Domea.dk will apply the Living Places principles to establish sustainable communities and homes with a low carbon footprint and healthy indoor climates. So far, the plan is to initially develop a housing project of 40 new rental homes for Domea Faxe in the southern part of Zealand.

Making low-carbon emission housing affordable for many

Going forward, the concept is expected to play a significant role in Domea.dk's upcoming new construction and development plans. Hopefully, this new partnership will contribute to scaling the concept, principles, and the extensive knowledge that Living Places has provided, making it accessible to far more people than is currently the case.

Through the agreement, the VELUX Group shares analyses, calculations and simulations from Living Places as well as detailed information about the five principles behind the Living Places concept with Domea.dk.

It follows an initial letter of intent between Novelis and VELUX Group entered in 2022. Now, a long-term commercial agreement replaces this and confirms the goal to reach a level of 3 kg CO₂eq/kg flat rolled aluminium or below by 2030.

Benefits of Novelis’ recycled aluminium 

Recycling aluminium saves energy and reduces emissions by up to 95%* compared to primary aluminium, making it a key enabler in advancing decarbonised solutions for building materials and construction. The aluminium alloy provided by Novelis to VELUX is specifically optimised for use in roof window production.

Pushing boundaries for low-carbon building materials with long-term supplier 

Novelis is a leader in driving low-carbon aluminium solutions and has been a supplier to VELUX for more than 40 years. Since 2022, the companies have been collaborating closely to reduce the carbon footprint of the aluminium used in VELUX products. To date, more than 50% of the aluminium supplied by Novelis to VELUX has been replaced with high recycled content, and the partners are working on increasing this amount steadily in the coming years.

Significance of low-carbon materials in VELUX products

Aluminium is one of several key materials VELUX Group is investigating together with its suppliers to help achieve reductions in its products and overall carbon footprint. With more than 98% of the company’s carbon footprint coming from scope 3, value chain emissions, decarbonisation efforts require effective collaboration with key suppliers.

The VELUX Group has seen a steady reduction in its emissions from own operations (scope 1 and 2) from 52kt CO₂e in 2020 to 21kt CO₂e in 2024. This is a total reduction of 60% - whereof 11% is achieved in 2024 primarily due to an ongoing switch to renewable energy sources and improvements in energy efficiency at VELUX productions sites.

The VELUX Group also continued its efforts on reducing scope 3 emissions in its value chain in 2024. Scope 3 emissions decreased slightly to 1,153kt CO₂e - a 0,53% decrease compared to 2023. This is primarily due to efforts to procure and incorporate lower carbon materials in VELUX products. VELUX furthermore entered a long-term agreement with ArcelorMittal to ensure a ten-year guaranteed supply of lower-carbon-emission-steel.

A strengthened focus on circularity and biodiversity
In line with the VELUX Group’s ambition to integrate circularity across its value chain, the company initiated four circularity projects across different markets in 2024 to test circular business opportunities in customer offerings. The aim is to gather insights into areas such as take back schemes, refurbishment and maintenance service to be able scale the principles.

In 2024, the VELUX Group accelerated its efforts to protect and enhance biodiversity - an essential foundation for resilient ecosystems and long-term business success. A new methodology was developed to assess biodiversity at VELUX sites, along with a catalogue of concrete actions to improve local ecosystems. The first assessments at six sites in Denmark, Poland, Italy, and Hungary established a baseline to guide future improvements.

Additional sustainability highlights from 2024:

• 3-percentage point increase in both women in management (to 31%) and women in senior management (to 35%) and compared to 2023
• For the second consecutive year, VELUX received a gold rating from the global sustainability ratings organization EcoVadis.
• VELUX signed up to the EV100 and increased its share of electric cars as part of its total car fleet by 8,74% in 2024
• VELUX set a new target on Energy intensity of a 56% reduction from baseline year 2015 to 2030 by increasing energy efficiency and energy management
• VELUX joined the coalition behind the Children’s Living Places project, led by SOS Children’s Villages Denmark. A project aiming to reform the childcare sector in Ukraine and help rebuild homes to foster families with a low CO₂ footprint and a healthier indoor climate based on the Living Places principles.

See more sustainability highlights from 2024: VELUX Sustainability 

Read the full 2024 Sustainability Report.

As a first step towards promoting biodiversity across all company sites, the VELUX Group has assessed six different locations. The work is part of a larger program designed to address biodiversity conservation and impact reduction throughout the entire VELUX value chain.

VELUX has worked with Fælleshaven, Deloitte and BioCircular to establish a comprehensive methodology for assessing the state of biodiversity across approximately 40 company sites. Building on tools from organisations such as Society for Ecological Restoration and Science Based Targets Network, the new methodology is tailor-made for VELUX, a global company present in 37 countries and across several climate zones.

A value chain approach for promoting biodiversity
The first steps were initiated in 2023 with Fælleshaven as a strategic partner of the project.

During 2025, the VELUX Group will carry out additional site assessments and start the implementation of actions at the first six sites. By 2030, all VELUX sites aim to have initiated or implemented actions that set them on the path to achieving their full biodiversity potential.

The long-term ambition is to address biodiversity conservation and impact reduction throughout the entire VELUX value chain. In 2024, a materiality assessment was conducted. The next step is to carry out an assessment of the entire value chain, looking at impacts, dependencies, risks and opportunities. This will help identify potential opportunities for suppliers to mitigate negative effects on biodiversity.

Companies see loss of biodiversity as a threat but lack tangible targets
According to a World Economic Forum report, half of the world’s total GDP is dependent on access to natural resources. This clearly underlines the importance of acting within biodiversity and nature protection.

On top of accelerating work on biodiversity, VELUX also finances forest restoration and conservation projects in Uganda, Madagascar and Vietnam in collaboration with WWF Denmark. The projects are designed to reduce and remove CO2 equivalent to the historic emissions of the company’s own operations (scope 1 and 2), while strengthening the biodiversity of the project areas.

Details: How VELUX works with biodiversity site assessments

• For VELUX sites larger than 100,000m², or in proximity to a protected area, the biodiversity site assessment is conducted by an external biodiversity expert on site, and in collaboration with a local team. For VELUX sites smaller than 100,000 m², local real estate and facility services conduct the assessment with support from an external biodiversity expert.
• All data collected across VELUX sites will be entered into the Global Biodiversity Information Facility. This international network and data infrastructure platform provides open access to biodiversity data, supporting research and policy decisions worldwide.
• All sites will get a baseline state defining the current and potential future scores – a so-called BioWheel – which is based on the Society for Ecological Restoration’s standard for ecosystem restoration and is adapted to the types of nature surrounding VELUX facilities.
• To support sites with their biodiversity projects, VELUX has created a biodiversity playbook, an initiative catalogue, as well as a maintenance guide for site managers.

In 2024, VELUX Group has been awarded 78 points, a significant increase of 7 percentage points since 2023. This score positions VELUX Group among the top 3% of all companies worldwide. The rating scale ranges from 0 to 100. 

VELUX Group aims for platinum

With two consecutive gold ratings in 2023 and 2024, VELUX Group is aiming for the platinum rating, which would place it in the top 1% of companies globally.

The annual rating process is comprehensive and requires extensive documentation.

In collaboration with VELUX and IDA, Roskilde Festival challenged students to build elements for a lounge area for festival guests using VELUX window frames. Since the start of the competition in March, 50 groups participated in the challenge. Of these, 11 groups were selected to present their furniture concepts to a jury of experts in innovation, design, and sustainability at Roskilde Festival.

Focus on circularity

The competition is about rethinking building methods. The construction industry is a significant CO2 emitter, therefore we need to change our mindset when building by reusing and selecting more sustainable materials. The Sustainability Challenge at Roskilde Festival aims to test the next generation's creativity and their ability to think in a more circular way.

Unlike previous years, where the focus was on building solutions from various recyclable materials, this year's participants were required to construct their furniture using window frames made out of scrap wood from VELUX window production. The materials were provided to the finalists two days before the finale.

FRAME wins Sustainability Challenge 2024

The project ‘FRAME’ won the competition. The four winners behind it are Maria Lykke, Emilie Funderud, Anders Nielsen, and Caroline Brarup Schäfer, all study Furniture Design at VIA Design & Business in Herning. They used plexiglass and nine VELUX window frames to create an installation at Roskilde Festival.  ‘FRAME’ focused on community and interaction by providing spaces to sit, relax, and share festival experiences by writing on the plexiglass panels. The project also emphasised sustainability, since the solution could be easily packed up, and reused after the festival. 

Impressed jury members

The projects were built and came to life in just 48 hours after being initially conceived and developed in March, when the competition began. The ideas were refined to the last minute detail and selected to be built and ready for the finale within two days and it was this level of dedication that impressed the jury.

The winning group received DKK 10,000, and their solution will be exhibited near the Orange Stage at Roskilde Festival so guests can use it for the rest of the festival. Selected projects will also have the opportunity to collaborate with the Circular Laboratory at Roskilde Festival to further develop their ideas.

Read more about this year's competition here.

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

In November 2022, the VELUX Group and BayWa r.e. announced a PPA to develop two large solar PV parks in southern Spain: one in Gerena, close to Seville, and the other in Alhendín, near Granada. The Alhendín park was recently completed and is now delivering electricity to the local power grid.

With Alhendín fully operational, VELUX has achieved its 100% renewable electricity goal, while enabling a new renewable energy plant in Europe. The park consists of more than 85,000 solar panels and produces 96.8 GWh of electricity annually, equivalent to the electricity consumption of 24,700 households.

Pioneering Agri-PV installation
The Alhendín solar park is a pioneering Agri-PV installation, combining renewable energy generation and agriculture: about 10% of the park is designed to allow farming machinery to pass between solar panels. This project is the first of its kind for BayWa r.e. in Spain.

Solar Plant Symbiosis
The Solar Plant Symbiosis includes a suite of measures to enhance biodiversity and foster community involvement. The project is currently being developed in partnership with the two Spanish universities Universidad de Córdoba and Universidad Autónoma de Madrid.

So far, the scope of the Solar Plant Symbiosis includes the following additional measures:

Baseline studies, digitalisation and monitoring of vegetation

• Agri-PV pilot and rainwater collection system
• Grass planting with natural seeds and wildflower species
• Wildlife refuges, ponds for amphibians, bird drinking tanks, nest boxes and posts
• Hatching area to protect the endangered Lesser Kestrel bird species
• Steppe habitat improvement
• Monitoring and assessment of measures to create a guide of best practices that can be replicated in other projects
• Social actions in the area, such as workshops with local interest groups and educational school visits

Looking ahead
These measures in the Alhendín park will be established step by step and are expected to be fully realised by Spring 2025. The Gerena solar park is awaiting regulatory approval locally and is scheduled to be completed in 2025. The capacity of the Gerena park is expected to be about 60 MWp.

When both solar plants are fully operational, they will generate 167 GWh of renewable electricity annually for VELUX, equivalent to the electricity consumption of approximately 45,000 European homes. About 80% of the electricity produced from the plants will be generated due to the PPA with VELUX. The PPA will reduce the carbon footprint of the VELUX Group by approximately 40,000 tonnes of CO₂e from the company’s European operations and activities on a yearly basis.  

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

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

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”.

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. 

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 

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 

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.