Joining Place North's Life Sciences Update on sustainable science buildings in the UK

💡 First logistics, then living - is life sciences next? With £2bn of new government funding flowing into the sector, confidence is rising fast....and so is demand for lab, R&D, and innovation space. Logistics continues to lead as one of real estate’s most resilient sectors, and the living market remains buoyant. But life sciences is quickly joining them as a key long-term investment theme, driven by structural demand and strong public and private backing. Crucially, it’s no longer just about the Golden Triangle. Regional hubs like Manchester, Birmingham, and Glasgow are starting to attract serious attention. Innovation, investment, and real estate are clearly converging, and that momentum feels set to build. #LifeSciences #RealEstate #Investment #PropertyInvestment #Logistics #Living #Innovation #R&D #UKEconomy #Regeneration

The 15th Month of the Underground: Shining a Light on What Lies Beneath 🔍 We rarely think about what is beneath our feet: the cables, pipes, tunnels, water systems, and living soil that sustain and protect our cities. This November, Gemeente Rotterdam hosts the 15th Month of the Underground (Maand van de Ondergrond), highlighting these invisible systems and their crucial role in building a climate-resilient urban future. This week’s theme is Climate Adaptation. Yesterday, a curious and enthusiastic group joined a walk at The Green Village, the living lab on the TU Delft Campus, exploring hands-on innovations that make cities more sustainable and resilient. In the video, you can see the group discovering our BlueBloqs system, which we first piloted here seven years ago in partnership with VPdelta, The Green Village, Delft University of Technology, Van Gelder Groep. Since then, we’ve brought these insights to life with real-world projects, including our collaboration with the Gemeente Rotterdam, showing how underground innovation creates visible impact above ground. 🗓️ Check out more events this month: https://lnkd.in/eUERfmWP 💧 Explore our story at The Green Village: https://lnkd.in/ebY7hSeC Rotterdam: https://lnkd.in/exrj7fjp Boris van Breukelen Diergaarde Blijdorp #MaandvandeOndergrond #ClimateAdaptation #Sustainability #Rotterdam #TheGreenVillage #TUdelft #UrbanInnovation #SmartCities #WaterInnovation

🌿 Engaging people in desirable green transitions As Europe pushes forward with the #GreenTransition, researchers at Aalborg University argue that technology and regulation alone won’t get us there. True #sustainability requires cultural change, rethinking prosperity, values, and what makes a good life. Putting emphasis on connecting environmental goals with social meaning, they call for transitions that people want to join, by offering new forms of well-being, fairness and participation, not just limits and restrictions. The theme of preserving human values within new technologies and transitions will be thoroughly discussed during the Human Values and Grand Challenges Conference, hosted by Aalborg University on December 1–2, 2025, in Copenhagen, as part of Denmark’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union. 📍 Read more: https://lnkd.in/dfEuhVBd 🔗 Programme: https://lnkd.in/d-_aXfBJ 📅 Register here: https://lnkd.in/dCqnzjJv Sponsored by Aalborg University, in media partnership with Science|Business.

🔥 IMEG's Matt Meyer, PE, LEED AP, wrote a standout piece in BD+C detailing the deep energy retrofit at SUNY Geneseo’s Milne Library—a project that’s redefining sustainable retrofits. Here’s what makes it special: 🟢23% reduction in energy use, surpassing performance goals 🟢75% cut in greenhouse gas emissions 🟢First fully electrified campus building—setting a path for fossil fuel–free infrastructure 🟢Built to achieve LEED Silver, delivered ~ $1M under budget This isn’t just a renovation—it’s a milestone in campus sustainability, smart design, and engineering ambition. 🔗 Read Matt’s story here: https://lnkd.in/gMGTTBiK #WeareIMEG #Sustainability #SUNY #MilneLibrary

What if our buildings could help the planet heal? At Berkeley Space Center, sustainability will go beyond LEED — we will pioneer regenerative systems, from underground infrastructure to carbon-conscious operations. It will be built not just for today, but for the world we want tomorrow. Learn more about our development’s regenerative design by visiting https://lnkd.in/edFTw9u9 SKS Partners University of California, Berkeley CBRE #RegenerativeDesign #ClimateTech #BerkeleySpaceCenter

Europe’s first net-positive energy building is taking shape in Seville. Designed by BIG for the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre, it generates more energy than it consumes — a living symbol of the New European Bauhaus vision where sustainability, innovation, and culture meet. #sustainability #engineering #seville

Keynote Spotlight: The Science of Clean Air and Healthy Buildings At this year’s IAQ & Energy Conference, we’re thrilled to feature Dr. Richard Shaughnessy in a keynote presentation that bridges science, health, and building performance. Dr. Shaughnessy will share groundbreaking research showing how cleaning practices and ventilation systems directly impact indoor air quality in schools, offices, airports, hotels, and more — influencing everything from student and worker performance to the prevention of respiratory and gastrointestinal illnesses. You’ll also hear about innovative new methods for sampling mold to better understand a building’s “indoor ecology” — research that’s shaping how we approach clean-up and remediation. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn from one of the leading voices in indoor environmental research. 📅 IAQ & Energy Conference 2025 📍 Holiday Inn by the Bay, Portland, Maine 🔗 https://lnkd.in/gK3TPNK Keynote Speaker: Richard Shaughnessy, PhD, The University of Tulsa

Science meets sustainability! Discovery’s Newtown lab, which specializes in IHC services, has achieved Green Level My Green Lab® Certification. From energy-efficient systems to smarter reagent use and creative recycling initiatives, the team has woven sustainability into everyday lab operations. “We are committed to providing high-quality laboratory services, minimizing environmental impacts, and supporting a safe and healthy workplace for our staff.” — Dr. Rick Siderits, Pathologist, IHC Services Read our latest blog to see how Newtown’s journey is setting the standard for sustainability at Discovery: https://lnkd.in/gV35iZSq  #Sustainability #MyGreenLabs My Green Lab

Curious on Living Lab? 🎥 In this short video, I share how we collaborate to turn desired futures into reality. You’ll meet a behavioural expert and an energy systems expert – just two of the many voices shaping our neighbourhood. 🌍 What does it take to build a neighbourhood where people truly thrive? In Aarhus Living Lab, we’re developing the concept of Social Profits – a framework to make intangible values like wellbeing, inclusion and regeneration measurable and actionable. Together with 47 partners, we’re co-creating a Green Building Neighbourhood (GBN) that goes beyond climate neutrality. It’s about designing futures worth living in – where innovation meets everyday life. Aarhus Living Lab is part of the EU Horizon project PROBONO, where our ambition is not just to “do less harm” – but to generate positive impact. 👉 Watch, reflect, and share your thoughts: How can we co-create neighbourhoods where people truly thrive? 🌱 #SocialProfits #GreenBuildingNeighbourhood #HorizonEurope ProbonoH2020 Aarhus University Department of Civil and Architectural Engineering Aarhus Center for Regenerativt Byggeri COWI Aarhus

Inspiring work from Aarhus Living Lab 🌱 This short video shows how systems thinking is at the heart of designing neighbourhoods where people truly thrive — beyond climate neutrality. It also introduces Social Profits: turning values like wellbeing, inclusion, and regeneration into measurable and actionable outcomes. Worth a watch!