Countdown to COP26: Sumita Singha & Richard Waterhouse
2021-10-27T06:00:00
As the global climate summit approaches, we ask leading figures in the profession and wider industry to share one idea they think could help save the planet
Stop using virgin materials
Sumita Singha OBE, director of Ecologic Architects
In the midst of the pandemic, a report by think tank Circular Economy (The Circularity Gap Report 2020, January 2020) that humanity was quietly devouring the earth went unnoticed. While the amount of material consumed by humanity had passed 100 billion tonnes since 2017, the proportion being recycled was falling.
This meant virgin materials were being used up while building waste was growing. Half of this 100 billion tonnes was sand, clay, gravel and cement – all used for building
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