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  • A Watershed Moment

    If you needed confirmation of the crisis ahead for Australia and New Zealand's water management, the Think Future Round Table, Working Together for our Climate Technology Future was a great place to start the conversation. “Spoiler alert! We have no good news” The impact of climate change is now observable” -opened Professor Rory Nathan. Chaired by Mick Liubinskas, CEO and Co-founder of Climate Salad and Professor Rory Nathan, Expert Hydrologist, we navigated our way through the disturbing facts surrounding the alarming extremes predicted for weather patterns in the years ahead. We are bracing ourselves for more and more drought, bushfires and floods and will have shorter horizons or warning time to prepare in between. Professor Rory Nathan is a hydrologist with 40 years of experience largely in the consulting and public sectors. For the past eight years he has divided his time between research into the impacts of climate change on floods and the environment, private consulting, and on expert review and advisory roles for the federal government. He is a co-editor of Australian Rainfall and Runoff (the national guidelines on flood estimation) and is currently assisting its revision to better incorporate climate change guidance. He has published almost 300 papers in referred journals and conference proceedings on engineering and environmental hydrology. In 2000, Rory was recognized as national “Civil Engineer of the Year” by Engineers Australia, and as the 2018 Munro Orator he is recognized as being one of Australia’s most influential engineers eminent in the field of water resources.” The news about the weather The repeated narrative of ‘unprecedented’ weather events can no longer be claimed. Normal weather as we experience it today will become abnormal and we will be lucky to get an ‘average’ year of rainfall. The overall effect of changing and more erratic rainfall patterns means it will be harder to manage uncertainty and water supply reliability will be impacted. It is clear from the evidence Professor Nathan presented that we are in for some serious challenges ahead due to the compounding impacts of more frequent severe droughts and floods. The prediction based on the evidence is a siren call because the data says we can expect wild swings between droughts and floods, and they will intensify in magnitude. Furthermore, the thermodynamic influence of the extra water vapor in the air due to an increase by 1.5 degrees Celsius is a big problem. As Professor Nathan explained in simple thermodynamic terms, ''the air gets warmer, and the atmosphere has the capacity to store more water’’. Essentially that means there is more rainfall and all the extra heat in the atmosphere is changing the weather patterns. The common narrative of referring to a 1.5°C increase in global temperature is not helpful because it is hard for people to associate a 1.5°C increase in temperature with crisis. But unfortunately, as we unpacked, it is. ''In fact, storm rainfalls that pose a threat to life and property are expected to increase between 15% to 40% by the end of this century. Projected increases in rainfall are heavily dependent on the rate at which we can reduce our emissions in the near term.”-Professor Rory Nathan In short this means the more we reduce our emissions, the lesser the projected increase in rainfall. So, why should we be concerned? Despite the fact that we have dams a plenty located throughout Australia and particularly on the coastline, those dams were designed and built at a lower capacity using out of date precipitation models and guidance. Predicted scenarios, extrapolated from the current data models, indicate that we will need to progressively upgrade the capacity of the dams as the world continues to warm. If we do not, the risk of failure due to overtopping by floods increases, and any such event would have catastrophic consequences on downstream communities. Front-loading The term front loading does not relate to washing machines. Front loading relates to weather fronts. It is a term used in the weather world to describe the impact of climate change on weather patterns. As horizon times shrink for warnings of severe weather the term front loading will become normalized. We need to get much better at predicting climate conditions. Ultimately erratic weather, increased flooding events mixed with increased droughts will require a complete shift in thinking and an increased need for adaptive approaches to weather mitigation as the magnitude and risk of either becomes steeper. It's time to collaborate for resilience It is clear that we need to collaborate. But how? That was the purpose of our conversation. Amongst a room full of answers all leading to the need for greater collaboration – indeed radical collaboration, the audience reflected on the seriousness of Professor Nathans message. And the question was asked ‘how do we get government to make water a national portfolio?’ It seems obvious, yet due to the nature of politics, it is not so easy. With a disconnect between planning functions and fragmented and siloed departments looking after the various aspects of water management there is no easy answer. It has long been acknowledged that we have no shortage of resources, what we need most is competent leadership. So, who is going to take the lead then? Decision making needs to include community who have not been informed and communicated with in a way that makes the science accessible or easy to have a commonsense debate. We are at a watershed moment now where we need to make a choice. EITHER ''we spend more effort on engaging communities to participate in the decisions affecting them. As Professor Nathan wisely said, ''we don’t want to be having these conversations in the aftermath or during an emergency. Then it is too late’’. OR “We need to get used to infrastructure failure and mentally prepare for it.''- Professor Rory Nathan Professor Nathan believes the balance lies between data and the narrative. We must get ahead of the curve and engage community early before a flood disaster or drought event and plan for resilience. Continuous constructive dialogue is what is required. Unfortunately, despite our most recent catastrophic floods we are none the wiser due to class actions and threatened litigations stifling the much-needed commentary to learn lessons from such events. He emphasized the point, ''We need to design our infrastructure to withstand the pressure without everything stopping.’’ It is logical that we need to prioritize investment in prevention, by using technology and more reliable sensors. AI and other digital technology enable water managers to see where infrastructure like Australia’s dams need reinforcement. Water flows can be diverted when a flood or drought is forecasted using existing sensor technology. There are also new and innovative solutions that can be explored such as those offered by Restore Blue with an offer to turn unusable farmland into mangrove farms. There was a consensus that we need to collaboratively disrupt the status quo of water management by our governments, both federal and state. We need to empower ourselves at community level by harnessing the power of data to provide real time information to anyone, making it publicly accessible so the community can make informed decisions. We must demand government transparency, decision making and funding of solutions and make sure community is informed and has a say on how taxpayers' money is spent. We can learn from our ancestors It became clear to participants that new strategies are required for sustainable development and water resilience. Aside from the obvious benefits that can be derived from today's technologies and perhaps those yet to be uncovered, we have a lot to learn from our ancestors, who were able to live sustainability for 60,000 years. Many of the participants in the room also attended Oz Water which was running concurrently. One elder at Oz Water, Phil Duncan offered his wisdom saying ’There are the data and the tools-and then there are the people’’. The practice of yarning circles by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples was a key theme at the conference. Yarning is a way to listen and invite cross-cultural reflection on solutions to the crises we are facing. It’s time to listen to each other and work together to be better prepared for the challenges to come. “For those of you who are unfamiliar, yarning is a way to share knowledge, to speak, and to listen from the heart – or, as I like to say, to listen in colour,” -Yawuru/Bunuba woman, Cara Peek Coming together to overcome boundaries ‘’At the end of the day water doesn’t care about boundaries so why should we? We should act accordingly.”-Don Holland, GHD Operating from silos is like paddling a canoe upstream. It doesn’t get you far and it is a waste of time and precious energy. The only way to approach this crisis is to do so collaboratively. We need to turn the collective canoe downstream, and by listening to each other we will naturally synchronize our precious resources and effort. This is a real paradigm shift, an exciting opportunity for us to do things differently. The technical solutions already exist, all we need to do is take the oars and lead ourselves. Authored by Johanne Gallagher, Sustainability Development Advisor ANZ. More information about how VinZero can help VinZero Innovyze - YouTube about Innovyze for water management and risk mitigation https://youtu.be/INdtcEx8bWA VinZero and it's partners support the delivery of energy efficiency for the Built Environment. Contact VinZero For technical support and further information please contact our global team here. About VinZero For over 20 years the brands under VinZero have been providing software solutions and professional services to Architectural, Engineering, Construction and Manufacturing industries helping them to understand the role of digitalization for the built environment. Businesses both large and small utilize VinZero’s dedicated industry experts to help navigate technologies as they emerge, driving efficiency and improving workflows. With a global focus on reducing emissions and increased focus directed towards industry, VinZero are now turning their attention to providing the linkages between using technology to digitize, and at the same time leveraging the valuable data insights it brings to build more sustainably. VinZero are passionate about helping their customers understand how the technologies they use today can help them to step towards net zero in the future, to build a better world.

  • ARKANCE, a subsidiary of Monnoyeur, acquires VinZero and doubles its size

    Paris, June 1, 2023. Monnoyeur, the French B2B Services Group for the construction and agricultureindustry, has acquired the international company VinZero through its subsidiary ARKANCE, which specializes in digitalization and digital transformation for the construction and industrial sectors. A global presence This major acquisition will result in ARKANCE more than doubling its revenue. The latter, which amounted to 220 million euros in 2022, will thus exceed the 500 million euro mark on a full year basis. This investment will enable ARKANCE, which until now has been present mainly in Europe, to expand its global reach. Since its creation in 2011, ARKANCE has become a leading European player spanning 14 countries with 800 employees spread across 30 offices. VinZero has 550 employees and is present in the United States, Australia, New Zealand, India and the United Kingdom spread across 32 offices under its subsidiary brands A2K Technologies, Cadline, Capricot Technologies and U.S CAD. In total, the new entity will cover more than 18 countries supported by more than 60 local offices. "We are very pleased to welcome VinZero to our group. In a few years, ARKANCE has become a leader in many European countries. With this new acquisition, we will benefit from global reach and increased expertise, and gain the ability to help our traditional clients in their digital transition, while keeping our roots to offer international coverage with local strength", says Philippe Monnoyeur, CEO of the Monnoyeur Group and long aware of the major impact of digitization on his clients. An expanded and enriched service offering, closer to customers' needs Both ARKANCE and VinZero have capitalized for many years on the distribution of solutions from strategic, leading and innovative technology partners. The new entity has become the world's leading distributor of Autodesk, the giant publisher of specialized software for design and manufacturing (e.g., AutoCAD software), particularly for the construction and engineering industries. "Our ambition is to be the trusted partner in our customers' digital transformation by enabling them to balance results and profitability." Grégoire Arranz, ARKANCE CEO. To best support digitalization in the design and construction of architectural, industrial and infrastructure projects and to deliver complete solutions, the group will also be able to draw on an expanded network of skills to develop software in-house. "ARKANCE now has the critical mass to develop sophisticated solutions, and the enhanced ability to deliver them and capture the growth of digitalization trends. Our ambition is to be the trustedp artner in our customers' digital transformation by enabling them to balance results and profitability. We rely on an international team of industry experts who understand the challenges of an ever-changing digital environment," says Grégoire Arranz, ARKANCE CEO. A positive impact on the environment While the construction sector is a major emitter of CO2 (30% of greenhouse gas emissions are linked to construction), the new entity is positioned as a key player in supporting its customers in a decarbonization strategy. In fact, digitalization has a major role to play in reducing these emissions. As a result of this acquisition, VinZero, which places sustainability at the heart of its DNA, delivers an additional level of expertise and leadership to the group to deploy solutions to improve the design, construction and manufacturing of sustainable projects. "VinZero's continued growth in digital transformation, with a focus on carbon reduction and sustainability, aligns perfectly with the Monnoyeur and ARKANCE vision. With an incredible business history spanning over 100 years and a very people-centric culture, this is the perfect home for VinZero. We are very excited about the additional potential that the scale of Monnoyeur and ARKANCE will bring to our people, our customers, and our partners in the years to come", concluded Paul Laycock, VinZero Group CEO. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- VinZero VinZero's purpose is to accelerate the adoption of digital technologies in architecture, engineering, construction, owner-operator (AECO), and manufacturing organizations, supporting the urgency, momentum, and demand for more sustainable design, build, operation, and maintenance practices to build a better world.  VinZero has more than 550 employees and 32 offices around the globe and is known for its inclusive culture that puts people first, champions sustainability through digitalization, and is passionate about solving customer challenges.​ www.vinzero.com Arkance ARKANCE has a mission to lead the Manufacturing and Construction industries in digital transformation. By partnering with global technology leaders and developing complementary IP solutions, ARKANCE optimizes its customers projects through all phases of the life cycle. Its 800 strong network of experts across 14 European countries have a deep knowledge of the challenges faced by industry and a passion to develop and deliver solutions responsibly and economically. www.arkance.net Monnoyeur MONNOYEUR, is a B2B services group for the construction, industry and agriculture sectors. It distributes and maintains equipment through its networks BERGERAT MONNOYEUR and IPSO and provides rental solutions with Aprolis and Bergerat Rent. MONNOYEUR assists its customers in meeting their energy supply and digitalization challenges through its dedicated subsidiaries ENERIA and ARKANCE. With 8,000 employees, Monnoyeur is present in 20 countries and has a turnover of €2.6 billion. www.monnoyeur.com

  • A value based framework for our City Shapers

    Jorge Chapa, Chief Impact Officer at Green Building Council of Australia shares his views on the change in mindset required to achieve Circularity for the Built Environment and the importance of it for our future. Join in the conversation as celebrate the World Green Building Council recently released Circularity Playbook and unpack the business case for circularity and a new way of thinking for the future. Click here to listen now

  • VinZero achieves Autodesk Platinum Club status globally.

    Securing its position as the market leader VinZero, a global leader in providing Autodesk solutions, proudly announced today that the group has achieved Platinum Club status across all geographic locations. This recognition highlights the company's incredible success since launching its global branding last April. The subsidiaries within VinZero have for some time been established at Platinum level, the highest level of certification awarded by Autodesk. Achievement of Platinum status is a testament to VinZero's expertise, innovation, and commitment to providing exceptional service to its customers. The achievement of Platinum Club status takes its recognition as an exceptional provider to new heights. Membership in the Platinum Club is by invitation only and rewards Autodesk's top-performing value-added resellers (VARs). The program specifically recognizes VARs that have demonstrated exceptional performance in selling Autodesk software and services, as well as providing excellent customer service and support. This latest achievement for VinZero recognizes its efforts and success in becoming a leading net-zero partner for the Architectural, Engineering, Construction and Manufacturing industries. The Built Environment is currently facing unprecedented challenges, and VinZero's Digital and Sustainability Advisory services are positioned to help clients move towards a net-zero future while also combining profit with purpose. Paul Laycock, CEO of VinZero, said, "We are incredibly proud with the acheivement of Platinum Club status for all geographic locations. This award is a recognition of our efforts in leading the market and entrenching VinZero as a net-zero partner across industry. We are committed to helping our clients address the challenges they face in their industries by providing them with innovative solutions that combine digital and sustainability practices and help them step towards net zero". “Across AEC and Manufacturing, technology adoption is accelerating and is critical to managing project profitability. Through our Think.Future methodology, our Professional Services teams work with our customers to maximize the value they can gain from the technologies they deploy" Laycock, continued. In April this year VinZeros' US operation was awarded the Most Impactful Sustainability Win by Autodesk for 2023. This prestigious award recognizes VinZero's alignment with Autodesk's mission to help customers imagine, design, and solve today for a better tomorrow. The Most Impactful Sustainability Win Award recognizes companies that are making a significant impact in promoting sustainability through the use of Autodesk's software and solutions. VinZero's US operation was chosen for this award based on its outstanding commitment to sustainability and innovation in the construction and manufacturing industries. "VinZero has had an incredible year with our global partnership with the World Green Building Councils Circularity Accelerator Programme contributing to the release of the Built Environment Circularity Playbook this Month." said Laycock. VinZero's global partnership with the World Green Building Council's Circularity Accelerator Programme has seen VinZero collaborate with other industry leaders and stakeholders to deliver a valuable framework for circular building practices. The playbook aims to provide a framework for decision making as a guide to implementing circular principles in the Built Environment for companies looking to transition towards a more sustainable future. "We are now firmly positioned as the leading sustainability focused digitalization partner for construction and manufacturing around the world." concludes Laycock. www.vinzero.com About VinZero For over 20 years, the brands under VinZero have been providing software solutions and professional services to Architectural, Engineering, Construction and Manufacturing industries helping them to understand the role of digitalization for the built environment. Businesses both large and small utilize VinZero’s dedicated industry experts to help navigate technologies as they emerge, driving efficiency and improving workflows. With a global focus on reducing emissions and increased focus directed towards industry, VinZero are now turning their attention to providing the linkages between using technology to digitize, and at the same time leveraging the valuable data insights it brings to build more sustainably. VinZero are passionate about helping their customers understand how the technologies they use today can help them to step towards net zero in the future, to build a better world. Contact media@vinzero.com

  • The Foundation for Society

    Using Calix’s novel process enhancement technology to deliver a step change in the cost, and efficiency of capturing CO₂ emissions, for the cement and lime industries, Dan Rennie, CEO of Leilac spearheaded the development and coordination of the first and second Leilac projects. With 3 quarters of the built environment needed by 2050 still to be constructed, modelling indicates 1.4 Gtons of CO2 per year will need to be captured. The success of the projects and potential of this technology has led to the creation of Leilac as a standalone company offering a promising solution to combat this hard to abate sector. Click here to listen now

  • Building for the Future

    With the MENA region heating up at twice the rate addressing the resilience of the Built Environment is imperative. Leading the charge to accelerate the collaboration required to do just this is architect Amira Ayoub, Head of MENA programmes at World Green Building Council. Join in the conversation as Amira shares her passion for creating transparent conversations to create a built environment for the future. One where we can both survive, and thrive. Click here to listen now

  • Connected Design

    Join in to hear Amy Marks, Queen of Prefab, as she paints a vision for a more modern, connected and insightful environment where people can be more predictive, and less reactive. Amy unpacks what it is going to take to deliver a define-design-make-operate cycle that is informed by the performance of its own components and systems, and why the transformation of construction and manufacturing already underway, is one of the most important things that can be done for sustainability on our planet today. Click here to listen now

  • Delivering Sustainable Data Centers using accelerated design

    Driven by factors such as regulatory requirements, environmental responsibility, and the demand for faster access to growing data, the data center industry has made significant strides in becoming more innovative and conscientious about deploying more sustainable data center design and construction that are energy efficient and use renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, and water. As a result, data centers are partnering with green suppliers in their effort to reduce their carbon footprint. Enterprise Networking Planet describes the sustainability challenges with data centers in relation to the exponential rise in internet traffic in the past decade. The demand for data continues to grow and increasing regulatory pressure in the U.S. and other countries is driving efficiencies, while consumers and investors are concerned about the social and environmental impacts of doing business as usual. Investors and consumers are interested in the company’s values, therefore, are paying more attention to ethical and sustainability business practices. As a result, data centers are addressing the impacts of energy consumption and carbon emissions on the social and natural environment. Data centers to that extent compete with other users for access to local resources. Nature.com reports that while the energy consumption of data center facilities regularly receives mainstream and academic coverage, analysis of their water consumption is scarce. There is an issue of transparency with less than a third of data center operators measuring water consumption. The sustainable development approach A strategic and holistic approach to sustainable development for data centers is needed to address these challenges. Sustainable solutions are now making renewable energy more logistically and financially feasible. Data centers in the U.S. are taking action to address: 1) scalability; 2) localized energy matching; 3) procurement of DCIM and BMS systems for greater energy efficiency, 4) building to green construction standards; and 5) partnering with green suppliers. Nautilus Data Technologies faced the sustainability challenge with their data center in California and in doing so, they transitioned to a new design and became pioneers in sustainable, water-cooled data centers. Nautilus created a cooling solution using a natural water resource, without producing waste or harming the environment. They also addressed efficiency by partnering with VinZero U.S. CAD and accelerated their design. The company's platform for uniformity includes Autodesk Revit and BIM Collaborate Pro, supporting increased collaboration with its design and build partners, and helps to leverage sustainability features within the solutions. “The success and smooth transition of our sustainable data center to Autodesk and BIM can be largely attributed to the skilled and dedicated team at VinZero U.S CAD. Their support, comprehensive training solutions, and timely assistance accelerated our conversion from Rhino to BIM – setting benchmarks in efficiency and teamwork.” – Gabe Andrews, Senior Director of Data Center Operations, Nautilus Data Technologies A sustainable outcome for society and the natural environment The Nautilus Data Centre featured at the Port of Stockton in California by Businesswire. ‘’delivers all the benefits of emerging computing innovations without wasting water and energy and meets the most stringent Environment requirements in the world’’. The Nautilus data center system contributes to Sustainable Development SDG 12 'Ensure Sustainable Consumption and Production Patterns' and SDG 14 'Life Below Water'. There is no waste or consumption of water, and no refrigerants, chemical or pollution by the release of chemical compounds into the natural water system. The location of the data center is already close to a natural body of water and therefore, the building of further infrastructure to access the water is unnecessary. Traditional data centers that are land based and located close to a natural body of water can also use the water-cooling solution instead of consuming refrigerants, leaving nature unharmed. From concept to build Nautilus is proud to have demonstrated that its technology can achieve the highest standards of environmental performance required by the U.S. government and the State of California. The Nautilus team worked collaboratively with federal, state, and local professionals responsible for environmental stewardship to secure all regulatory approvals, including: California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) (160-page analysis finding no significant adverse impact to the environment) U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service (endangered species protection) U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (endangered species protection) U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (wetlands protections) California Department of Fish and Wildlife (state species protection) California State Lands Commission (public trust and natural resource protection) California Regional Water Quality Control Board (water quality protection) California Air Quality Management District (air quality protection) Sustainability benefits of the Nautilus data center The Nautilus data center design boasts a positive impact on the well-being of society and the natural environment. They have the lowest environmental footprint, enabling the greatest social gain. They are both economically and environmentally friendly and therefore are attractive to investors and consumers. Other sustainability benefits include: No consumption, refrigerants, chemicals, or pollution on the environment 70% more energy-efficient cooling compared to other traditional data centers 30% net smaller carbon footprint Capacity to run 100KW per rack, and at a daily PUE of 1.15 Do no harm to land or sea life Outlast traditional data centers and support the highest-performance computing Recognized for their leadership In recognition of their pioneering success, Nautilus and their partner, VinZero U.S. CAD received the Most Impactful Sustainability Win by Autodesk for 2023. This prestigious award recognizes VinZero U.S. CAD’s alignment with Autodesk’s mission to help customers imagine, design, and solve today for a better tomorrow. About VinZero For over 20 years, the brands under VinZero have been providing software solutions and professional services to Architectural, Engineering, Construction and Manufacturing industries helping them to understand the role of digitalization for the built environment. Businesses both large and small utilize VinZero’s dedicated industry experts to help navigate technologies as they emerge, driving efficiency and improving workflows. With a global focus on reducing emissions and increased focus directed towards industry, VinZero are now turning their attention to providing the linkages between using technology to digitize, and at the same time leveraging the valuable data insights it brings to build more sustainably. VinZero are passionate about helping their customers understand how the technologies they use today can help them to step towards net zero in the future, to build a better world. www.vinzero.com www.uscad.com Contact media@vinzero.com

  • Building for People and Planet

    Ryan Roberts is the Head of Sustainable Construction for the Holcim group based in Switzerland. With extensive experience across the construction industry, Ryan is passionate about the Built Environment and its ability to enhance the lives of people. Join in the conversation as he shares how Holcim is striving to deliver sustainable construction practices and technologies to drive improved outcomes under their mission of building for people and planet. Click here to listen now

  • Design for Health with Passive House

    More than creating a pathway to highly efficient buildings passive house design is providing a viable and positive environment for inhabitants that are sensitive to external environmental factors. With key design elements focused on airtightness, thermal insulation and mechanical ventilation Alessandro Ronfini, CEO , Demo Architects shares both the efficiency and health benefits that are being derived from this new age design principle. Click here to listen now

  • Valuing Water

    World Water Day is celebrated globally on the 22nd of March, 2023 as a reminder of the commitment to Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6: water and sanitation for all by 2030. The indicators for SDG 6 are divided into 11 subtopics and will be discussed in detail during the UN 2023 Water Conference on 22-24 March 2023. The theme for 2023 is Valuing Water, and our long-term approach to a sustainable water source, ensuring that we have water for life. Our watershed moment, uniting the world for water As we face together some of the most challenging problems in modern history, we take a moment to focus the lens on water, our life support system. There is an urgent need to collaborate, leveraging technology to build and design new systems to solve our infrastructure challenges and to support community resilience, ensuring our food and water security into the future. Converging crises over the past few years have created the perfect storm, outlined by McKinsey’s, the rising risk of a global food crisis, - article pointing to the rising risk of a global food crises and the looming threat of global hunger. Pressure on the ecological system is experienced dramatically and almost weekly somewhere on the planet as unusual weather patterns are affecting global food and water security, and severe storms are displacing millions from their homes. The world’s life support system is being bombarded by storm after storm of one kind or another. Australia’s eastern states are among the world’s most at risk from climate change and extreme weather linked to the pre-existing cycle of water referred to as El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO). The question at the top of mind for governments around the world is whether infrastructure will bend or break under climate stress. The changing climate resulting in more extreme weather events means historical climate bands are becoming outdated, leaving infrastructure operating outside of its tolerance levels. The global economy depends on infrastructure to be resilient because it connects people, enhances the quality of life and promotes health and safety. Increased flooding is weakening our infrastructure which is not built to withstand the now heavy precipitation, according to a recent study of the flood capacity of dams. The policy agenda on experimental technologies for weather modification Ever since man could fly, there has been a long history of scientists trying to modify the climate locally and globally. Weather modification technology was patented and used by governments and military as early as 1891. A recent documentary ‘The Dimming’ released in 2021, presents the history of weather modification started by the US military using technology that may be influencing the climate system while Professor of Economics, Ross McKitrick, of the University of Guelph, presents different perspectives of the climate debate; environmental, economic, and scientific. Policy on using experimental technologies is vague and as early as 1965, the National Science Foundation called for urgent social science research into the impacts of weather modification stating, “If the developing techniques of weather and climate modification are to be used intelligently, the human consequences of deliberate or inadvertent intervention need to be anticipated before they are upon us.” Cloud seeding technology fell out of political favor in the 1980s for being an "unacceptable and environmental hazard" although the negative impacts of silver iodide used in cloud seeding is not supported by published literature. Despite the potential risks which are not fully understood, cloud seeding is now back on the policy agenda as a climate adaptation strategy with no clear boundaries around the applications. Cloud seeding is not a silver bullet that can solve all water supply issues. It is perhaps one tool or solution out of many (i.e., water conservation) that can be considered to determine whether its application is feasible. Cloud seeding continues in the Snowy Mountains in NSW, Australia today to increase surface water runoff for use in the production of hydropower and enhance snow falls above natural levels. The future of cloud seeding technology On the 29th of September 2022, Future Market Insights blog featured the cloud seeding system market forecast showing future trends, leading players and regional forecast 2022 to 2032. The heightened interest in this technology is due to the increasing demand across the world for water sources and agriculture. The article explains the three cloud seeding methods: Static cloud seeding, Dynamic cloud seeding and Hygroscopic cloud seeding. Many private corporations are using cloud seeding technology in the US such as The West Texas Weather Modification Association whose primary goals are to enhance rainfall in convective thunderstorms to help increase wetland crop revenues, decrease groundwater consumption, save on irrigation costs, and help increase precipitation by 16%. Another elite group of researchers Seeding Operations and Atmospheric Research (SOAR) aka Just Clouds, dedicate themselves to providing weather modification services and research technologies with a mission to conduct cloud seeding operations efficiently, professionally, and safely. Their seeding operations involve international collaboration with the National Centre of Atmospheric Research (NCAR) to study opportunities, for example, precipitation enhancement in the Istanbul area. The global water cycle is changing, and the costs are sky high. Changing weather patterns are happening globally and resulting in either too much or too little water. The exact cause of extreme change in weather patterns is very difficult to answer because the Earth’s water cycles and the impact of cloud seeding on weather patterns in the global water cycle is very complex. It is reasonable to assume that weather modification technology is contributing to considerable changes in rainfall through feedback loops. Given we are in uncharted territory with a lack of policy regarding weather modification strategy, society needs to prepare for disaster to ensure energy, food, and water resilience in our communities globally. The impacts of changing weather patterns are increasing the economic and human costs, with predictions of a total global GDP loss in USD by sector between 2022 and 2050 to be $5.6 trillion USD. The infrastructure, economic and human cost on society is at critical levels affecting supply chains and is life threatening to humans and all biodiversity. The impacts are challenging life’s ecological and societal systems in following ways: Large volumes of rainfall are increasing storm and flood risks Longer, hotter drought period and wildfires are causing more damage to agriculture, buildings and infrastructure, and habitats Underground aquifers worldwide are being drawn down Large areas of forest and wetland continue to be cleared and drained Rivers are being modified for hydropower and water supply According to the report by GHD, Aquanomics: The economics of water risk and future resiliency, the biggest economic impact comes from storms (49%), flood (36%) and drought (15%). In 2021, the impact of storms, floods and drought affected 100 million people globally. The sectors facing the most risk include the manufacturing and distribution sector ($4211 bn) that AECO and M industries are dependent on. The economic impact from now until 2050 is predicted by the graph below, as presented in the report by GHD Aquanomics: The economics of water risk and future resiliency. As Einstein said " the quality of the solutions we come up with will be in direct proportion to the quality of the description of the problem we are trying to solve". Why do we need to plan for resilience? The World Meteorological White Paper on the future of weather and climate forecasting says ‘’the desired outcomes in all areas require enhanced resilience, which is also the main call of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) Vision 2030. " The advances expected in weather forecasting and climate prediction during this decade will support those ambitious goals by enabling a next generation of weather and climate services that help people, businesses, and governments to better mitigate risks, reduce losses, and materialize opportunities from the new intelligence of highly accurate and reliable forecasts and predictions," says the concluding chapter of the White Paper. What it means to be resilient In the fields of engineering and construction, resilience is the ability to absorb or avoid damage without suffering complete failure and is an objective of design, maintenance and restoration for buildings, infrastructure, and communities. A resilient structure, system or community is expected to be able to buffer or resist an extreme event with minimal damages and functionality disruptions during the event; and after the event, it should be able to rapidly recover functionality, similar to, or even better than the pre-event level. The built environment must consider the connection between physical space and social consequence. It needs to be resilient to existing and emerging threats such as severe windstorms or earthquakes by creating robustness and redundancy in building design. Technologies such as 3D modelling can determine implications of changing conditions and the subsequent effects on the built environment enabling designers to reverse engineer their designs and plans to build for resilience. “71% of this planet is water, however not all of it is usable for humans, industry or agriculture. The proportion that is suitable needs to be managed with accuracy, the operators and utilities need to work with efficiency. Digital solutions that combine not only the hydraulics, but also sensor and GIS data are no longer a nice to have, they are a must have. As water is life, we must treat it with the respect that it deserves.” -Chris Ryan, Head of Sales, APJ & India, Innovyze From water ways to water wise Society must foster a new relationship with nature, where water is viewed holistically, and the connection between land-based, freshwater, and marine ecosystems is recognized. Changes in weather patterns are resulting in storms and droughts that are more severe and require communities to build in buffers for resilience critical to social, environmental, and economic survival. A holistic water program is essential to provide safe and reliable drinking water together with improved delivery of waste and storm water. Holistically taking care of the infrastructure of water is taking care of life. There is hope for the future using intelligent design of our infrastructure that works together with nature: for example, investments in sanitation, regenerative farming, water-intelligent city planning, early-warning systems for storms and floods, and watershed restoration are among the solutions that could help reduce the impacts of droughts, floods, and storms across the world. Collaborate, negotiate and innovate! “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.”- Margaret Mead The technology to facilitate collaboration already exists, it is only a matter of putting intention and thought leadership together and putting solutions in the right place at the right time. Innovyze, when applied across the water system helps to relieve the social, environmental, and economic pressure around water risk mitigation and flood management. When considering using digital technology as a solution to the social economic and environmental system challenges, some elements to consider for the business case relate to: Increased flooding, spills, pollution, and asset failures due to changing climate. Population growth impacts on the effectiveness of water systems. Increased demand for quicker deliverables and collaboration between stakeholders. Inaction on maintenance is costing millions worldwide and infrastructure is ageing. Return on investment over the next 100 years. The vison for SDG 6: water and sanitation for all When collaborating for the Sustainable Development Goals, it is important to bring scientists, policy makers, engineers and planners of the water system together even though there may be competing agendas or conflicts of intertest. Having conversations that matter together on complex issues requires the right voices in the room so to speak. To facilitate a conversation related to water resilience and infrastructure the following needs to be considered: Identify the right people who understand water systems and flows in urban environments. Stormwater and sewer professionals are key drivers in creating actionable, flood readiness plans for catastrophic weather events. Negotiate complex tender processes together with stakeholders, often under pressure. Multiple tenders are calling for fast, reliable technology to aid their mission in building community resilience. Educate on the efficient use of water across the AECO and M industry and how to solve ageing infrastructure challenges. Identify cost efficiencies in terms of time and waste and minimize water loss and costs as part of water circularity solutions. It is wise to use Innovyze to design, build and solve Innovyze is hydraulic modelling software, asset management and operational analytics for water cycle management that can be used to design for adaption and mitigation of evolving risks by designing future resilience into new projects and adopting an adaptive management model. Innovyze software optimizes by improving performance of existing infrastructure with advanced technologies and data-driven insights and reduces the water needed for production as well as waste for agriculture. Their software is also used in emergency situations, with a forecasting and modelling package combined to analyse where, how much and what will be affected by stormwater. This is being used across Australia as well as Asia, Europe, and the Americas to assist emergency response teams to engage earlier, saving lives and assets. Innovyze helps to solve the water conservation challenge by using a circular economy approach to water management. From ground water, rivers, dams and lakes, planning, managing, and prioritizing regenerative and nature-based solutions first, by focusing on recycling and resource recovery, and by prioritizing the water cycle from source to recycling working within nature’s cycles. Think future and act now Infrastructure resilience and sustainability are critical in positively shaping the future of water. The technology already exists. There is no lack of resources, the solution lies in competent leadership, efficient stakeholder engagement processes and acting collaboratively, in time. We must come together to design, build and solve our infrastructure challenges and ensure that our future means we all have clean and safe water for life. Authored by Johanne Gallagher, Strategic Delivery Lead-Sustainabiity, ARKANCE Resources for life The table below outlines the applications of Innovyze solutions and the benefits. Contact VinZero For technical support and further information please contact our global team here. Sustainability in Action Video connects the dots between VinZero's digitization solutions and the Sustainable Development Goals. # World Water Day for Sustainable Development #Think.Future #Sustainablity #Resilience https://youtu.be/INdtcEx8bWA VinZero and it's partners support the delivery of energy efficiency for the Built Environment. About VinZero (an ARKANCE company) For over 20 years the brands under VinZero (an ARKANCE company) have been providing software solutions and professional services to Architectural, Engineering, Construction and Manufacturing industries helping them to understand the role of digitalization for the built environment. Businesses both large and small utilize VinZero’s dedicated industry experts to help navigate technologies as they emerge, driving efficiency and improving workflows. With a global focus on reducing emissions and increased focus directed towards industry, VinZero are now turning their attention to providing the linkages between using technology to digitize, and at the same time leveraging the valuable data insights it brings to build more sustainably. VinZero are passionate about helping their customers understand how the technologies they use today can help them to step towards net zero in the future, to build a better world.

  • Bringing Back Nature

    In this episode Ninotschka Titchkosky, CEO, BVN Architecture, shares her passion for sustainable and creative architecture and its application for Australia's Atlassian headquarters project. A project that is being touted as the world's tallest hybrid timber tower and a project that is bringing nature back to the Built Environment. Join the conversation as we unpack what it takes to design with country in mind, bringing back the lost landscape and using a nature positive framework. And the importance of not shying away from the challenges of designing with new materials to support a sustainable Built Environment. Click here to listen now

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