into commercial processes.

Wouter de Groot has a master’s degree in economics from Copenhagen Business School. He has worked with global organisations like World Bank, World Resource Institute and The Nature Conservancy to publish industry standards on water management, ecosystem services and circular economy. He was born in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Apart from Denmark, he has lived and worked in Germany, Mozambique, United States and Switzerland.

Read more about our sustainability work in this report.  

The project has won this year’s MIPIM Awards for its holistic approach to building more sustainably. It demonstrates how to build homes with a CO2 footprint that is 2/3 lower than the current Danish standard. This is achieved while ensuring a first-class indoor climate and by using existing technology and materials.

Before handing over the prize to representatives from the VELUX Group, EFFEKT, and Artelia, the jury member and partner at BIG, Kai-Uwe Bergmann, said:

The winner was announced at the international MIPIM real estate event in Cannes on March 14th, 2024, where the most influential players from all sectors of the international property industry gather.

In 2023, Living Places Copenhagen won the EY Sustainability Award in the innovation category, the Innovative Design Award of the Bo Bedre magazine’s Design Awards, as well as the “Sustainable Future Award” and the “Merit Award for Architecture” from the American Institute of Architects. 

About Living Places Copenhagen
In April 2023, the VELUX Group, EFFEKT, Artelia, and Enemærke & Petersen opened the doors to Living Places Copenhagen in the Railway District in Copenhagen – the first prototype of the overall Living Places concept. The vision behind the project is to lead the way in the building industry and show how rethinking buildings can help solve some of the global climate and health challenges. The concept is based on five key principles that aim to make homes that are healthy, adaptive, simple, shared over time and scalable. These guiding principles are relevant to both new constructions and established communities.

For more information about Living Places
Read more about the MIPIM Awards 2024

The project has earned its place at this year’s MIPIM Awards by using a holistic approach to building more sustainably. It demonstrates how to build homes with a CO2 footprint that is 2/3 lower than the current Danish standard. This is achieved while ensuring a first-class indoor climate and by using existing technology and materials.

This year’s MIPIM Awards will focus on projects that have been developed with ‘a consideration of construction and operational carbon, to climate and life cycle concerns, and prizes will go chiefly to projects that best serve their end-users and wider communities while making a contribution to the economy’. Read more about the MIPIM Awards 2024.

The winner will be announced at the international MIPIM real estate event in Cannes on March 14th, 2024 where the most influential players from all sectors of the international property industry gather.

In 2023, Living Places Copenhagen won the EY Sustainability Award in the innovation category, the Innovative Design Award of the Bo Bedre magazine’s Design Awards, as well as the “Sustainable Future Award” and the “Merit Award for Architecture” from the American Institute of Architects. 

About Living Places Copenhagen
In April 2023 the VELUX Group, EFFEKT, Artelia, and Enemærke & Petersen opened the doors to Living Places Copenhagen in the Railway District in Copenhagen – the first prototype of the overall Living Places concept. The vision behind the project is to lead the way in the building industry and show how rethinking buildings can help solve some of the global climate and health challenges. The concept is based on five key principles that aim to make homes that are healthy, adaptive, simple, shared over time and scalable. These guiding principles are relevant to both new constructions and established communities.

For more information about Living Places, visit livingplaces.velux.com

Cranes and robots will help prepare, pack and send roof windows, roller shutters and other accessories to customers throughout the Nordic region. This will take place in the VELUX Group's first large high-tech warehouse, located in a 24,000 m² building in Kolding.

Lars Petersson, VELUX Group CEO, looks forward to taking another step towards improving the VELUX customer experience:

Solar energy powers technology
In 2024, around 80 percent of the power for the automated warehouse will come from an adjacent 6,000 m² solar park. Electricity generated by solar panels will power robots, cranes and a monorail that will move pallets around the warehouse, with robots then packing windows and other products on top of them. Then the pallets are transported to a truck for onwards delivery to customers.

Sending windows, roller shutters, blinds and accessories in one shipment to customers will also reduce the number of trucks used for distribution, thereby cutting CO₂ emissions from transportation.

VELUX has set ambitious 2030 targets to reduce CO₂ emissions: emissions from its own operations are to be reduced by 100% and emissions throughout the value chain are to be reduced by 50%.

More windows to customers
The high-tech warehouse can handle up to 50 percent more goods than a manual warehouse, and the robots are programmed to handle more complex tasks. At the same time, the use of cranes and robots improves ergonomics for warehouse employees.

Facts:

• Building prepared from November 2021 to June 2022 to be ready for installation of automation system.
• System installed from June 2022 to June 2023.
• First intake of products happened in August 2023.
• First outbound deliveries to customers occurred in September 2023.
• Kolding warehouse combines three smaller manual warehouses into one: Previously, spare parts were located in Østbirk, blinds and other accessories in Skjern and roof windows in Kolding.
• A roof window weighs on average 53 kg.
• The warehouse contains 12 robots - two 2 picking robots and 10 pallet cranes.
• A solar park provides 80 percent of the power - to be completed in Q3 of 2024.
• The high-tech warehouse can handle up to 50 percent more goods than a manual warehouse.
• VELUX has invested more than DKK 100 million in the highly automated warehouse.

Living Places Copenhagen, built by the VELUX Group, EFFEKT architects, Artelia engineers and Enemærke & Petersen contractors, has been awarded with two international awards by the American Institute of Architects. The AIA has just announced that the Danish design studio EFFEKT has been awarded the Sustainable Future Award and the Merit Award for Architecture.

With the Sustainable Future Award and the Merit Award for Architecture, Living Places Copenhagen is recognized for its outstanding design and for demonstrating that it is possible to improve human health and energy efficiency and manage our dwindling resources in a sustainable way through meaningful, sustainable, and integrated design. More about the awards: www.aiainternational.org/design-awards-2023-winners.

The news of the two international awards was also received with great enthusiasm by EFFEKT, the architects on the project.

In September 2023, Living Places Copenhagen won the EY Sustainability award in the innovation category for its groundbreaking and innovative concept for future housing, and in November Living Places Copenhagen received the design award of the Bo Bedre magazine in the Innovative of the Year category.

About Living Places Copenhagen
In April 2023 the VELUX Group, EFFEKT, Artelia, and Enemærke & Petersen opened the doors to Living Places Copenhagen in the Railway District in Copenhagen. It is the first prototype of the overall Living Places concept, and the vision is to lead the way in the building industry and show how rethinking buildings can help solve some of the global climate and health challenges. The groundbreaking project demonstrates that it is possible to build homes with a CO2 footprint that is 2/3 lower per m2/year than the Danish standard while ensuring a first-class indoor climate.

With the building industry accounting for 37% of the global CO2 emissions there is a urgent need for low carbon solutions to be scaled and implemented in the building industry. Earlier this year, the VELUX Group and its partners, EFFEKT and Artelia, presented the Living Places concept as one example of how rethinking buildings can help solve some of the global climate and health challenges. An important aim and aspect of the Living Places project is to scale the concept to the rest of Europe and to apply Living Places more broadly through knowledge sharing. The new partner agreement between The VELUX Group and Bouwgroep Dijkstra Draisma, is the first partner agreement on the Living Places project and the Dutch company will be the first house builder to use the Living Places concept in its development and construction processes and to build a full scale Living Places prototype in the Northern part of the Netherlands.

Bouwgroep Dijkstra Draisma has an ambition to build the future homes of the Netherlands in a more sustainable way and has already developed a replaceable timbered frame house insulated with biobased materials like cattail, miscanthus, hemp and flax.

A partner agreement to build more sustainable housing
In the partner agreement with Dijkstra Draisma, the VELUX Group commits to share knowledge, analyses, calculations and simulations on the Living Places concept as well as detailed information on the five key Living Places principles: that homes should be adaptive, healthy, simple, scalable and shared over time, with the Dutch house builder. The VELUX Group will furthermore share concrete learnings and know-how from the Living Places Copenhagen-prototype and work closely together with Dijkstra Draisma to exchange knowledge on low carbon housing.

Read more about the Living Places project here

Aliëtte brings more than 25 years of experience in local and global Business leadership roles, including rich experience in Marketing and Brand Management, from leading international corporations Philips and Procter & Gamble, working in Europe and the US. Most recently, Aliëtte has led the venture Consumer Health Business Development as Senior Vice President in Philips, where she was responsible for building a position in this domain.

Privately, Aliëtte is 50 years old and lives in The Netherlands with her husband, with whom she has three children. Aliëtte will continue to live in The Netherlands and commute to Hørsholm and other locations on a regular basis.

Aliëtte takes over from Keith Riddle who has acted as interim Executive Vice President for Global Marketing since May this year. Keith Riddle has decided to retire and move back to Scotland after an impressive career,  and almost 20 years in VELUX, including 6 years as EVP for Sales and Marketing.

VELUX was awarded a gold medal based on a score of 71 points. EcoVadis recognised VELUX for having a best-in-class carbon management system in addition to strong decarbonisation ambitions with approved science-based targets.

VELUX is now among the top 30 companies in its EcoVadis category. This is the second time that VELUX has been rated by EcoVadis. The annual rating process is extensive and requires answering and providing documentation to an extensive 90-page questionnaire.

Thorough evaluation and scoring 

An EcoVadis questionnaire is customised to a company’s size, industry and location, with the analysis and final score weighted accordingly in an online scorecard, indicating strengths and improvement areas. The final ESG score is established by compiling data about the subject and weighing the issues against a standard scale. An ESG score ranges from 0-100. 

Read more about the VELUX Group’s 2030 sustainability targets.

Director of Sustainable Buildings in the VELUX Group, Lone Feifer, received the award together with Lars Petersson, CEO in the VELUX Group and Tina Mayn, Executive Vice President for Products in the VELUX Group.

About Living Places
In April 2023, the VELUX Group and its partners opened the doors to Living Places Copenhagen – a building project consisting of seven prototypes that show how we can build future homes with a significantly lower CO₂ footprint. Living Places Copenhagen is the first prototype under the overall concept – Living Places – which has been developed by the VELUX Group, EFFEKT architects and Artelia engineers. The vision is to lead the way within the construction industry and show how rethinking construction and buildings can help solve some of the global climate and health challenges. The concept is based on five key principles that can be applied to both new and older buildings and communities: housing must be healthy, simple, scalable, affordable and can be shared over time.

The partnership with the UIA conference is based on a shared goal of driving the sustainable transition of the building industry by fostering dialogue and bringing together global opinion leaders and important stakeholders from all sectors of the industry.

As an Impact Partner, the VELUX Group will contribute with talks and knowledge-sharing around three key topics; sustainability in a global context, housing of the future and the next generation of industry professionals.

Please see the full program of the UIA conference: https://uia2023cph.org/programme/

Living Places Copenhagen – a SDG Pavilion for the UIA conference
The 14^th of April this year, the VELUX Group and its partners, EFFEKT, Artelia and Enemærke & Petersen, opened the doors to Living Places Copenhagen. A building exhibition demonstrating how to build homes with a CO₂ footprint of 3.8 kg/CO₂/m²/year – three times lower than the current Danish legislation of 12 kg CO₂/m²/year – with a best in class indoor climate. The vision behind the project is to lead the way within the building industry and show how rethinking buildings can help solve some of the global climate- and health challenges.

Living Places Copenhagen has been chosen as one of the 15 SDG Pavilions for the UIA World Congress of Architects in Copenhagen. Each pavilion is chosen due to its unique suggestion for how to build for the future and relates to one or more of the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs). Living Places has been chosen as one of the pavilions reflecting the 11^th SDG-goal “Sustainable cities and communities”.

In collaboration with Roskilde Festival’s Circular Lab and IDA, the VELUX Group invited students to develop new concepts for lounge furniture while using materials that are recyclable to promote a more sustainable approach at festivals. 

The winning modular-based timber seating called KNAD, was announced at the competition finale held on June 28, which is the official opening of Northern Europe’s largest music and arts festival. 

About KNAD 
The jury behind the Sustainability Challenge 2023 highlighted KNAD’s simplistic yet innovative form, functionality and versatility, plus the materials used. The shape is inviting for social gatherings, it’s easy to assemble, expand and transport and it’s made from few yet readily available materials – reclaimed timber, rope and screws. 

The students behind KNAD are a group of friends who enjoy the social aspect of Roskilde Festival and wanted to help make it a more sustainable experience. 

All KNAD members Johs Christian Rungholm, mechanical engineer student, Frederik Bach Juulsen, business communication student, Hans Jacobsen, history student, Emil Thomsen, HA English student and Marius Kirkholt Sørensen, information science student, can now look forward to a long-term collaboration with the Circular Lab at Roskilde Festival, supported by VELUX.

Circular solutions tested at Roskilde Festival 
Roskilde Festival's Circular Lab works towards developing circular solutions to improve Roskilde Festival. At the Circular Lab, young people can test their new sustainable solutions for festival-goers. 

Three of the best projects from last year are now part of the Circular Lab, where their solutions are exhibited and continuously developed. The best solutions from this year’s Sustainability Challenge will also join the Circular Lab, working towards contributing to a better festival in the future.

Other highlighted projects   
Second place went to a group of students who study IT Product Development at Aarhus University. Their sustainable lounge furniture, Love Couch, is made from recyclable, discarded, and biodegradable material. Third place went to Lazy N' Green, a project created by a group of young students from KEA, who presented a new sustainable ‘Fatboy’ made from used coffee bags filled with dried grass.

Two additional projects were highlighted as the most original ideas. Rehammock, created by a group of students from DTU, is a hammock made from discarded climbing rope, and Cultivating Design, created by two international students from SDU, is an innovative piece of lounge furniture made with discarded industrial materials and mycelium fungus.

Read more about Sustainability Challenge 2023 – VELUX x Roskilde Festival.

Through the Sustainability Challenge, The VELUX Group, IDA and Roskilde Festival called on students to design festival furniture using only recyclable materials. 

The Sustainability Challenge finale will take place in the Roskilde Festival Bazar Area at 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday, June 28, where a jury will pick the winner. The competition aims to demonstrate the potential of recyclable materials and what sustainability could look like at festivals in the future.

Future festival-goers need to think more sustainably, which is the concept behind the VELUX , IDA and Roskilde Festival Sustainability Challenge 2023. In this second annual challenge, students with backgrounds in design, construction and architecture were invited to create innovative furniture for Roskilde Festival using only recyclable materials.

For this year's Sustainability Challenge, the students’ were tasked with designing furniture for lounge areas that guests at Roskilde Festival can use during the festival. The big challenge this year was that students were only allowed to use recyclable materials. Therefore, in order to realise their ideas, the groups had to secure co-operations with recyclable material suppliers.

Sustainability Challenge background and finale details 
Just like last year's Sustainability Challenge, the competing groups this year were selected over several months. They presented and further developed their projects in front of judges during a series of events and workshops. You can learn more about the process, and see many of the projects developed along the way here. 

The process began with 30 groups of which 10 were selected to compete in the finale at Roskilde Festival 2023. These finalists’ solutions include everything from bean bag chairs made from coffee bags, to lounge furniture made from air mattresses and old chipboard furniture, to a hammock made from recyclable materials. 

The 2023 Sustainability Challenge finale is held at Roskilde Festival on Wednesday, June 28 from 11:30-13.30. The winner will be selected by a jury of professionals from the design and architecture industries. The jury will evaluate the projects based on their functionality, design and potential. 

The Circular Lab 
The Sustainability Challenge is organised in collaboration with Roskilde Festival's Circular Lab, which is working towards developing circular solutions for Roskilde Festival. The Circular Lab offers young people a platform and creative community where new sustainable solutions for the festival can be tested. 

IDA, VELUX and Roskilde Festival organised the Sustainability Challenge for the first time in 2022. In addition to receiving the 2022 Spot On: Activation Award in the Arts and Culture category, three of the best projects from last year are now part of the Circular Lab, where their solutions are exhibited and continuously developed. 

About VELUX Modular Rooflights
VELUX Modular Rooflights are manufactured by VELUX Commercial, a division of the VELUX Group which was established in 2019, and comprises the former JET, Vitral and VELUX Modular Skylights organisations.

The rooflights are custom-made flat roof windows with a glass-top construction, consisting of either fixed modules, venting modules or a combination of both in three variants. They provide direct access to daylight indoors and are primarily installed in industrial, public and commercial buildings, such as offices, schools, shopping centres, libraries, hotels, conference centres, railway stations, airports and healthcare.

VELUX Modular Rooflights are currently available in nine European countries and a new generation of them with an optional pre-mounted inner roller blind for daylight, heat and glare control is now being launched.

See more on VELUX Commercial.

Read about the Red Dot Design Award.

The VELUX Group has committed to capture the equivalent of their historical CO₂ emissions from operations from 1941 to 2041. This will be achieved through a portfolio of forest projects financed by the VELUX Group and developed and managed by WWF offices in each country in partnership with local authorities and communities. The VELUX-WWF partnership goes beyond emission reduction in the VELUX Group’s own operations and its value chain, where the Group has set a target to achieve a 100% reduction in emissions from operations (scope 1 and 2) and to halve their value chain emissions (scope 3) by 2030.

The partnership's first forest project is located in Uganda, where one of the worst affected areas, Kagombe in Uganda, has seen a deforestation rate of 73% in the past decade. The project aims to restore degraded forests, plant new trees, and protect the existing natural forests.  Through community-based conservation, it is expected that the project will capture 1 million tonnes of CO2. More than 180,000 trees have now been planted and local alternatively livelihood activities have commenced.

Two new projects to benefit people, nature and climate
The two additional forest projects have been selected based on the carbon potential, the biodiversity and community benefits as well as the long-term sustainability of each project. The project in Viet Nam, located in the mountainous Central Annamites Landscape, focuses on REDD activities and is expected to contribute with reductions and removals of more than 2 million tonnes of CO₂. The project in Madagascar is located in the mangroves of the Manambolo – Tsiribihina Landscape and focuses on ARR activities. The project is expected to contribute with reductions and removals of more than 0.5 million tonnes of CO₂. All numbers are preliminary estimates and may be subject to change as part of a third party validation.

Each project will deliver nature-based solutions (NbS) for climate mitigation aligned with WWF’s Blueprint for High-Quality Interventions that Work for People, Nature and Climate. These projects are designed to halt deforestation and restore natural forests in key biodiversity hot spots in partnership with communities and local authorities. The carbon emissions removed and reduced from the forest projects will be donated to the host countries’ conditional climate commitments under the Paris Agreement. This means that the carbon will not be used for off-setting of VELUX carbon emissions or any other organisation’s emissions.

Read more about the projects in Uganda, Viet Nam and Madagascar.

For more information contact
Christine Boeriis Dannisøe, Media Relations Manager: + 45 28 97 80 72 or christine.dannisoee@velux.com

Mai-Britt Noe, Head of PR & Media, WWF Denmark: +45 28 93 63 28 or mai-britt.noe@wwf.dk

Progress on the Uganda project 

• 180,000+ trees have been planted in Kagombe Central Forest Reserve 
• The project is also starting to have positive impact on local communities with introduction of alternative livelihood options such as mushroom growing and large-scale apiaries. 
• More than 400 beehives have been set up in two communities and will provide a substantial economic contribution to the 80 community group members. 
• Each beehive is expected to generate a gross income of USD 124 annually, which is equivalent to 92% of annual per capita income in the Project Area. 

The expansion project will occur between 2023 and 2025, and upon completion, the workforce there will have increased by 50 percent. Lars Petersson, CEO of the VELUX Group, announced the investment today during his participation in the Choose France Summit, an event dedicated to improving the economic attractiveness of France. 

The investment covers both the cost of expanding and modernising the Marnay site. It involves the construction of a new manufacturing building (almost 10,000 m²) and a storage building (1,200 m²), at a cost of EUR 15 million. In addition, high-tech production equipment will be purchased at a cost of around EUR 25 million. The new manufacturing facility should be fully operational in 2025, creating around 70 new jobs, taking the number of permanent positions to 210, up from 140 today. 

This investment in the Marnay site further consolidates the VELUX Group's industrial presence in France, with its three other factories in the Somme, Haute-Marne and Haute-Savoie regions.

In total, VELUX employs about 1,000 employees in France in production and sales.

The risk is considered low and no one has been injured. It is safe to use the affected flat roof windows with a remote control, but owners should refrain from any physical contact with the windows to eliminate the risk of electric shock.

Owners of these windows are advised to contact their relevant local VELUX customer service organisation for the issue to be rectified. Contact information is available on VELUX market websites.

Neither the solar-powered version of this flat roof window, nor older versions of VELUX flat roof windows are impacted.

VELUX initially launched the mains-powered glass rooflight CVU in July 2021. Read more here.

André Dot joined the VELUX Group in 2020 as the President & General Manager of VELUX France, and later stepped into the role as Senior Vice President of Region South. Before joining the VELUX Group, André came from a position as General Manager of Groupe SEB France. André has more than 30 years of professional experience in sales management, marketing management and general management positions in the home equipment and domestic equipment sector both in France and abroad.

In his new role, André will have the responsibility for sales execution, commercial and operational excellence and improving efficiency and quality in customer experience services in the region. The Southwest Europe region covers France, Italy, Iberia, Netherlands and Belgium. 

André Dot is a graduate of NEOMA Business School in Reims, France and holds a Master’s degree in Commerce and Marketing.

Jacob Madsen started his career in the VELUX Group in 1994 and worked in different roles, among other as responsible for VELUX business in Slovenia and Croatia and as part of the team starting up RoofLITE - now called Altaterra. Between 2005 and 2018, Jacob worked in the Danish company Danfoss, where he held several senior leadership positions in Sales & Marketing and General Management in the Heating Segment. In 2018, Jacob re-joined the VELUX Group as General Manager for VELUX Germany and later stepped into the role as Senior Vice President for Region DACH.

Jacob have worked in the building industry throughout his entire career and have more than 25 years of experience with sales and marketing from top management positions in international and regional companies.

As the Executive Vice President of Region North, Jacob will have the responsibility for developing sales as well as commercial and operational excellence. This also includes improving the quality and efficiency in the customer experience services in the region. Region North covers DACH (Germany, Austria, Switzerland) as well as The Nordics, Great Britain and Ireland.

Jacob has a MSc in International Business from the University of Southern Denmark.

Anders Dam Vestergaard joined the VELUX Group as the Managing Director of Region North & West in 2018 and have since then held several senior positions in the region – latest as the Senior Vice President of the region. He has extensive experience working with sales and marketing in leading customer centric companies with a strong focus on strategy and execution, and prior to joining the VELUX Group, Anders was the Executive Vice President of Sales & Marketing in Fertin Pharma. He have also held various commercial and senior leadership roles in FMCG and Biotech.

As the Executive Vice President of Region North America, CEE, APAC & Altaterra, Anders will have the responsibility for developing the sales activities and strengthening the commercial and operational excellence. Securing the overall efficiency and quality in customer experience services in the region also lies within his area. Besides covering North America and Central European markets, the region also covers Australia, New Zealand, China, Japan as well as the export markets and Altaterra activities.

Anders holds a MSc in Management Accounting and Strategy from Aarhus University.

The quality of steel is particularly crucial for ensuring optimal performance of the hinges used to operate VELUX roof windows and the brackets used to install them. VELUX Group is working towards halving scope 3 emissions by 2030 and working with suppliers of materials for its products is essential to achieve this.

ArcelorMittal’s XCarb® recycled and renewably produced flat steel is produced using a minimum of 75% scrap steel and 100% renewable electricity. It will now be tested in larger volumes in a VELUX factory in Gniezno, Poland, to see how it performs in hinges and brackets. In parallel, VELUX and ArcelorMittal will work together to lower the carbon footprint of steel used in some other components for roof windows.

The collaboration between the two companies was announced at BAU – the world's leading trade fair for architecture, materials and systems, in Munich, on 19 April.

The building industry accounts for 34% of the global energy consumption and 37% of the global CO₂ emissions^[1], and in the latest report from the UN's climate panel, it is clear that low carbon solutions must be scaled and implemented – also in the building industry. One of those solutions can be experienced in Copenhagen from today. With the groundbreaking project Living Places Copenhagen, the VELUX Group and its partners, demonstrate how to build homes with a CO₂ footprint of 3.8 kg/CO₂/m²/year – three times lower than the current Danish legislation of 12 kg CO₂/m²/year – and to a price that matches the market price for a one-family house or rowhouses at scale. Furthermore, Living Places Copenhagen is designed with a strong focus on creating a healthy indoor climate using daylight and fresh air and it delivers best in class indoor climate.

Living Places Copenhagen is the first prototype showcasing the overall concept - Living Places – which was initiated by the VELUX Group, EFFEKT and Artelia. The vision is to lead the way within the building industry and show how rethinking buildings can help solve some of the global climate and health challenges. The concept is based on five key principles: homes should be healthy, adaptive, simple, shared over time and scalable. These principles can be applied to new or existing buildings and communities. 

The materials, solutions and knowledge are already here 
As a part of The Living Places Copenhagen project, the VELUX Group, EFFEKT, Artelia and Enemærke & Petersen, have carried out a complete Life Cycle Assessment. This means that each material, design and building technique has been carefully considered and mapped in terms of the emissions they project compared to a typical Danish household. Based on this, the partnership have built prototypes, showing that we do not have to wait for future technology to build homes that benefit both people and the planet.

Living Places Copenhagen showcases a total of seven prototypes – five open pavilions and two completed full-scale homes which open to the public on Earth Day on the 22nd April. As an official partner to the UIA World Congress of Architects in Copenhagen, Living Places Copenhagen will host a programme of debates and activities designed to drive and accelerate change in the building industry.

Read more about Living Places Copenhagen and how to book a tour here: https://buildforlife.velux.com/en/livingplaces/visit-living-places-copenhagen 

^[1] UN Global Building Alliance Status Report 2022

VELUX also saw a slight decrease in value chain emissions (scope 3 ) to 1.99 m tCO₂e  in 2022 from 2.06 million tCO₂e in 2021 due to reduced raw material demand caused by a sluggish macroeconomic environment, more precise emissions data and the sourcing of low carbon aluminium.

Other highlights from 2022:

• Investment in two new solar parks in Spain finalised. When operational in 2025, these new parks will produce 167GWh of renewable energy annually.
• Two partnerships entered with suppliers Hydro and Novelis to reduce carbon emissions from aluminium used in VELUX products. 
• 98% of packaging for VELUX Residential roof windows in Europe is now paper-based. This has saved more than 600 tonnes of EPS/plastic compared to 2021.
• Accidents per 1 million working hours fell to 1.63 from 2.58 in 2021.
• The percentage of women in senior management increased to 30% (2021: 28%), however the percentage of women in management overall remains flat at 26%, underlining that additional actions are needed.
• 100,000 seedlings were planted in the first forest project established through a 20-year partnership with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) to capture VELUX Group historical emissions from operations.

See more Sustainability highlights from 2022 

Read the full 2022 Sustainability Report 

The blind profiles are made from Hydro* CIRCAL 75R aluminium, which contains a minimum of 75% recycled post-consumer aluminium scrap. The blind textiles are made from 50% recycled textile and during 2023 this will increase to 100% recycled textile. The low-carbon aluminium accounts for the greatest carbon reduction.

In addition to reducing the footprint of the materials used to manufacture the blinds, the packaging they are shipped in is plastic free and made from Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified cardboard.**

All VELUX blinds are assembled at our European production facilities, which are certified according to STeP by OEKO-TEX® (22002567), and all components of the Nature Collection blinds are sourced from European suppliers.

The Nature Collection blinds come in eight natural looking colours and in both blackout and translucent varieties. They are now being launched in all VELUX markets in Europe.

*In September 2022, VELUX Group announced a partnership agreement with Hydro to supply low-carbon aluminium. In addition to Hydro’s CIRCAL being made from a minimum of 75 percent recycled, post-consumer aluminium scrap, it is also manufactured using renewable electricity. Read more here. 

**In March 2022, VELUX Group announced that 90 percent of its roof window packaging is plastic-free and instead made of a paper-based single material. Read more here.

LKR Innovation House will bring together all VELUX research and development areas to work on creating VELUX products for the future. During the next two years, an existing timber warehouse in Østbirk, Denmark, where VELUX Group’s oldest production site is located, will be transformed into a creative innovation hub. 

History and purpose of LKR Innovation House 

The LKR Innovation House is named after Lars Kann-Rasmussen, the son of the founder of VELUX. It was Lars’ idea to construct the original building mainly from timber due to environmental considerations. 

When inaugurated in 1995, it was referred to as ‘an experiment in wood’ because the building contains untreated and responsibly grown timber from mainly Danish and Swedish forests. It has stood the test of time as the timber used on the outside of the building will remain. The existing 9,500 m2 warehouse will be modified to meet current building standards and adapted inside to suit its new purpose as a state-of-the-art innovation facility of 14,000 m2. 

LKR Innovation House is expected to result in significant synergies because much of the product development VELUX does today is spread over several locations in Denmark and abroad. Future products will be designed and developed in LKR Innovation House and tested in production facilities in nearby buildings before going into production at VELUX manufacturing facilities around Europe.

Focus on sustainable building processes and materials, plus healthy indoor climate  

A main focus of the project is to reuse as many existing materials as possible while also carefully considering the choice of new materials to minimise the building’s carbon footprint. Just like in the existing building, the key is to use timber as the primary construction material to reduce embodied carbon. 

LKR Innovation House truly represents the VELUX legacy, by providing an abundance of daylight and fresh air through the roof and thereby ensuring a healthy indoor climate. It will be a mix of office spaces, workshop areas and laboratories, where employees working with design, product development and implementation, plus supportive functions can easily collaborate. There will also be several green courtyards to bring nature into the building’s core. The 20,000 m2 surrounding area will be landscaped with respect for the natural habitat. 
Repurposing of the building is expected to be completed in 2024 and, when fully operational during 2025, it will be the workplace for approximately 500 employees. 

Praksis Arkitekter designed LKR Innovation House. Read more about why Praksis Arkitekter was appointed and which other companies are involved in the project here. 
 

VELUX Group and BayWa r.e. today announce a groundbreaking dual-site deal to address the world-leading roof window manufacturer's European operations with 100% renewable electricity by 2024.

The Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) will drive the development of two new solar parks in Southern Spain, one close to Seville and the other in nearby Granada. The latter, called Alhendín solar park, includes BayWa r.e.’s first installation of innovative Agri-PV technology in Spain, which will allow for crops to grow in between the solar panels.

Bringing more renewable energy online

Connecting to the grid in 2023 and 2024, the two plants will generate 167 GWh of renewable electricity every year for VELUX, equivalent to the electricity consumption of approximately 45,000 European homes. Eighty per cent of the total electricity generated by the plants will be generated due to the PPAs with VELUX. The new PPA will reduce the carbon footprint of VELUX with approximately 40,000 tonnes of CO2e from the company's European operations and activities on a yearly basis.

Pioneering solar plant symbiosis

About 10% of the Alhendín solar park will be an Agri-PV installation, a new solar application that combines energy generation and food production, of which BayWa r.e. is a pioneer and leader. This installation will be specially designed with taller rows of panels, more widely spaced to allow farming to continue and modern farming machinery to pass between the panel rows, in this case to produce crops. The PV modules will also be used to collect rainwater, which will help the farmer manage the continuing risks posed by climate change and droughts in a very dry area.

This PPA is pioneering the concept of solar plant symbiosis – a concept integrating solar power production with nature and community for mutual benefit. The development of both the plants will include a comprehensive plan and suite of community and environmental measures that will enhance local biodiversity and foster community involvement.

To ensure that the parks will always prioritize their local environment and communities, BayWa r.e. will be partnering with nearby universities – namely Universidad Autónoma de Madrid and Universidad de Córdoba – to form an interdisciplinary research group whose findings will ultimately inform a comprehensive and bespoke site strategy.

Helping to deliver on VELUX Group’s historic carbon capture commitment

Once connected to the grid, the new solar farms will enable VELUX to achieve its 2030 target to reduce emissions from its own operations and activities by 100%. This target is part of the company's 2030 sustainability strategy commitment to pioneer climate and nature action. The commitment also includes targets to capture its historical emissions since its founding in 1941 through forest conservation projects in partnership with World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) by 2041 and halving its value chain emissions by 2030.

Schneider Electric, the leading advisor on global corporate renewable energy procurement, supported VELUX in the selection of the projects and their negotiations.

Title: Decarbonising the building stock by carbon requirements to buildings  

Time: Tuesday, 8 November 14:30-15:30 EET (CET 13:30-14:30 CET)  

Location: Buildings Pavilion, Auditorium 

Topic: Buildings are responsible for 36% of the global CO2 emissions which need to be reduced by 50% before 2030 if we want to meet the Paris agreement.  

Therefore, driven by regulations, Nearly Zero Carbon buildings must become standard before 2030. The European Commission has pushed for all European countries to set a requirement for a maximum amount of CO2 emissions from buildings, with a few countries already in front. This panel session will discuss among researchers, industry, and architects the need for carbon requirements and carbon product declarations to new build, how to implement them into legislations as done in Denmark and other countries, as well as how designers and architects use a lifecycle perspective and LCA calculations to guide investors in their decision process.  

Speakers: Harpa Birgisdottir, Professor on Sustainability of Buildings at BUILD at Aalborg University Denmark; Elizabeth Wangeci Chege, Sustainable Energy for All and World Green Building Council; Jo da Silva, Global Director of Sustainable Development, Arup; Lone Feifer, Director Sustainable Buildings, VELUX 

Join event: COP27 Buildings Pavilion auditorium / Globalabc

Title: CEO roundtable on developing a joint plan of action to decarbonise the buildings system    

Time: Tuesday, 8 November 16:30 – 18:00 EET (15:30 – 17:00 CET)   

Location: Buildings Pavilion, Blue Zone 

Topic: Representing nearly 40% of global energy-related emissions and 50% of extracted materials, decarbonising the built environment is urgent to reach the 1.5C ambition. With a focus on ‘whole-life carbon mitigation’, we are inviting those leaders and organisations who are stepping up behind the net-zero buildings commitment: 

• By 2030, 100% of new buildings must be net-zero carbon ready in operation 
• Embodied carbon must be reduced by at least 40%  
• By 2050, all new and existing assets must be net zero across the whole life cycle

The Buildings CEO Roundtable will address the biggest barriers for joint climate efforts in the building sector, interdependencies through partnerships across Scope 3, must win battles to accelerate and operationalise our vision, and having a united front at COP27 of elevating the buildings sector as a key contributor to the Paris Climate Agreement. 

Speakers: Bex Porter, Built Environment Lead, UN Climate Champions Team; Alan Belfield, Chairman of Arup Group; Benoit Bazin, CEO of Saint-Gobain; Lars Petersson CEO of the VELUX Group; Roland Hunziker, Co-chair of GlobalABC and Director, Sustainable Buildings & Cities, WBSCD; Niklas Hagelberg, UNEP (TBC); Tomas Brannemo, President, Europe Region, Johnson Controls; Paul Warton, Executive Vice President, Hydro Extrusions, Norsk Hydro (TBC); Mike Pierce, Executive Director of Systems Change, Climate Group; Johnny Wates, NED of Wates Group and Ambassador to the World Benchmarking Alliance (TBC) moderated by Sally Uren, CEO, Forum for the Future 

View the programme / GlobalABC 

Title: Net-zero built environment 

Time: Wednesday, 9 November 12:30 – 13:30 EET (11.30 – 12.30 CET) 

Location: Danish Pavilion 

Topic: The built environment accounts for 37% of global emissions, the vast majority coming from construction and operation. Left unchecked, these figures will continue to grow. Operation-related emissions from buildings are set to increase by ~30% between now and 2030. Meanwhile, rising global population, urbanization, and growing infrastructure development needs will significantly drive-up demand for materials – for instance, global cement production is set to grow by up to a quarter by 2050.  

The transition towards net zero is critically needed and is picking up speed – but much more scale and speed is needed. This side event will discuss ways to transition the built environment towards net zero and dramatically reduce CO2 emissions. It will discuss what actions can be taken from corporate leaders, what is needed from local, national and global governance, and what solutions can bring all parties to the scale of transformation in the BE that is needed.  

Panel: Mikkel Bülow Lehnsby, Chairman and Co-founder of NREP; Harpa Birgisdottir, Professor on Sustainability of Buildings at BUILD at Aalborg University Denmark; Elizabeth Wangeci Chege, Sustainable Energy for All and World Green Building Council; Caroline Ray, Regional Director, East Africa, ARUP (TBC) 

View the programme / State of Green

Title: UNEP Global status report on buildings

Time: Wednesday, 9 November 14:00 – 15:00 EET (13:00 – 14:00 CET)   

Location: Building Pavilion 

Topic: UN Global Building Alliance will present their 2022 Global Status report for Buildings and Construction, once again taking stock of developments in meeting the Paris Agreement Goals. Join the session to listen about the status of the transition to a net-zero carbon, energy-efficient and resilient buildings and construction sector. 

Join event: COP27 Buildings Pavilion auditorium / Globalabc

 Title: Education and skills in the green transition of the building sector  

Time: Thursday, 10 November at 15:00 – 15:45 EET (14:00-14:45 CET)   

Location: Danish Pavilion  

Topic: Panel debate on the need for education and skills in the green transition of the building sector, how to educate people to learn and understand the consequences of different materials, how to calculate CO2, etc. 

Panel: Harpa Birgisdottir, Professor on Sustainability of Buildings at BUILD at Aalborg University Denmark; Kurt Emil Eriksen, Senior Public Affairs Management, VELUX Group; Vere Shaba, Head of Programme, WorldGBC (TBC); Nadia Gullestrup Christensen, Chair at the Danish Youth Climate Council, Danish Youth and EU Youth delegate to the UN 

View the programme / State of Green

Title: How to build energy-resilient cities 

Time: Thursday, 10 November at 17:00 – 21:00 EET (16:00-20:00 CET)   

Location: Nordic Pavilion  

Topic: We’re in the midst of the worst energy crisis in decades. Energy prices are skyrocketing, and many countries and cities are asking themselves not if, but when they will run out of resources. The war in Ukraine and a global scarcity of resources has resulted in a situation where security issues are intertwined with climate and energy policies. How do we navigate this situation without resorting to fossil fuels? How do we build energy-resilient cities?  

Join us when VELUX participates in the panel session ‘Resilience and leadership’ at round 18:45-19:45 EET (17:45-18:45 CET). 

Panel: Rasmus Abildgaard Kristensen,Vice President & Head of Public Affairs, Danfoss; Casper Kirketerp-Møller, CEO at Clever; Anthony Abbotts, Director Group Public Affairs & Sustainability, ROCKWOOL; Kurt Emil Eriksen, Senior Public Affairs Management, VELUX Group; Ilsabe von Campenhausen, BmW Foundation; Kerstin von Aretin, Program Lead, RISE Cities; Raffaela Grimm, Program Manager, RISE Cities 

Join event: Nordic COP27 Pavilion / Nordic Co-operation 

Title: Beyond value chain mitigation - pathway for corporate to unlock low carbon innovation and partnership 

Time: Friday, 11.11.2022 at 9:00-9:50 EET (08:00 – 08:50 CET) 

Location: Danish Pavilion  

Topic: While decarbonising a company’s value chain is in line with science, and reaching Near-Term and Net-Zero emissions by mid-century is tremendously important, it is also increasingly becoming the minimum societal expectation for companies. (SBTi BVCM FAQ). Currently, Beyond Value Chain Mitigation (BVCM) is a voluntary component as set by the SBTi. Companies can seize opportunities to accelerate innovative solutions the world needs to transition to a low carbon economy, as well as to address the ecological crisis – all beyond their value chains. This event will define BCVM and showcase examples of companies that are already taking these steps to show others how this could be incorporated into their net zero strategies.

Speakers: Geraldine Lin Bagger, Climate Director, Grundfos; Kurt Emil Eriksen, Senior Public Affairs Manager, VELUX Group; Josefina Brana-Varela, VP and Deputy Lead Forests, WWF-US; Pauline Op de Beeck, Head of Sales Europe, Carbon Trust 

View the programme / State of Green

Title: Decarbonising the building stock

Time: Friday, 11.11.2022 at 11:00 – 12:00 EET (10:00 – 11:00 CET) 

Location: Danish Pavilion  

Topic: The built environment accounts for 37% of global emissions, where 27% stems from buildings in operation and 10% stems from manufacturing of building materials. Operation-related emissions from buildings can be managed by energy efficiency requirements, growing the renovation rates, and implementing renewable energy into the grids. However, a rising global population and urbanization is expected to double the built area between 2020 and 2060, and this will significantly drive-up demand for materials. This issue needs to be tackled with a reduction of minimum 40% embedded carbon before 2030 to meet net zero carbon in the built environment by 2050. Some of the first countries to set threshold values for CO2 are Denmark and France, with many other countries moving forward with the same focus. This side event will discuss how to transform the built environment towards net zero, give a status update, and provide examples for how to reach the long-term targets through ambitions.  

Panel: Harpa Birgisdottir, Professor on Sustainability of Buildings at BUILD at Aalborg University Denmark; Elizabeth Wangeci Chege, Sustainable Energy for All and World Green Building Council; Nigel Tonks, Director, Region Board Member and the Sustainable Development Lead for the UK, India, Middle East and Africa at Arup 

View the programme / State of Green

Title: UNEP Global status report on buildings

Time: Friday, 11 November at 14:30 – 15:00 EET (13:30-14:00)   

Location: Danish Pavilion  

Topic: At the Danish Pavilion, UN Global Building Alliance will present their 2022 Global Status report for Buildings and Construction in an interactive session with the audience. Join the session and listen to a status update on the last years development in: energy demands for buildings, CO2 emissions from buildings, the average use of energy per m2, and the building tracker.  

View the programme / State of Green

Title: In the studio  

Time: Friday, 11.11.2022 at 15:30-16:30 EET (14:30- 15:30 CET)   

Location: Building Pavilion  

View the programme / GlobalABC 

Title: New partnerships that work for people and planet: linking livelihoods and nature-based solutions  

Time: Friday, 11.11.2022 at 17:30-18:30 EET (16:30-17:30 CET)  

Location: EU Virtual Pavilion    

Topic: In the wake of increased interest and pledges from both the public and private sectors to scale nature-based solutions (NbS) for climate action, it is time to go beyond the usual forms of collaboration. The event showcases global partnerships between most different partners uniting for the implementation of high-impact solutions for climate mitigation, adaptation, and livelihood creation. The event provides a platform to showcase challenges, opportunities, and lessons from projects when blending NbS with active civil society engagement and local government to form partnerships.  

Panel: Deborah Asikeit Cities Alliance Country Programme Manager, Uganda; Sarah Nandudu, Vice Chairperson of the National Slum Dwellers Federation of Uganda (NSDFU) and Deputy Chair of the Board of Slum Dwellers International (SDI); Jamie Rusby, Global Sustainability Director, VELUX Group; Simon Peter Weredwong, Conservation Programme Manager, WWF Uganda, moderated by Greg Munro, Director of Cities Alliances  

Join event: Register for the event at COPeusideevents.com

Title: Green growth partnership roundtable: How the EU public and private sector can work together to deliver global leadership on climate ambition and energy security

Time: Tuesday, 15.11.2022 at 09:15 – 10:45 EET (08:15- 10:45 CET)   

Location: We Mean Business Coalitions Pavilion  

Jamie Rusby, Sustainability Director, will be presenting VELUX in the discussion. 

Title: VELUX Roundtable: Decarbonising the buildings system – How do we move from target setting to collective impact in decarbonising the buildings value-chain 

Time: Tuesday, 15 November at 10.30 – 12.00 EET (09:30-11:00 CET)   

Location: Building Pavilion  

Speakers: Richard Rugg, Managing Director of Programmes and Innovation, Carbon Trust; Bex Porter, Built Environment Lead, UN Climate Champions Team; Jamie Rusby, Sustainability Director, VELUX; Smith Mordak, former RIBA Council member, member of the RIBA’s Climate Expert Advisory Group

View the programme / GlobalABC 

Title: In the studio  

Time: Tuesday, 15 November at 15.00-16.00 EET (14:00- 15:00 CET)   

Location: Building Pavilion  

Topic: Studio session where VELUX will be interviewing Sustainability Director, Jamie Rusby and other to learn about their expectations on week 2 of COP27 and their take on sector reduction of scope 3. 

View the programme / GlobalABC 

Title: Mobilising ambition loops to decarbonise the built environment

Time: Wednesday, 16 November at 10.30 – 11.30 EET (09:30– 10.30 CET)  

Location: Buildings Pavilion, Virtual session  

Topic: By 2060 the world’s building stock will double and almost 70% of the global population is projected to live in urban areas. With a focus on ‘whole-life carbon mitigation’, the sector’s leading actors are mobilising behind the net-zero buildings commitment: By 2030, 100% of new buildings must be net-zero carbon ready in operation and embodied carbon must be reduced by at least 40%, and by 2050, all new and existing assets must be net zero across the whole life cycle.  

Join us for an interactive discussion with ambitious actors in the buildings sector on how we come together through deep collaboration and joint action to decarbonise the built environment. Explore what types of ambition loops we need between business and governments to create a thriving and resilient buildings sector poised for a net-zero economy. 

Speakers: Morten Helveg Petersen: MEP, Member of the Renew Europe Group, deputy chairman of the ITRE Committee (invited); Richard Rugg, Managing Director of Programmes and Innovation, Carbon Trust; Victoria Kate Burrows, Director Advancing Net Zero, World Green Buildings Council; John Kornerup Bang, Senior Vice President, Sustainability Transformation, Stora Enso; Jamie Rusby, Group Director Sustainability, VELUX Group; Duncan Baker-Brown, Council member, co-chair of Climate Expert Advisory Group, RIBA; International Energy Agency (invited) 

Join event:

Live from COP27 Buildings Pavilion auditorium / Globalabc  

Register for the event

Title: Co-existence with nature 

Time: Wednesday, 16 November at 14:30 – 15:30 EET (13:30-14:30 CET)   

Location: The Nordic Pavilion  

Topic: COP26 concluded we can’t solve the climate crisis without nature. How can nature-based solutions protect biodiversity and help us decarbonise? At this panel debate, leading researchers, industry experts and international organisations discuss the potential of nature-based solutions to simultaneously address the climate and biodiversity crises. Join us at this session and hear about Nordic experiences, beyond value-chain mitigation, and co-existence between renewable energy and nature. Opening remarks will be provided by the Minister of Environment, Industry and Trade of the Faroe Islands. 

Speakers: Magnus Rasmussen, Minister of Climate and Trade of Faroe Island; Leonard Sandin, Research Manager, Norwegian Institute for Water Research; Jamie Rusby, Global Sustainability Director, VELUX Group; Marte Rusten, Principal Consultant Environmental Risk and Preparedness, DNV Group; Rachel Asante, Programme Manager Climate Change in Centre for Economy and Finance, International Union for Conservation of Nature, moderated by Nadia Gullestrup Christensen, Chair at the Danish Youth Climate Council, Danish Youth and EU Youth delegate to the UN 

Join event:  Nordic COP27 Pavilion / Nordic Co-operation 

Title: COP27 Thematic session: 2030 is today - how we can act NOW to halve built environment emissions by 2030

Time: Wednesday, 16 November at 13:30-16:30 EET (12:30-15:30 CET) 

Location: Building Pavilion  

Topic: The building and construction sector is responsible for approx. 40% of the global energy related carbon emissions. To achieve a net zero built environment no later than 2050, we need to halve current emissions from 14Gt to 7Gt per year by 2030. This requires having a systemic approach to reduce the entire whole life carbon emissions, by strongly reducing operational and embodied carbon emissions. What does this mean, how can it be done in practice and who is doing it? This thematic session will provide an overview of leading initiatives and leaders, provide clarity on terminologies, demonstrate the actions beyond the ambitions, showcasing implementable solutions and providing clear indications of ways forward. We need to start building now what we need for 2030. 2030 is today. Read the full program here.  

Join us when VELUX participates in the panel session focusing on how to enable change in the sector at around 15:45-16:15 EET (14:45-15:15 CET).  

Panel: Will be announced soon  

Join event: COP27 Buildings Pavilion auditorium / Globalabc

Title: SBTi targets – turning Scope 3 ambitions into action  

Time: Thursday, 17 November at 10:30 – 11:30 EET (09:30 – 10:30 CET)   

Location: Nordic Pavilion 

Topic: How can companies across industries set SBTi targets to meet the Paris Agreement and move beyond their commitments to achieve their reduction targets? Delivering on carbon emission reductions in Scope 3 is widely recognized as the main challenge for the manufacturing sector. Companies must work together in finding common solutions to common challenges. It is vital we move beyond target setting and address how we turn ambition into action.  

This panel will discuss solutions to meet the Paris Agreement for industries across all sectors; solutions to reduce emissions in the value chain by working together with suppliers, customers; guidance on how industries can work with NGOs like Carbon Trust to set and meet Science Based Targets.  

Panel: Pauline Op de Beeck, Head of Sales, Carbon Trust; Jamie Rusby, Group Director Sustainability, VELUX Group; Martin Wiese, Vice President and Head of Sustainability & Government Affairs, HEMPEL A/S 

Join event: Nordic COP27 Pavilion / Nordic Co-operation  

Title: VELUX Roundtable: Zero emission buildings in building legislation and NDC. Urge countries to set ambitious decarbonisation targets for the built environment. 

Time: Thursday, 17 November at 12:00 - 13:30 EET (11:00- 12:30 CET)   

Location: Building Pavilion 

View the programme / GlobalABC 

Title: SBTi targets – turning Scope 3 ambitions into action  

Time: Thursday, 17 November at 14:00 – 15:00 EET (13:00 – 14:00 CET)   

Location: Danish Pavilion  

Topic: How can companies across industries set SBTi targets to meet the Paris Agreement and move beyond their commitments to achieve their reduction targets? Delivering on carbon emission reductions in Scope 3 is widely recognized as the main challenge for the manufacturing sector. Companies must work together in finding common solutions to common challenges. It is vital we move beyond target setting and address how we turn ambition into action. 

This panel will discuss solutions to meet the Paris Agreement for industries across all sectors; solutions to reduce emissions in the value chain by working together with suppliers and customers, guidance on how industries can work with NGOs like Carbon Trust to set, and how to meet Science Based Targets.  

Panel: Pauline Op de Beeck, Head of Sales, Carbon Trust; Jamie Rusby, Group Director Sustainability, VELUX Group; Martin Wiese, Vice President and Head of Sustainability & Government Affairs, HEMPEL A/S  

View the programme / State of Green

VELUX Contact details 

On site at COP27 (7^th of November – 17^th of November) 

Kurt Emil Eriksen, Senior Public Affairs Manager 

kurt.emil.eriksen@velux.com 

tlf.: +45 23 20 01 41 

On site at COP27 (15^th of November – 17^th of November) 

Jamie Rusby, Sustainability Director  

james.rusby@velux.com 

Press on site (9^th of November – 16^th of November) 

Yvette Roper, Global Media Relations Manager 

yvette.roper@velux.com  

tlf.: +45 30 47 59 42 

On a personal level, Lars Petersson is 53 years old and Swedish. He lives in the Copenhagen area with his wife Annica with whom he has two grown-up children.

David Briggs to retire from VELUX 

After five years at the helm of the VELUX Group, David Briggs will step down as CEO in September.

In the midst of global climate negotiations at COP26 in Glasgow, UK, the VELUX Group, the Science-Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) and WWF CEE nature conservation organization have joined forces to inspire the business community across the CEE region to be nature positive in their approach to tackling climate change.

The IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Report is clear in its direction. Unless there are immediate, rapid and large-scale reductions in greenhouse gas emissions the world cannot achieve the target set by the Paris Agreement to limit global warming to 1.5°C. Many of us are already feeling the consequences of global warming. This year in Hungary, after an exceptionally dry spring, a record-breaking summer followed: the average temperature in the first two summer months has exceeded 23 °C which never happened since the start of measurements some 120 years ago.

The regional event was the third in a series of roundtables hosted by WWF CEE and VELUX, aimed at making clear the opportunities for businesses in the CEE region who set goals that are supported by science and aim to be climate- and nature-positive. The virtual event now moves to Slovakia (30 November) and Czech Republic (1 December). A science-based method is the foundation of The VELUX Group’s pioneering approach to addressing the dual climate and nature crisis – the Lifetime Carbon Neutral commitment. This means the Group has committed to capture its historical carbon footprint through nature-based solutions, reduce its future carbon emissions in line with and beyond the prevailing climate science behind the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C scenario, and partner with (WWF) on forest conservation projects around the world.

The first VELUX funded forest project with WWF International – in Uganda’s Albertine Rift – officially commenced in August of this year. The project will serve as Uganda’s largest ever contribution to its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). The approximately 34,000-hectare project is expected to provide a saving of around one million tonnes of CO₂.

Through the partnership with WWF, the VELUX Group will address 5.6 million tonnes of CO2 (with a 25% buffer included) emitted since the company’s foundation in 1941. VELUX IS also pursuing the ambition to be a 100% carbon neutral company by 2030 (Scope 1 and 2), which it is doing in partnership with Schneider Electric. The partnership, which has been extended to three years, will see all VELUX factory sites successfully reduce their energy use and scale renewable capacity. Schneider Electric is supporting VELUX by implementing a global monitoring system and to deliver Zero Carbon Action plans. The first plans are to be piloted at two of the company’s top energy-consuming plants, which represent approximately 25% of all energy used in VELUX production: JTJ Sonneborn Industrie GmbH in Germany and NM Polska Sp. z o.o. in Poland. VELUX has also created an Energy Excellence programme in accordance with ISO50001. The Group is working to halve carbon emissions across its value chain (Scope 3) by 2030. These targets have been approved by the SBTi. 
 
The first VELUX funded forest project, in its 21-year partnership with WWF International, has officially commenced. The ‘Natural Forest Regeneration for Enhanced Carbon Stocks in the Albertine Rift’ (FRECAR) project will be led by WWF-Uganda in partnership with the National Forestry Authority of Uganda. The approximately 34,000-hectare project is expected to provide a saving of around one million tonnes of CO2. All carbon emissions reductions or removals generated from the project funded will serve as a contribution to the government of Uganda, Uganda’s largest ever contribution to its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
The FRECAR project is located in the Albertine Rift in Uganda, an area of exceptional faunal and moderate floral endemism which spans five nations. It is the first of five forest projects which will see VELUX capture its historical carbon footprint since the business was founded in 1941.