By Toren Elste | Sep 12, 2016

I recently attended the Just Sustainability conference at Seattle University and had the opportunity to attend a breakout session with Stacy Smedley, sustainability director for Skanska Construction.

Skanska is a leader in corporate sustainability, especially in the construction industry. The presentation focused on where Skanska was in terms of sustainability two years ago and where they are now. They have come very far in a short time - their current sustainability program focuses on aspects of sustainability such as energy conservation, carbon emissions from equipment, building materials and water. One surprising statistic is that 84% of the carbon emissions from buildings come from the materials and only 16% comes from the building's daily operations. Focusing on lowering carbon emissions as a sustainability initiative is an area where Skanska thrives.

Stacy's talk was so intriguing that we decided we wanted to hear it again. Please join us for our upcoming Green Bag event this Friday to learn more about Skanska's sustainability initiatives and their work with the University of Washington. The talk will be Friday at 11 a.m. in Parrington 309. Bring your lunch and learn about green construction!