Built Environment Sustainability: A Latin American Perspective

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Built Environment SustainabilityA Latin
American Perspective
Building Connections Promoting Partnerships to
Achieve Sustainable Building and Construction
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and
the World Resources Institute (WRI) October 2-3,
2003 Washington DC

• J. A. VanegasSchool of Civil and Environmental
  Engineering
• College of Engineering
• Georgia Institute of Technology
• Atlanta, Georgia, USA

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Background

• This presentation is based on insights gained
  over the last ten years, from an ongoing
  education and research program on Built
  Environment Sustainability within
• The Construction Engineering and Management
  Program (CEM) of the School of Civil and
  Environmental Engineering (CEE) at Georgia Tech
• The Sustainable Facilities and Infrastructure
  (SFI) Branch of the Safety, Health,
  Environmental Technology Division (SHETD) of the
  Electro-Optics, Environment, Materials
  Laboratory (EOEML) of the Georgia Tech Research
  Institute (GTRI)
• The Institute for Sustainable Technology and
  Development (ISTD) at Georgia Tech

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The point of departureIn Latin America, people
want/need to sustain what we all do...
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And within this world, we want/need to sustain...
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People
Individuals
Body
Mind
Organizations
Families
Heart
Soul
Communities
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And the Natural Environment
Air
Water
Global
Local
Soil
Biota (Plant and Animal Species)
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But, this is not enough we also want/need to
sustain...
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The Industrial Base
Production Systems for Goods
Production Systems for Products
Production Systems for Services
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And the Built Environment
Civil Infrastructure Systems
Residential Facilities
Non- Residential Facilities
Industrial Facilities
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Stated in another way, we want/need to sustain
the resource base that provides the foundation
upon which any society exists, develops, and
survives
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The Resource Base
The Resource Base
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Which tends to be seen primarily as Economic
Capital
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Specifically for the Built Environment, the A/E/C
Industry is both its
Provider(From planning, design, procurement, and
construction, to commissioning, start-up, and
turnover),and its
Life Cycle Custodian(From operations and
maintenance, to end-of-service life)
And this is the case in Latin America as well...
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But despite these commonalities, attempting to
implement built environment sustainability in
Latin America is not an easy task rather, it is
a complex challenge, as a result of the following
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First, the interrelationships and
interdependencies among its dimensions have
unique characteristics
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Second, the multiple levels of perspectives on,
complexity of, and scales of sustainability also
have unique characteristics
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Second, the multiple levels of perspectives on,
complexity of, and scales of sustainability also
have unique characteristics
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Third, the multiple influences on sustainability
also have unique characteristics
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More specifically, the characteristics for built
environment sustainability in Latin America are...
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More specifically, the characteristics for built
environment sustainability in Latin America are...
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Characteristics

• Social/Political/Economic
• The complex social, political, and economic
  realities Latin American affects the
  sustainability of the built environment
• Urban
• Increasing urbanization in Latin America is
  creating significant sustainability, quality of
  life problems and needs, and pressures and
  strains on the built environment
• Scale
• The challenges posed by the scale of built
  environment sustainability problems and needs in
  Latin America are daunting from a magnitude, a
  spatial/geographic, and a temporal points of view

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Characteristics (cont.)

• Technological
• The types of labor, materials, equipment, and
  methods used for the built environment in Latin
  America offer both challenges and opportunities
• Affordable
• Affordability is a key criterion in developing a
  sustainable built environment in Latin America
• Infrastructure
• Providing basic civil infrastructure systems
  (e.g., transportation, water supply, waste
  management, energy, communications) is a critical
  priority in Latin America

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Characteristics (cont.)

• Networks
• Latin America has existing educational,
  professional, industry, and trade/commerce
  networks that offer an opportunity to establish
  mechanisms for collaboration
• Appropriate
• Sustainable solutions for the built environment
  in Latin America need to be contextually
  compatible and responsive
• Basic
• Fundamental satisfaction of human needs (e.g.,
  food, water, health, shelter, employment) is a
  priority in Latin America

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Characteristics (cont.)

• Indigenous
• Latin America offers a rich diversity of
  indigenous knowledge and experience that needs to
  be preserved, tapped, and shared
• Local
• In Latin America, there a numerous examples of
  successful sustainability efforts in building and
  construction at a local level
• Indicators
• There is a need to develop sustainability
  indicators that reflect the unique social,
  political, economic, and environmental realities
  of Latin America

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Characteristics (cont.)

• Tribal
• Latin America suffers from extreme social,
  political, and economic fragmentation and
  hierarchies, and a prevalent provincial mentality
  that inhibits integration and cooperation
• Young
• Compared to other parts of the world,
  sustainability efforts in building and
  construction are young in Latin America

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Characteristics (cont.)

• Social/Political/Economic
• Urban
• Scale
• Technological
• Affordable
• Infrastructure
• Networks
• Appropriate
• Basic
• Indigenous
• Local
• Indicators
• Tribal
• Young

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Fourth, the lack of a unified theoryof
sustainability

• Sustainability is currently expressed in multiple
  forms
• Frameworks
• Models
• Principles
• Concepts
• Heuristics
• Strategies
• Guidelines
• Specifications
• Standards
• Processes/Tools
• Best Practices
• Lessons Learned

Which of these forms of Sustainability
must/should/could/would we use in Latin America?
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Finally, Latin America faces threats to their
Status Quo...
Characteristics and Requirements of a Specific
Facility or Civil Infrastructure System
What they do...
...how they do it...
...and with what...
Processes for the Delivery and Use of a Specific
Facility or Civil Infrastructure System
Resources for the Delivery and Use of a Specific
Facility or Civil Infrastructure System
Definition of the Contextual Envelope of a
Specific Facility or Civil Infrastructure System
(Inspired by M. Vorster)
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Finally, Latin America faces threats to their
Status Quo...
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...which in turn, create triggers of change...
Regardless of the trigger, sustainability will
inevitably force change, and how organizations
respond will make them end
either with a Pile of CASH
or as a Pile of ASH
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...stated in another way...
...You really-shoulda...
...You really-oughta-wanna...
...You really-gonna-hafta...
...You really-gonna-wanna...
(Inspired by P. Melhus)
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Thank you
jvanegas_at_ce.gatech.edu