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.

The total climate footprint of the building and construction industry accounts for approximately 30% of Denmark's total CO₂ emissions[1]. To further accelerate the green transition, it is therefore necessary to implement and scale new solutions with a lower carbon footprint. The aim of the new agreement between the VELUX Group and Thylander is precisely to accelerate the transition of the construction sector and offer low-emission homes with a healthy indoor climate to more Danes.

Living Places principles to be implemented in rental housing in Greater Copenhagen
In 2023, Thylander launched its Build for Life fund, which aims to build attractive rental housing in Greater Copenhagen with high quality and good materials - and with a 30% lower carbon footprint than required by the Danish building regulations. The Living Places concept will play a significant role in the continued improvement of the fund’s new-built housing. The ambition is to build the new homes with inspiration from the five principles of the Living Places concept; that homes should be healthy, simple, flexible, scalable and strengthen the community.

Thylander is already working on the project 'Gartnerhaven' in Hvidovre with 106 new rental homes and ‘Søagerhusene’ in Smørum with 105 new rental homes. The plan is to add further construction projects over the coming period. The ambition is to build more than 500 new rental homes based on the Living Places concept over the coming years.

With 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 Thylander.

About Living Places
The award-winning Living Places concept developed by the VELUX Group in collaboration with EFFEKT architects and Artelia engineers opened the doors to the first prototype in Copenhagen in April last year. The ambition of the project is to inspire and show that change is possible and that it is already possible to build with lower CO₂ emissions and a better indoor climate at a scalable and affordable level. Living Places is based on five key principles; that housing should be healthy, simple, flexible, scalable and empower community.

Read more about Living Places

1: https://concito.dk/nyheder/nye-co2-krav-kan-paavirke-flere-facetter-byggeriet, https://www.ft.dk/samling/20191/almdel/KEF/bilag/393/2229190.pdf

In July and August 2024, VELUX Group invited nearly 100 architects, entrepreneurs, designers and journalists from 12 countries to live at Living Places Copenhagen as part of an experiment that builds on years of research led by VELUX Group in scientifically monitoring different model homes to better understand how building design impacts residents' comfort and satisfaction while assessing indoor environmental quality and its effects on human well-being.

Living Places explores how to build homes with an ultra-low CO₂ footprint and an optimal indoor climate using standard materials, methods and technologies available today.

Using 17 environmental sensors strategically placed in the two houses, a questionnaire as well as personal testimonies, VELUX Group examined the houses' indoor comfort performance in terms of indoor air quality, thermal comfort, natural light levels and noise as well as guests’ perceptions of the houses’ functional comfort, such as the layout, their experiences with the community and atmosphere, and their overall satisfaction with the houses.

Five key conclusions from the Living Places Living experiment

1. Living Places can inspire and showcase how to build sustainably
For over 20 years, the VELUX Group has initiated and participated in more than 30 demonstration buildings exploring the future of healthy buildings through full scale experiments. In 2021, VELUX Group launched an open innovation process to change the way we build today towards more sustainable practices and to decarbonize buildings. The result, Living Places, shows that it is possible to build more sustainable and healthy buildings using standard materials, methods and technologies that are available today.

2. Healthy buildings that are good for people and the planet can be achieved by applying a holistic approach focusing more on comfort, energy and environment parameters
Advocating for the well-being of people and the planet requires a holistic approach to sustainable living and building practices that looks at the entire life cycle of a building, from design and construction to use.

3. The way we design our homes can significantly influence residents' well-being and their way of living
Our homes are an important part of our overall health. We spend 90% of our time indoors, yet 1 out of 3 Europeans is exposed to at least one indoor climate hazard such as lack of daylight, cold, damp or noise, according to the Healthy Homes Barometer 2022 and Healthy Buildings Barometer 2024. The way we build and live directly impacts our physical and mental health. The design of the house and indoor environment has a strong positive impact on residents' well-being, with over 70% of Living Places guests reporting improved mood, increased relaxation, and a sense of connection to nature while experiencing minimal negative effects.

4. The design of Living Places Copenhagen, which optimizes daylight and natural ventilation, has been well-received by guests
Designed to optimize daylight and natural ventilation, 83% of all guests favoured spending time in rooms with more natural light while 90% also found it easy to adjust the shadings to ensure an optimal indoor environment. As part of creating well-being at home, functional factors like design, layout, temperature, lighting, and indoor climate can invoke immediate feelings of physical comfort in a building. During their stay, 85% of the guests perceived the houses to fit their functional needs.

5. Living Places Copenhagen has achieved an indoor thermal environment within the comfortable range according to the European Standard
On a conceptual basis, Living Places had been awarded a first-class indoor climate. The results indicate "comfortable ranges" which reflect the actual performance during the experiment period which included the indoor temperature being within the best level of the European Standard (EN 16798-1:2019 standard (Category I)) 89% of the time in one house and 90% of the time in the other and within the comfortable range of the European Standard (EN 16798-1:2019 standard (Category II)) 98% of the time in both houses.

To learn more visit: Build for Life - Living Places Learnings 

This year, the award has a new value-based focus and honours Living Places Copenhagen, developed by the VELUX Group, EFFEKT, Artelia and Enemærke & Petersen, as a pioneering example of design that creates positive change and addresses the major climate and health challenges we face today.

The Danish Design Award 2024 marks a new chapter in its history by moving away from fixed categories and focusing on solutions that challenge traditional boundaries. This year, judging was based on five core values: Do No Harm, Pursue Beauty, Lead the Way, Prove Your Impact and Solve Problems Worth Solving. Living Places Copenhagen was highlighted by the jury as a project that combines beautiful design with a low carbon footprint, healthy indoor environments and a whole new approach to how we live together.

A new paradigm in the construction industry
The Living Places concept was developed to show how an innovative approach to construction can help solve global climate and health challenges. The project has been exhibited as prototypes in the Railroad District in Copenhagen for the past 1.5 years, showing how it is possible to build homes with an ultra-low carbon footprint and with a first-class indoor climate - at a price that matches the market for newly built detached and terraced houses at scale.

Design that sets a new standard
The Living Places project has already received significant national and international recognition, and with this award, the Danish Design Award recognises the aesthetic and design quality of the project, which goes hand in hand with the sustainable principles.

About Living Places
The Living Places concept is developed by the VELUX Group in collaboration with EFFEKT architects and Artelia engineers. The first prototypes were presented in Copenhagen in April 2023. Living Places has already been nominated for 14 national and international architecture and design awards and has won 8 of them. Take a virtual tour through Living Places Copenhagen or read more about the project.

The Netherlands face enormous challenges in the built environment that is dominated by a significant housing shortage, houses being built with four times the recommended CO₂ footprint[1], and homes becoming increasingly complex and less comfortable for users. The Smûk house is an example of how to address these challenges as it showcases a house based on the Living Places concept that is affordable to build, healthier to live in with a minimal CO₂ footprint.

The built environment is responsible for 38% of all Dutch CO₂ emissions with 27% of these coming from energy use during the building's lifecycle and 11% from emissions during the production of building materials[2]. These numbers underline the urgency of transforming the building industry by applying new construction methods and ways of thinking.

A new way forward for Dutch housing
Although the Smûk house offers higher comfort and is affordable to build, it still faces challenges in Dutch legislation to actually be built as an alternative to the current housing tradition. From environmental plans and installations to visible beam constructions, there are challenges to overcome in urban planning and to achieve permits.

BGDD is known for its innovative approach and collaborates with local farmers to grow biobased insulation materials, such as hemp and flax. Additionally, peat meadow areas are flooded to cultivate cattail and miscanthus. This not only reduces CO₂ emissions but also produces circular materials for construction. 

The Smûk house was unveiled on Thursday, September 19, at the construction company's site in Dokkum, Friesland where over 350 customers, policymakers, and partners participated in a large event that focused on inspiring, connecting and setting new standards. Her Majesty Queen Máxima, Director General from the Ministry of Housing and Spatial planning Mr. C. Kuijpers, King’s commissioner from the province of Fryslân mr. A. Brok, and Mayor from the municipality of Noard-East mr. J. Kramer were also present at the event.

[1]Coppe8: Woningbouw binnen planetaire grenzen
[2] Dutch Green Building Council (DGBC); Whole life carbon

The total carbon footprint of the construction industry accounts for approximately 30% of CO2 emissions in Denmark[1], of which 10% comes from the production of building materials and materials for the entire building and construction industry, including the construction of bridges, roads, renovation and new construction[2]. Consequently, there is a need to implement and scale new solutions with a lower carbon footprint if the construction sector is to succeed in the green transition. The new partnership agreement between the VELUX Group and HusCompagniet is a good example of how partners across the construction sector join forces to realize this ambition.

HusCompagniet wishes to contribute to the development of the construction industry - especially within sustainability and the green transition. Since 2019, HusCompagniet has worked with sustainability initiatives as an integral part of its strategy and is now systematically collecting data and knowledge from its houses and suppliers to establish an informed basis for reducing CO2 emissions. With the partner agreement on Living Places, HusCompagniet will gain an even deeper insight into how to work with material selection, design, CO2 footprint, and health in homes going forward.

The ambition behind the award-winning Living Places project is to inspire change and show that it is already possible to build with lower CO2 emissions and a better indoor climate at a scalable and affordable level. Living Places is based on five key principles; that homes should be healthy, simple, flexible, scalable, and empower communities.

With the agreement, the VELUX Group shares analyses, calculations, and simulations from Living Places as well as detailed information about the five principles with HusCompagniet. HusCompagniet will work to implement this knowledge in several future projects with the ambition of eventually offering homes with a first-class indoor climate and as low a carbon footprint as possible to Danish homeowners. Thus, the partner agreement is a long-term collaboration between the two parties, where the overall ambition is to push sustainable development and translate insights from the Living Places project to homes for the general Danish population.

About Living Places
The Living Places concept is developed by the VELUX Group in collaboration with EFFEKT architects and Artelia engineers, who opened the doors to the first prototype in Copenhagen in April last year. Since then, several Danes have shown interest in building houses based on the Living Places concept.

Read more about Living Places

[1] https://concito.dk/nyheder/nye-co2-krav-kan-paavirke-flere-facetter-byggeriet , https://www.ft.dk/samling/20191/almdel/KEF/bilag/393/2229190.pdf
[2] https://www.ft.dk/samling/20191/almdel/KEF/bilag/393/2229190.pdf

One in four Europeans live in buildings where indoor air quality falls below national standards.  Since we spend 90% of our time indoors, how we build and live directly impacts our physical and mental health. Living in a building with a poor indoor climate can result in severe health issues with ill effects ranging from respiratory and skin problems, headaches, and allergies to serious mental health concerns and life-threatening heat or cold[1]. 

The Living Places concept explores how to create an optimal indoor climate with the lowest possible carbon footprint using readily available and tested products, materials, and technologies. On a conceptual basis, Living Places has been awarded a first-class indoor climate, but now the time has come to test how the houses perform with real people living in them.

Since July over 20 architects, influencers, and families from across Europe have lived in the Living Places Copenhagen houses in the railroad district in Copenhagen.

Live monitoring of indoor climate performance
The indoor climate performance of Living Places was predicted during the design stage using simulations and compared synthetically against a benchmark Danish house through the Active House Radar.

The health impacts of Living Places Copenhagen on its occupants are measured through the data from spatial sensors tracking temperature, relative humidity, C02, barometric pressure, particles, light, sounds, occupancy, and some VOCs and the learning will be shared during the fall of 2024.

See the virtual tour of Living Places Copenhagen and read more about Living Places
 

[1] Healthy Buildings Barometer 2024

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 renowned jury comprised of Song Yehao (CN), Jenni Reuter (FI), Ewa Kurylowicz (PL) and Kent Holm from VELUX A/S (DK) who met for the jury meeting in Copenhagen.

The jury were impressed by the overall range of the projects that touched on so many different aspects of daylight and the creative ways in which the students interpreted the theme ‘Light of Tomorrow.’ It was clear to the jury that students are engaged in the environmental, social, cultural and political key issues of our time and that they are really seeking and exploring solutions. In particular, the jury were struck by the existential nature of the issues highlighted in the submitted projects on both a global and local level. The jury were particularly drawn to projects that demonstrated a research-backed approach to tackling their proposed problem, with a strong concept and clear connection to daylight. 

Natural light is a universal necessity - there is no life without light. The students' projects clearly demonstrate that what is important for people is important for architects and thus highlights the necessity of working with daylight in architectural practice to ensure a brighter future for all. 

The jury made their final evaluation of the projects in accordance with the following criteria from the award brief: 1) the work with daylight as a premise for architecture, 2) how the project is researched and documented, 3) how the project addresses contemporary and future challenges, 4) the level of experimentation and innovation, as well as the overall graphic presentation of the project or how the project presents itself. 

The jury unanimously selected the winners as listed below.  

The following regional winning projects in the Daylight in Buildings category were awarded with 1,000 € for the student(s) and 250 € for the teacher(s): 

Western Europe: Silo of the ambient light  
Students: Anniina Rautakoski 
School: Metropolia University of Applied Sciences 
Teacher: Janne Järvinen 
Country: Finland

Eastern Europe & the Middle East: Lightroof  
Student: Aleksandra Cassino 
School: Politechnika Warszawska  
Teachers: Anna Lorens  
Country: Poland

The Americas: Lighting up the Rocinha favela  
Student: Paulo André Pereira & Mariana Costa do Carmo 
School: Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro  
Teacher: Eliane Silva Barbosa  
Country: Brazil

Asia & Oceania: The light filter 
Students: Wan Zilin, Poon Gin Yong & Zang Jiayou 
School: Tsinghua University 
Teacher: Li Xiaodong 
Country: China 

Africa: Radiant echoes 
Student: Kenza Kettani & Bouchra Rah 
School: International university of Rabat Teacher: Yassir Aziz 
Country: Morocco 

The following regional winning projects in the Daylight Investigations category were awarded with 1,000 € for the student(s) and 250 € for the teacher(s):

Western Europe: Solar Sinter 
Students: Anders Eugen Lund 
School: Royal Danish Academy 
Teacher: Runa Johannesen 
Country: Denmark 

Eastern Europe & the Middle East: (No) daylight 
Student: Iwona Kin, Alicja Smoczyk, Agata Czugała & Paweł Mordeja
School:  Politechnika Wrocławska
Teachers: Tomasz Broma 
Country: Poland 

The Americas: FeatherGuard 
Student: Yining Ma 
School: University of California, Berkeley 
Teacher: Myrna Ayoub 
Country: United States 

Asia & Oceania: Gaplight Collective 
Students: Zehong Zhang, Ruotong Luo, Jiaxun Song, Dasen Li & Xinyue Dong 
School: South China University of Technology 
Teacher: Zheng Hao 
Country: China 

Africa: Sparkling souls 
Students: Bidzan Pout Fabrice Emmanuel, Abega Ebanga Rosalie Valentine, Tambe Mcwilfried Masoda, Ndibatchou Alexis Junior & Fopa Jerry Karmel 
School: École Nationale Supérieure des Travaux 
Teacher: Aba Nkasse Alain 
Country: Cameroon 

The regional winners are invited to a 3-day trip to Münster, Germany, to The European Association for Architectural Education (EAAE) Annual conference at the end of August. At this annual architectural event, they will present their projects to the jury.

After the regional winners’ project presentation August 26-30 at the EAAE conference, the jury will select the two global winners of the International VELUX Award 2024. The winners in categories Daylight Investigations and Daylight in Buildings will receive the prize of 5,000 €; 4,000 € to the student(s) and 1,000 € to the teacher(s).

International VELUX Award 2024 is organised in close collaboration with the International Union of Architects (UIA), and is acknowledged by the European Association for Architectural Education (EAAE), Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA) and Architectural Research Centres Consortium (ARCC). 

Read more about IVA.

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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 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 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

Other main achievements in 2019 include:

• 1.7 work accidents per one million working hours, our second-best result ever and about five times lower than the comparable industry benchmark. 

• 99.6% of wood used to manufacture VELUX windows in Europe comes from certified, sustainable forests. 

Our latest sustainability report includes an overview of our actions for a more sustainable future, plus progress on goals set in our Energy and Climate Strategy 2020 and its five focus areas, as shown below.  

Healthy buildings and SDG focus 

We help create healthy and sustainable buildings in order to reduce the environmental impact of cities and communities, while increasing the health and well-being of people who spend up to 90% of the day indoors. In our efforts to become more sustainable, we directly contribute to the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals 3, 7, 11, 12 and 17. 

New ambitious sustainability strategy ahead 

In 2019, climate change really came to the fore, highlighting the pressing need for significant sustainable actions. The VELUX Group will take such actions with its Sustainability Strategy 2030, which will be launched later this year.  
 

Read our Sustainability Report for 2019 here.

Our Sustainability Report for 2019, as well as all of our previous reports, are available for download here.

Women have a central role to play in driving climate actions to transform cities and communities into sustainable places for people to live. By sponsoring this challenge, The VELUX Group acknowledges the foresight of women in creating solutions for a sustainable future and the barriers they often face in bringing their ideas to the fore.

“In order to reach the 1.5- degree, cities must excel in all fields – and one thing is certain, we won’t make it if we don’t actively involve women entrepreneurs in the process of reinventing our cities,” adds Mayor Anna König Jerlmyr, Stockholm and C40 city member. “With their perspective, expertise and know-how, rest assured we can co-create climate solutions to bend the carbon emission curve. With the C40 Women4Climate Tech Challenge, we invite all participating cities to reach out to their start-up communities and step up their inclusive climate action.”

The call for applications to the second round of the Women4Climate Tech Challenge opens today and runs until January 31, 2020. Four C40 cities – Los Angeles, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Stockholm and Lisbon - have committed to pilot one of the winning solutions in their cities. An expert jury will pick 10 finalists in February 2020, and the finalists will present their solutions to the participating C40 mayors and The VELUX Group at a direct, live pitch event which will determine the 4 winners.
 

Three thematic Tech Challenge areas

The challenge is within three thematic areas focusing on:

• Adaptation and risk cities response
   
• Healthy public buildings and households
   
• Green and healthier streets
   

Overall aim of Tech Challenge

The Tech Challenge supports diversity in technology and innovation, where women are largely underrepresented. According to C40:

• Women only represent 17% of employees, 4% of software engineers and 1% of leadership positions in the combined science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) sector.
   
• Only 3% of venture capital partners are women.
   
• Just 14% of start-up investors (or 'Business Angels') are women.
   
• Research shows that start-ups led by men receive over 16 times more funding than those led by women, and survey data suggests that this disparity is gender-based.

According to C40, these inequalities represent a significant barrier to developing inclusive climate responses, which need to be addressed with tailored actions and tools to support female entrepreneurship and break down the barriers women meet in venture capital and start-up creation. The Women4Climate Tech Challenge is one of these tools.
 

These are some of the findings in the 2019 edition of the Healthy Homes Barometer, the fifth annual study launched by the VELUX Group, which this year focuses on some of the most vulnerable members of society - children. It finds that children living with unhealthy indoor climates are significantly more likely to report eczema, coughing, wheezing, asthma, allergies and poor respiratory health.

This can impact students’ education, with the effect being increased absence from school. Furthermore, there are negative consequences for society that go beyond children’s health and learning and impact the economy. Productivity is reduced through work loss as adults care for their sick children.
 

Key findings

• 1 out of 3 European children, or 26 million, live in unhealthy buildings
• Children living with four risk factors (dampness or mould, darkness, noise and cold) are 4.2 times more likely to report poor health
• European children could miss nearly two million days of school each year because of health problems related to buildings with deficiencies
• Improved air quality can boost student performance (task solving) by up to 15%.
   

Educational impact

Children are not only experiencing health issues due to poor indoor climates; they are also losing out on their education. The conditions that are linked to living in unhealthy homes are responsible for nearly two million missed school days. On average, this means about 2.5 missed school days per sick child per year because of illnesses associated with an unhealthy indoor climate.

Healthier homes and schools for healthier economies

Improving ventilation in schools and reducing exposure to dampness or mould in Europe’s homes will not only benefit children’s health, it could also boost the European economy cumulatively by more than EUR 300 billion by 2060. On top of that, there can be additional economic advantages to reducing noise exposure, increasing daylight access and improving indoor temperature.
 

Suburban and low-income disadvantages

It is not only children living in urban homes who are at most risk. Suburban areas are also affected, with single family homes especially vulnerable to health effects associated with having a poor indoor climate. This is particularly concerning as suburban growth in Europe has significantly outpaced urban growth, with urbanisation up 30% and suburban growth up 47% from 1961-2011. Furthermore, children from low-income families are more likely to suffer health risks, with those in the lower 20% on the household income scale being nearly 25% more likely to live in homes with deficiencies.

A new phase for RenovActive with great potential

This model renovation of a typical square house from the 1970s is expected to inspire people in Slovakia and other countries nearby about how to renovate their homes in a financially optimal way, while achieving a healthier and more energy-efficient home to live in.
 

Energy savings, more space and healthier living

Due to the renovation, the total energy savings in the RenovActive house in Salo are up to 80 percent and the living area is increased to 115 m² ​from 75 m², by building rooms in the attic. The house is also healthier to live in with more daylight and fresh air than previously.

During the next two years, the living conditions for the Hučkos’ family (of two adults and two children) will be monitored according to key parameters and in co-operation with the Department of Building Services of the Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava.
 

About unhealthy living environments and renovation in Slovakia

Half of the Slovak population live in detached or terrace houses. In most cases their inhabitants are also their owners. The condition of the house and its possible renovation is thus the responsibility of the owner. Most of the buildings in Slovakia had been built by the end of the 1970s. These buildings are far from meeting present-day criteria concerning energy consumption and indoor environment quality.According to the Healthy Homes Barometer, an independent annual report based on pan-European data investigating the link between homes and health, which VELUX has been publishing for five years, every sixth Slovak is not satisfied with their quality of living and 21 percent of Slovakian families report energy poverty as an issue.

The lamps are particularly crucial in Malawi as only ten per cent of the population has access to electricity. When darkness falls, the remaining 90 per cent rely on paraffin and kerosene lamps, candles or bonfires for light. 

Natural Light is more than just light
Besides providing light, the Natural Light lamps also help to improve air quality by reducing the widespread use of toxic, carbon-emitting kerosene lanterns, and instead harness the sustainable energy of the sun.

The study also reveals that close to 84 million Europeans live in damp or mouldy dwellings, which increases their risk of having respiratory diseases and life-long allergies by 40%. This proves the number of people living in unhealthy buildings remains an issue, despite recent awareness of the correlation between indoor environment and human health.

Fraunhofer IBP’s research, based on cross-sectional study, questionnaires and in-depth case studies across 32 European countries, estimates that the number of Europeans living in damp and unhealthy dwellings could be reduced by 50% by 2050, which could reduce the number of people with associated respiratory diseases by 25%. In the case of asthma, this could lead to a reduction of 550,000 people.

He points to the upcoming revision of Energy Performance of Buildings Directives (EPBD) under the Energy Union, where the framework for national building legislations will be set. Here it is key that requirements for indoor climate is part of the agenda.

How to prevent dampness in homes

According to the Fraunhofer IBP institute, dampness is one of the main defects in buildings across Europe, primarily caused by inadequate building structures and home owners’ lack of attention to ventilate sufficiently.Consequently, mould is likely to grow, however the risk of this can be reduced by taking certain precautions at home:

Moulds thrive best on surfaces with temperatures around 15^oC and in high air humidity. Walls with warmer indoor than outdoor surfaces are likely to trigger growth.

Frequent ventilation of the house is an efficient way of preventing mould to grow, and it is recommended to air out two times daily for at least ten minutes.

In April 2016 the VELUX Group completed the RenovActive project in Belgium, a home renovation based on ActiveHouse principles focusing on the building’s architectural quality, human health, comfort and well-being, energy efficiency, and environmental benefits.

A key element in the modernization is the prevention of indoor dampness and mould, which is ensured by a natural and continuous airflow in the house. Read more about RenovActive by clicking here.

The Fraunhofer IBP white paper, ‘Towards an identification of European indoor environments’ impact on health and performance,’ is now available on our website.

Getting people outside and more daylight inside was the call to action from Christoph Reinhart from the MIT Sustainable Design Lab. He broadened the perspective of daylight in individual buildings to daylight as a driver of change, health and happiness in ever-denser urban environments.

To design proactively with daylight for happiness and health ran as a red thread through the 35 lectures at the Symposium attended by more than 350 participants from all parts of the world.

David Nelson, Head of Design at Foster+Partners, demonstrated the versatile opportunities in designing with daylight through the impressive global design portfolio of his company. Other examples from China to the US and Europe showed that daylight as a key to sustainable buildings – is a global movement.

Exposure to light is like a drug, changing something in your body
A recurrent theme at the Symposium was how daylighting design can support the natural daily and seasonal rhythms of human beings who spend more than 90 percent of the time inside buildings.

In her thought-provoking lecture “First – do no harm”, Deborah Burnett from Benya Burnett, USA, advocated for a closer cooperation between designers and medical doctors to make sure that proposed lighting solutions are truly beneficial to human health.

More specifically, the Symposium looked at how daylight can benefit rapid recovery at hospitals and enhance learning capabilities of children at school.

Speaker highlights from 6th Daylight Symposium

Need for new regulation

Goodwill of individual building owners and designers are important steps towards healthier buildings, but to actually accelerating new practices, legislation and legislators play an important role. Daylight metrics and regulation was therefore a main topic at the second day of the Symposium.

Marc Fontoynont introduced the draft for the new European Daylight Standard, which will be sent out in public enquiry shortly. Marc is the covenor of the CEN TC169 work group. The standard comprises recommendations for minimum daylight provision and view out, exposure to sunlight and protection from glare.

Internationally renowned artist Olafur Eliasson concluded the Symposium by presenting highlights of his work and also introducing the winners of the Natural Light International Design Competition, Mariana Arando and Luca Fondello from Argentina. “Link it up” is the name of their prize winning solar lamp concept, unifying and connecting people by providing light to off-grid areas of the world.

The VELUX Daylight Symposium celebrated its 10th anniversary with this sixth event held in the `International Year 2015´of Light - proclaimed by the United Nations and Unesco. John Dudley, the originator and chairman of the Year of Light emphasized in his opening speech on the first day of the Symposium, the importance of promoting public and political understanding of the central role of light in the modern world.

Get more impressions from the thedaylightsite.com

90 per cent of the existing building stock in Europe will still be in use in 2050. And 75 per cent of those buildings are energy inefficient. The VELUX Group has constructed a series of experimental buildings throughout Europe to show that the tools needed for environment-friendly construction are already available. Next April, the Group will complete an example of energy renovation in a social housing estate in Belgium.

The VELUX Group’s core business areas are Western Europe and the USA. But is sees significant potential in former Eastern Europe, where the need for home renovation is much greater than in Denmark and other countries in Western Europe. Less than 5 per cent of the company’s sales are made in Denmark.

The renovation will see carbon emissions reduced significantly as energy use will be cut by 79%.

The social housing complex in Brussel’s Bon Air settlement built in the 1920’s encompasses 385 houses; the climate renovation concept represents a large-scale potential if implemented in all houses, currently 86 units are due for renovation.

Buildings part of the climate solution

Today, buildings account for 40 % of total energy consumption in Europe, and the EU imports fossil fuel for more than a billion euros every day to cover its energy needs.

Lone Feifer also points out that addressing the energy challenge could stimulate economic growth and job creation across Europe and further elaborates:

Affordability

Reducing the cost of renovating is another paramount factor in adding more volume to energy efficiency in buildings. High cost is often the barrier when homeowners decide whether to renovate or not. The renovation concept developed by the VELUX Group thus seeks to bridge that gulf by driving the costs down, thus offering a strong, new incentive to implement climate renovation projects.

From an uninhabitable to a healthy home

The house will be transformed from a currently un-inhabitable dwelling into a home with a high level of comfort and healthy building parameters. This unique concept is calledRenovActive and combines health and well-being with increased energy efficiency, based on active house principles balancing three aspects: comfort, energy and environment.

RenovActive

The RenovActive concept provides an affordable and reproducible solution to renovate buildings by balancing three factors: Comfort, Energy and Environment.

The renovation concept is based on the so-called Active House principles focusing on a building’s architectural quality, energy efficiency, human health, comfort and well-being, and environmental benefits.

The RenovActive concept has been developed by the VELUX Group in partnership with the social housing association “Le Foyer Anderlechtois” which owns 3,600 homes in Belgium. Improved quality of life and increased energy efficiency are central concerns of both partners.

The concept was designed by ONO Architectuur after developing an ambitious renovation proposal which not only meets the technical parameters established by the Active House principles but also inspires to improve the overall quality of life of the surrounding area.

The renovation will be completed in spring 2016.

For further information, please see: www.renovactive.velux.be/en/

Designing with daylight was the central topic of the morning’s keynote lecture by David Nelson, Head of Design at Foster+Partners. Taking the audience through examples from the global design portfolio of his company, Nelson demonstrated the immense opportunities in daylighting to create the right atmosphere and conditions that match the local environment and purpose of buildings.

With more than 350 participants from all continents, the Daylight Symposium has grown into one of the most important events that the global community for daylight specialists sharing important research, tools and knowledge for daylighting design.

Healthy buildings – healthy people
The morning session of the Symposium was dedicated to a discussion on the importance of daylight for human well-being and health. The lectures ranged from highly scientific studies on human biology and circadian rhythms to actual design programmes and solutions for hospitals, schools, office buildings and private homes. Among the interesting approaches was Professor Koen Steemers’ focus on architecture for wellbeing - what he called ‘nudge-architecture’ - which means buildings that actively encourage people to connect with each other, be active and keep learning for better health and happiness in life.

Christoph Reinhart from the MIT Sustainable Design Lab introduced his ideas to get people more outside and more daylight inside buildings in dense urban areas. And Marilyne Andersen, Professor of Sustainable Construction Technologies at EPFL in Switzerland, proposed approaches and tools to human-centred design.

Special focus on hospitals and schools
The afternoon session looked more specifically at how daylight can benefit rapid recovery at hospitals and enhance the learning capabilities of children at school.

In her thought-provoking lecture “First - do no harm”, Deborah Burnett from Benya Burnett, USA, advocated for a close cooperation between architects and medical doctors in order to make sure that proposed lighting solutions are truly beneficial to human health.

Therefore, it is not enough to presume that what we practice is good for people’s health, we need to work on safer ground in close cooperation with medical specialists, she said.

Poul Bogard, author of the book “the end of night”, emphasized, that light pollution does not only harm us – it also damages the ecology around us. He regretted the absence of complete darkness or starry nights in many parts of the world.

Second day of Daylight Symposium
On the second day of the Symposium, the speakers will explore tools and methods for designing with daylight and raise the question whether current daylighting regulations are sufficient for design of buildings, that support people’s health and well-being. In the afternoon, the winners of the Natural Light competition will be presented and celebrated.

The Symposium takes place at Tobacco Docks in London’s East End, a historical warehouse complex first constructed in 1811 to store and dispatch tobacco from overseas to British customers and now converted into a spectacular daylit conference venue.

Read more at thedaylightsite.com
 

Items that the event addresses are:

• The cost of non-renovation to the EU
• The financing of building renovations
• The reasons to renovate and the benefits that result

Ingrid Reumert points to recent findings in the Healthy Homes Barometer – a study conducted by Wilke for the VELUX Group – that shows homeowners are motivated to undertake renovations by their wish to have greater comfort and better indoor climate, going beyond lower energy bills.

As the Commission and Member States brainstorm around effective ways to implement the ambitions set out in the Energy Union Framework, it is certain that the contribution of the building sector should not be ignored as it has a proven energy savings potential of 61% and 38% in residential and tertiary buildings, respectively, by 2030 (Analysis of a European Reference Target System for 2030 (Fraunhofer ISI, October 2013)).

Learn more about the event: www.euroace.org

With the opening of Green Solution House, a hotel and conference centre on the Danish bright green island Bornholm, sustainable buildings have a new point of orientation.

Combining various sustainable building solutions, it explores circular sustainability that is rooted in three sustainability strategies, with constant respect for local conditions and efficient use of resources. The building is certified to the standards of the German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB). The building design is based on the criteria of the Active House vision and inspired by the Cradle-to-Cradle life cycle concept.

The objective of Green Solution House is to be a focal point for knowledge sharing and sustainable development – locally, nationally and internationally.

VELUX Group as strategic partner 

The VELUX Group is a strategic partner of Green Solution House. It brings to the project its vision for sustainable buildings, based on the competence and broad experience gained from its demonstration house programme Model Home 2020 and the creation of Active House principles.

Green Solution House shows that it is possible to build resource-efficient and nearly- zero-energy buildings with a high comfort level by combining life cycle concepts, standard materials and technologies that already are available today.

A great Active House showcase 

Green Solution House is an exemplary showcase of how Active House principles can be applied in new and renovated buildings and thereby boost their performance in terms of comfort, energy and environment. Daylight has been intelligently integrated from the planning stages of the renovation of the old building and design of the new building (the conference centre).

VELUX products  

The VELUX Group has contributed a total of 196 VELUX Modular Skylights with sun screening, 15 roof windows, 29 skylight domes and 4 sun tunnels installed around embedded all over the building.

The VELUX Group started its journey with sustainable living in buildings as early as 1999, when it took part in the first experiments to find ways to reduce the energy consumption of buildings. The ideas matured and the growing concern for global warming and climate change encouraged further development. By 2008, the VELUX Group had built several full-scale demo-houses designed for northern and southern climates.

Throughout the many experiments, the VELUX Group had one important priority: concerns for the environment must never precede concerns for the health and well-being of human beings. Sustainable living in buildings is never a question of either comfort or energy efficiency; it must always be a quest to find solutions that benefit both people and planet.

In 2009, the VELUX Group launched the Model Home 2020 programme, comprising six buildings in five European countries. VELUX has gathered many learnings from our Model Home programme, built on the active house principles integrating comfort, energy and environment. Families have been living in the Model Homes while scientists monitored their well-being and indoor climate, as well as energy consumption. With their large window areas of 30-50% of the living area, the elevated daylight levels improved the mood and productivity of the residents.

The VELUX Group is very happy that architects, contractors, politicians and manufacturers, as well as scientists and universities, were eager to participate in pioneering, forward-thinking solutions based on the Active House principles.

According to a recently published white paper by Fraunhofer Institut für Bauphysik 80 million Europeans live in unhealthy and damp buildings, with the risk of developing respiratory diseases such asthma. The white paper also concludes that children’s learning ability improves by 15% in a good indoor climate. At the same time, 90% of the building mass in Europe has already been built and is much in need of sustainable renovation.

When asked about the role of a healthy indoor climate, the answer from DI Dr Peter Holzer, an engineer, dedicated researcher, teacher and consultant in sustainable building design, was:

From the VELUX Group surveys it is safe to conclude that Europeans are not only aware of the importance of fresh air and daylight for their health and well-being, they are more than ready to invest in home improvements. So it is time for the VELUX Group to pave the way for sustainable renovation across Europe. Our next exciting project will be a social housing project in Belgium named RenovActive.

A recently published report by the Buildings Performance Institute Europe (BPIE), a non-profit think tank, analyses how indoor air quality (IAQ), thermal comfort and daylight are regulated in the legislation of eight EU member states for new and existing residential buildings. It identifies loopholes in regulations that are intended to ensure that the European population live in highly efficient, healthy, comfortable and well lit buildings.

Join the discussion anytime at #HealthyBuildings

The Fraunhofer white paper pinpoints key findings from a larger literature screening of the impact of European indoor environments on health and performance in homes and schools.

The main findings are as follows:

As a result of global discussions about climate changes and energy savings, today’s building regulations focus mainly on energy efficiency in buildings. However, this increased attention to energy efficiency does not include any measures to ensure that our buildings are healthy and stimulate our bodies, minds and creativity.

Daylight has a huge effect on the human body and mind. A lack of daylight has negative effects on mental health, whereas exposure to a sufficient amount of daylight can help patient recovery and shorten time spent in hospital.

Lack of ventilation is closely linked to the problems of damp, indoor humidity and mould. If ventilation rate is too low, respiratory infections can occur.

The VELUX Group’s Model Home 2020 demonstration buildings prove that the knowhow and technology to create healthy and energy efficient buildings are already in place. The buildings of tomorrow can be built today, buildings that comply with the predicted EU building energy standards for 2020, without compromising on indoor comfort.

The next essential steps are incentives for homeowners to renovate their houses and public authorities to take action and kick-start renovation of schools, hospitals and public buildings.

The Fraunhofer white paper, “Towards an identification of European indoor environments’ impact on health and performance”, is available at www.velux.com/healthybuildings

Many aspects of human physiology and behaviour are dominated by the 24-hour rhythm that have a major impact on our health and well-being. We spend over 90% of our time indoors, which makes the importance of a sharper focus on daylight and sufficient daylight levels indoors, even more pertinent.Light and darkness are essential to our lives. The dynamic variation of light, daily and seasonally, is a critical factor in determining and maintaining our 24-hour daily rhythm – our circadian rhythm – which, in-turn, play a key role in the regulation of our sleep/wake cycle.

As long as the VELUX Group has existed, the company has had persistent focus on daylighting. Through its many initiatives, tools and activities, the VELUX Group has established wide international collaboration in daylight research, daylight practice and daylight education, such as the Daylight Academic Forum for PhD Students, the Daylight & Architecture Magazine, the International VELUX Award for Students of Architecture, the Daylight Site and VELUX Daylight Visualizer.

The celebration of the International Year of Light 2015 will provide a tremendous opportunity for educational and capacity-building activities worldwide, and raise awareness among the citizens of the world about the importance of light.

The VELUX Group will be represented by VELUX Germany's General Manager Dr Sebastian Dresse, who will share the VELUX Group's lengthy experience and knowledge in the fields of sustainable and green living.

Buildings that optimise health and well-being

With its 21 demonstration buildings to date, the VELUX Group has made a continuous contribution and shared its own experience and knowledge of healthier, greener and more sustainable living environments. The Group has repeatedly proved that the buildings of tomorrow can actually be built today − buildings that optimise human health and well-being through improved indoor climate and yet minimise environmental impact and energy demand.

Setting the green agenda

The VELUX Group's demonstration buildings are based on the Active House principles, an attractive solution that responds to the Nearly Zero Energy Building requirement that the Group has helped define with its input and knowledge of sustainable living in buildings.

There are many good reasons for turning buildings into safe, efficient and healthy places. A study by the Technical University of Denmark shows that pupils' learning abilities can be improved by up to 15% when the indoor climate is improved, and those students with the most daylight in their classrooms progressed 20% faster in maths tests and 26% in reading tests.

Furthermore, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has estimated that 10-50% of the indoor environments where people live, work and play in Europe are damped, and that humid buildings are known to cause health problems such as allergies and asthma. On the other hand, new or retrofitted buildings that are too airtight can overheat which also has implications on health and well-being.

These findings from Dr. Richard Hobday's research will be presented at the annual IARU Sustainability Science Congress in Copenhagen from the 22nd to the 24th of october, where Dr. Hobday will address sustainability from a health perspective.

Sustainability is, according to Dr. Hobday, also about creating a built environment that stimulates both body and mind. Buildings such as hospitals, schools and child care centres are places that particularly need a good and healthy indoor climate as it reduces the risk of diseases and strengthens the health, learning ability, and self-development.

The Danish child care centre the Sunhouse (Solhuset) in Hørsholm is a tangible proof that this is within reach to meet future requirements for sustainable buildings and at the same time - to provide a healthy and stimulating indoor climate. Based on the "Active House principles" – defining buildings with healthy indoor climate that minimise its energy use and environmental impact – it has become one of the most climate friendly day care centres in Denmark.

At completion in 2011 the Sunhouse managed to set new standards for sustainable child care centres. It is carbon neutral and renewable energy driven and it has tripled the amount of daylight defined by the Danish building codes. On top of all this, children have gained a nest where they can learn, live and play in harmony with nature.

The Sunhouse, is one of the VELUX Group's 21 demonstration buildings and is open for visits by the press on Friday, 24 October, where it will be possible to meet the dedicated team and see children unfolding themselves in spacious and brightened indoor environments.

Through its 21 demonstration buildings, using existing products, processes and technologies, the VELUX Group has proved that the buildings of tomorrow can actually be build today. Buildings that comply with the predicted EU building energy standards for 2020 without compromising on indoor comfort, health and well-being. That is the VELUX Group's contribution to the quest for a more healthy and sustainable future.

Life Cycle Assessments

When the environmental impact is calculated, all stages of the windows life are assessed - from raw material extraction through materials processing, manufacture, distribution, use, maintenance, and disposal or recycling. Calculations show that the impact of production and disposal is very minimal compared to the potential energy gains or losses during the lifetime of the window in the building.