Press Release
Shaw Contract Joins Net Zero Carbon Building Commitment

Shaw Contract, a division of Shaw Industries and a leading flooring manufacturer serving commercial properties worldwide, has officially joined the World Green Building Council’s Net Zero Carbon Buildings Commitment as part of the momentous Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco, celebrating 37 founding signatories.

Troy Virgo, Director of Sustainability and Product Stewardship, Shaw Contract said: “The challenges of climate change are global in scale and require a global response. No one company can solve problems at this scale by itself, but we can each contribute to an effort that enables all of us to create a net zero future. Shaw Contract is proud of this latest partnership with the World Green Building Council to create a cleaner, healthier and more livable planet that stands to improve quality of life for all through the Net Zero Carbon Buildings Commitment.”

The Net Zero Carbon Building Commitment drives the scale and pace of action necessary to reduce carbon emissions and requires a transformation in the way we design, build and operate buildings.

The aim is to inspire industry and governments to develop aggressive strategies to start the actions necessary for change, and to fulfil their obligations within the Commitment. Signatories are required to evaluate their current energy use and associated emissions across their portfolios; identify opportunities to reduce energy wastage and improve energy efficiency; power their buildings from renewable energy sources; and report on progress against decarbonisation targets. All signatories will be expected to meet high verification standards, in the lead up to and in the year of achievement of net zero carbon emission buildings, and report annually on progress.

In an unprecedented statement of coordinated action from business and cities, states and regions, the 37 signatories, made up of 11 businesses, 22 cities and four states and regions, gathered at a dedicated session to signal the start of a leadership movement towards a decarbonised built environment. Combined, these organizations are committed to eliminating 244 million metric tons of carbon emissions equivalent (CO2e) from their buildings. That is the equivalent of 52 million cars off the road for one year.

Businesses across the world and throughout the building and construction supply chain, have set ambitious targets to eliminate operational carbon emissions from their building portfolios of over 10 million square meters by 2030. This will create a wider market transformation to enable net zero carbon buildings by 2050.

Leaders from some of the world’s biggest cities have committed to enact regulations and/or planning policy that will require all new buildings within their jurisdiction to operate at net zero carbon from 2030, and all buildings, including existing, to operate at net zero carbon by 2050. Some cities, along with state and regional governments, have additionally committed to ensure the municipal assets they own, operate and develop are net zero carbon by 2030.

Their collective commitment provides strong evidence that industry, mayors and governors are willing to take drastic action to prevent catastrophic climate change and create more comfortable, healthy and future-proofed environments for their employees and residents to occupy. WorldGBC welcomed the following founding signatories of the Commitment:

● Business, recruited from the Green Building Council network - Majid Al Futtaim, property developer in the Middle East; Integral Group, global engineering firm; Signify (formerly Philips Lighting), lighting manufacturer; Cundall, global engineering firm; Kilroy Realty, real estate investment trust; Frasers Property Australia, major developer; AMP Capital Wholesale Office Fund, property investment fund; Berkeley Group, residential property developer; Shaw Contract - Commercial division, flooring manufacturer; GPT Wholesale Office Fund, property investment fund; and Stockland, property developer.

● Cities, recruited in partnership with C40 - Copenhagen, Denmark; Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg & Tshwane, South Africa; London, UK; Los Angeles, New York City, Newburyport, Portland, San Francisco, San Jose, Santa Monica & Washington DC, USA; Medellin, Colombia; Montreal, Toronto & Vancouver, Canada; Paris, France; Stockholm, Sweden; Sydney, Australia; and Tokyo, Japan.

● States and regions, recruited in partnership with The Climate Group as secretariat for the Under2 coalition - Baden-Württemberg, Germany; Yucatan, Mexico; Navarra and Catalonia, Spain.

The Net Zero Carbon Buildings Commitment has been developed in partnership with a wide stakeholder group including Green Buildings Councils, The Climate Group and C40. Last month, C40 announced that 19 cities from their network will join the Commitment across 9 countries. The Commitment forms part of EP100, a global corporate leadership initiative for energy-smart companies, delivered by The Climate Group in partnership with the Alliance to Save Energy. Businesses signing the Net Zero Carbon Buildings Commitment become EP100 members.

About Shaw Contract

At Shaw Contract, we believe that the ground beneath your feet should have a positive impact on how you live, learn, work, heal and play. We strive for design excellence in everything we do – from conception to production to installation, it’s what sets us apart. We make flooring that delivers a purposeful blend of design elements, materiality, sustainability and performance. Every day we take on creative challenges to research, design and innovate flooring solutions that transform spaces across the globe.

About the World Green Building Council

The World Green Building Council is a global network of Green Building Councils that is transforming the places where we live, work, play, heal and learn. The goal is to help reduce the building and construction sector’s CO2 emissions by 84 gigatonnes and ensure all buildings have net zero emissions by 2050. We believe green buildings can and must be at the centre of our lives. Our changing climate means we must reshape the way we grow and build, enabling people to thrive both today and tomorrow. We take action – championing local and global leadership and empowering our community to drive change. Together, we are greater than the sum of our parts, and commit to green buildings for everyone, everywhere.

About C40

C40 Cities connects 96 of the world’s greatest cities to take bold climate action, leading the way towards a healthier and more sustainable future. Representing 700+ million citizens and one quarter of the global economy, mayors of the C40 cities are committed to delivering on the most ambitious goals of the Paris Agreement at the local level, as well as to cleaning the air we breathe. The current chair of C40 is Mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo; and three-term Mayor of New York City Michael R. Bloomberg serves as President of the Board. C40’s work is made possible by our three strategic funders: Bloomberg Philanthropies, Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF), and Realdania. To learn more about the work of C40 and our cities, please visit our website, or follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn.

About The Climate Group

At The Climate Group, our focus is on accelerating climate action. We secure big commitments on climate action from those with the power to shift markets and policies so that we can go further and faster in driving climate action. The Net Zero Carbon Buildings Commitment is part of The Climate Group’s global EP100 initiative, bringing together a growing group of energy-smart companies committed to doing more with less. By integrating energy efficiency into business strategy, these leading companies are driving tech innovation and increasing competitiveness while delivering on emissions goals – inspiring others to follow their lead. EP100 is led by The Climate Group in partnership with the Alliance to Save Energy as part of the We Mean Business coalition. The Climate Group is also secretariat to the Under2 Coalition of ambitious state and regional governments committed to keeping global temperature rises to under 2°C.The coalition is made up of more than 200 governments who represent over 1.3 billion people and nearly 40% of the global economy.

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