CDL partners to launch sustainability academy to achieve climate goals

by Antonio Pasolini—The city-state of Singapore is making a pioneering move towards meeting its climate mitigation goals. A joint effort by City Developments Limited (CDL) and the Sustainable Energy Association of Singapore (SEAS), the Singapore Sustainability Academy (SSA) is described as “the first major People, Public and Private (3P) ground-up initiative” to help the small country meet its goals laid out in the Sustainable Singapore Blueprint and the recently-released Climate Action Plan.

Expected to be completed in March 2017, the Academy’s goals is to promote a low-carbon economy, resource efficiency, and sustainable practices among businesses and the community, in particular, youths. One of the innovations of the initiative is that for the first time a local private property developer and a non-profit organisation have teamed up to create a major training and networking facility on sustainability.

Suitably, SSA will be located atop CDL’s City Square Mall, Singapore’s first eco-mall and will consolidate all of SEAS’ operations for Asia, besides serving as the platform for the organisation to implement its existing plans.

Singapore has sent out clear signals it is serious about climate change. Prior to the Paris Agreement, it had pledged to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 36 percent compared to 2005 levels by 2030.

It is also working towards stabilising its emissions with the aim of peaking around 2030. How this ambitious plan going to be achieved is detailed in the Climate Action Plan released on July 10.

“There is tremendous potential for the private sector to play a major role in our journey towards mitigating and adapting to the devastating effects of climate change. The Singapore Sustainability Academy by CDL and SEAS is an excellent 3P ground-up initiative in the push forward to become a more sustainable Singapore,” Dr. Amy Khor, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, said during the launch event.

As part of its mission to involve business, government and the public, SSA will invite senior policy and decision-makers to share on relevant subjects and explore other key sustainability topics related to banking, power, building and infrastructure sectors.

The building

The academy will be spread across 4,300 square feet. It will comprise classrooms, a veranda, an office, and an exhibition gallery. The zero-energy building itself will be a source of inspiration, with 3,230 sq. ft. of photovoltaic panels and a monitoring system to track real-time energy generation and consumption.

Designed and built by REC in Singapore, the solar panels expected to generate an annual energy yield of over 60,000 kilowatt hours (kWh)m beating SSA’s estimated annual energy consumption of about 50,000 kWh.

There will also be an automation control and energy monitoring system that adjusts light and air-condition to demand in order to save energy and maintain comfort at the same time.

The initiative is also supported by the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, the National Environment Agency, the Urban Redevelopment Authority and the Building and Construction Authority.

Image credit: CDL