An evaluation method that captures the sustainable value of change for regeneration and sustainable community projects

Presentation by Professor Erik Bichard

Sustainable Return on Investment

Finding the Lingua Franca for Sustainable Development

The value of the environment often limited to negative elements such as the cost of waste or required investment in energy conservation.

The value of social issues are rarely calculated also cost associated with Social Value can be noted in terms of more costly recruitment of local people (for example).

This leaves return on investment on labour, materials and sale/rent as the dominant way to gauge the value of built environment projects today – but this is only part of the value

Invisible Value

Environment: Enhancing land value, preventing flooding, producing goods and services, influencing aesthetics and well-being

Social: Improving health, reducing crime, facilitating educational attainment, offering the context for job creation, improving social mixing and social cohesion

Each impact has a potential monetary value, but not all can or should be represented in the price point

Social and Environmental Valuation Tools

Environment: • Life Cycle Assessment data-base tools such Trucost and other bespoke products • Ecosystem Services Analysis • Construction BIM software design tools

Social: • Social Return on Investment (SROI) – This can cover the range of social impacts and benefits providing indicators and proxies can be sources from the statistical record

Combining Social and Environment

The combination of social and environmental methodologies to value regeneration programmes can be called Sustainable Return on Investment

Current Projects

•  RICS Research Trust – Developing an Approach to Sustainable return on investment in the UK, Brazil and the USA

•  City West Housing – Evaluation of 9 social and environmental improvement projects

•  Broughton Trust – Evaluation o the Irwell Valley Sustainable Communities Programme

•  WSP – Evaluation of a sustainable improvement programme as part of a 2-year demolition programme, London

•  Plus Dane Housing Group – Assessment of a Youth Engagement programme in an underinvested part of Liverpool

Case Study – Public Housing, Porto Alegre - Brazil

The PIEC Project… from Favela

To Better Housing and more

Key Elements of the PIEC Programme

•  Urban infrastructure including adequately sized sewers

•  Landscaping •  Community activity space •  Income generation programmes •  Community development.

6,70 1,50

1,50

1,50

4,60

31,05

20,00

9,90 1,60

5,30

5,30

1,00

9,20

13,60

1,00

1,50

1,50

1,50

2,30 3,00 1,50

GREEN AREA = total 913,00m² Sand = there is no VEGETATION DESIGNED = total 19 PRESERVE EXISTING VEGETATION = total 2 EXISTING VEGETATION TO MOVE OR REMOVE = there is no

Allotment Vila Pôr-do-sol Legend:

Scale 1:50

Quadra B

Quadra H

Quadra A

Quadra G

Rua 0401

Quadra E

Rua 0402

Rua 0405

Ru a

040

1

Rua 0402

Rua 0401

Rua 0408

Quadra F

Quadra D Quadra C

Ru a

040

6

Equipamento de Geração de Renda (Centro Regional de Desenvolv.)

A=3.091,19 m2

Ru a

040

7

Associação Moradores

Escritório do PIEC

Ru a

040

9

Rua 0402

Creche Baby Tec

GREEN AREA = total 2834,00m²

EXISTING VEGETATION TO MOVE OR REMOVE = there is no data

PRESERVE EXISTING VEGETATION = there is no data

VEGETATION DESIGNED = there is no data

Allotment Vila tecnológica Legend:

Sand = there is no

Scale 1:50

GREEN AREA = total 1391,00m²  

Sand = total 232,00m²

VEGETATION DESIGNED = total

62    PRESERVE EXISTING VEGETATION    EXISTING VEGETATION TO MOVE OR REMOVE = total 28

Allotment Vila Progresso Legend:

Scale 1:50

Current State of Open Space

Data Deficits

Green

 Spa

ces  P

IEC  area  

Allotm

ent  V

ila  Progresso  

Allotm

ent  V

ila  Pôr-­‐do-­‐sol  

Allotm

ent  V

ila  Tecno

lógica  

Area  total  Green  Spaces  (m²)   1391,00m²   913,00m²   2834,00m²  

Vegeta5on  designed   62  trees   19  trees   there  is  no  data  

Preserve  exis5ng  vegeta5on   0   2  trees   there  is  no  data  

Exis5ng  vegeta5on  to  carry  or  remove   28  trees   0   there  is  no  data  

Stages of the Ecosystems Services element of the SuROI Study

•  Step 1 – Identify and define the area of the study

•  Step 2 - Identify the ecosystem services and disservices

•  Step 3 – Assess the value of the existing ecosystem services as a benchmark

•  Step 4 – Assess the value of the ecosystem services after the intervention

•  Step 5 - Compare the outcomes

Preliminary ES Calculation for Villa Progresso

Ecosystem  services   US$   Baseline   New  Estate  

Difference  

Air  purifica5on   16  /tree/year1   448   992   544  

Urban  cooling   10  /tree/year1   280   620   340  

Climate  regula5on      5  /tree/year1   160   310   150  

Food  produc5on*   157/ha/yr2   0   21   21  

Recrea5on  and  cogni5ve  development  

5266/ha/yr2   0   733   733  

Percola5on  and  regula5on  of  runoff  

5/ha/yr2   5   1   1  

Total       892   2677   1789  

Social Outcomes Under investigation

Residents have improved job prospects Residents have more education/qualification Residents feel better through access to higher quality parks and

gardens Residents gain new or better employment positions Resident's experience improvements to health through more provision

of health services Better community democracy/decisions/demands results in lower levels

of crime Residents are healthier due to better quality of housing Residents feel safer because of safety measures they build into their

new houses Are healthier due to improved flooding and sewage drainage

infrastructure

Other Valuation Tools

•  Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) can identify embedded carbon, emissions, damage from resource sourcing and labour conditions

•  Building Information Modelling (BIM) can value can value occupation costs from various energy and lighting management systems perspectives

•  Behavioural studies can value the cost of various ways buildings can be operated