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Green Building Council's (Grænni byggð) events in 2023. Upcoming events Past events Events 2026 Welcome to our event site! Here you can find information about upcoming events and description of past events. Mynd: Ástrós Steingrímsdóttir Upcoming events GBCI Networking meetings Networking groups are for all members of GBCI. If you are a member and want to register for a networking group, send us an email at gb@graennibyggd.is The groups are: Certification, Sustainable infrastructure, LCA, Circular economy and Public procurement (only for employees of public authorities). Upcoming meetings are advertised here: Certification: 11.05.2026 Circular economy: 27.05.2026 LCA: 27.05.2026 Circular economy: 24.06.2026 Past events Byggjum fyrir fólk BREEAM New Construction v.7 Aðalfundur Grænni byggðar 2026 General meeting 2026 22/04/2026 The board of Grænni byggð held its annual general meeting on Wednesday, April 22nd at 2:30 PM - 4:30 PM at HMS , Borgartún 21. All members of Grænni byður have the right to send a representative to the annual general meeting. Agenda for the annual general meeting: 1. Report of the board on the association's work in the past year. 2. The board's work plan for the next year. 3. The board's budget for the next year. 4. Financial statements. 5. Proposals and amendments to the association's bylaws. 6. Elections of the board of directors. 7. Elections of auditors (cf. Article 9) 8. Other matters. In addition to the traditional general meeting activities, GBCI staff will give short presentations on exciting projects that GBCI is working on: Handbook on Reuse GBCI is working on publishing a handbook on the reuse of over 35 common Icelandic materials and products and information on legal requirements that reused materials and products must meet in order to be approved for use. Best practices in New European Bauhaus in the Arctic Presentation of projects that are examples of good ways to build in a sustainable, beautiful and inclusive way in difficult weather and environmental conditions (such as in the Arctic) and were recently recognized by the Bauhaus Goes North project. Thank you for coming to the general meeting and we look forward to continued work in 2026-2027! Annual report, financial report and annual general meeting notes can be found on the website under Operations and documentation (Rekstur). Midday meeting: Byggjum fyrir fólk (Build for people) 22/01/2026 Nearly all our time is spent inside or near buildings, making them an essential part of our lives. Lately, the impact of the built environment on our health has garnered increasing attention, and the inquiry into how we can enhance buildings to support our physical and mental well-being has been widely discussed among many in Iceland. At the same time, we also aim to improve the construction's environmental impact. Can these two elements work together? This and other questions were answered at the event in the Nordic House on Thursday January 22nd at 15:00-16:30. The moderator opened the event, followed by a short talk from Andri Snær Magnason. Then an introduction to a European initiative aiming to integrate environmental sustainability with the well-being of built environment users - New European Bauhaus - and its potential to address certain challenges we encounter in Iceland. A panel discussion on the cultural, social, and environmental dimensions of the built environment and how we can combine them followed. The event garnered a lot of interest and over 200 people attended both in person and online. A recording from the event can be found below. Agenda : 1. Opening of the event 2. Andri Snær Magnason holds a short introduction. 3. NEB presentation and other presentations 4. Panel. 5. Q&A 6. Meeting summary. Panelists: Arnhildur Pálmadóttir, s. ap arkitektar Elín Þórólfsdóttir, HMS Halla Helgadóttir, Hönnunarmiðstöð Páll Jakob Líndal, ENVALYS and HR Moderator was Anna María Bogadóttir, architect. Midday meeting: BREEAM New Construction v. 7 20/01/2026 On September 30, 2025, BREEAM New Construction Version 7 was officially launched, and all new assignments registered from 27 January 2026 will fall under v.7. GB held a meeting to prepare for the use of the new version with representatives from BRE to introduce the changes and give parties the opportunity to ask questions and receive answers. The meeting was only for GB members. The meeting was well attended and Florence Owens and Alejandro Romero from BRE presented the new focuses of BREEAM v. 7 and many good questions were received from participants.

We work to create a healthy, sustainable built environment that promotes well-being for all. More about us can be found here. Grænni Byggð members Join us By becoming a member you: - get discounts at events; - you become a role model; - your company takes an active responsibility in environmental matters; - you can increase your knowledge about environmental issues; - you get opportunities for networking; - you support professional work and discussions on environmental issues in construction and planning; - your company can be an active participant in Green Building Council Iceland's projects, professional groups and events; - your company can influence the work and strategy of Green Building Council Iceland. Thank you for submitting! Senda Publications Emission-free construction sites C&D Waste Certification systems Other publications

Green Building Council's (Grænni byggð) annual reports and board meeting minutes. Operations and documentation Green Building Council Iceland's bylaws can be found here . Mynd: Ástrós Steingrímsdóttir Annual and financial reports, work plans (in Icelandic) 2026 2025 2024 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 Annual report Annual report Annual report Annual report Annual report Annual report Annual report Annual report Annual report Annual report Annual report Annual report Annual report Annual report Annual report Annual report Annual report Financial report Financial report Financial report Financial report Financial report Financial report Financial report Financial report Financial report Financial report Financial report Financial report Financial report Financial report Financial report Financial report Financial report Annual meeting Annual meeting Annual meeting Annual meeting Annual meeting Annual meeting Annual meeting Annual meeting Annual meeting Annual meeting Annual meeting Annual meeting Annual meeting Annual meeting Annual meeting Annual meeting Founding meeting Work plan Work plan Work plan Board meeting minutes (in Icelandic) 2026 02/2026 03/2026 05/2026 2022 01/2022 02/2022 03/2022 04/2022 - 01 | 04/2022 - 02 05/2022 - 01 | 05/2022 - 02 06/2022 09/2022 10/2022 11/2022 12/2022 2023 01/2023 02/2023 03/2023 04/2023 05/2023 - 01 | 05/2023 - 02 08/2023 09/2023 10/2023 12/2023 2024 01/2024 02/2024 03/2024 04/2024 05/2024 06/2024 2025 02/2025 03/2025 05/2025 06/2025 08/2025 11/2025 08/2024 09/2024 10/2024 11/2024 2018 08/2018 09/2018 -01 | 09/2018 - 02 10/2018 11/2018 12/2018 2019 01/2019 02/2019 03/2019 05/2019 2020 01/2020 02/2020 03/2020 04/2020 05/2020 06/2020 08/2020 10/2020 11/2020 2021 01/2021 02/2021 03/2021 04/2021 05/2021 06/2021 - 01 | 06/2021 - 02 08/2021 10/2021 11/2021 12/2021 Other documents → Review of the updated action plan of the City of Reykjavík regarding climate matters (28/01/2021). Document in Icelandic. → Review of the updated climate action plan (01/10/2020). Document in Icelandic. → Comment on the climate-related action plan (01/10/2020). Document in Icelandic. → Comments to the housing matters group on social sustainability and environmental priorities (10/01/2019). Document in Icelandic. → Comment on a meeting with Minister of Transport and Local Government Sigurður Inga Jóhannsson (11/2018). Document in Icelandic. → Comment on incentives to increase the number of green buildings. Document in Icelandic. → Icelandic summary of the World GBC Report on Bringing Embodied Carbon Upfront (2020). Document in Icelandic. → The draft target plan of the Board . Document in Icelandic.

Green Building Council's (Grænni byggð) events in 2023. 2026 Past years Events On this page you can find GBCI's events Mynd: Ástrós Steingrímsdóttir 2026 2025 2022 2024 2021 2023 Fyrir 2021

Members The following companies, organizations and individuals are members of Green Building Council Iceland. Mynd: Ástrós Steingrímsdóttir 1st Category BM Vallá Eik fasteignafélag Húsnæðis- og mannvirkjastofnun Reitir fasteignafélag Verkís verkfræðistofa 2nd Category Búseti Efla Hafnarfjörður Isavia ohf. Heimar Reykjavíkurborg 3rd Category Alta ráðgjöf Basalt HJARK Hulda Jóns arkitektúr Arkís COWI Hornsteinar Ask arkitektar Eignaumsjón HNIT Artelia Group BYKO Húsasmiðjan Iðan Fræðslusetur ÍAV Íslenskir Aðalverktakar Íslandsbanki Jáverk Klasi Langeldur Lota Landsvirkjun Landslag Landmótun Pago Stika solutions Steinull Steypustöðin T.ark Teiknistofan Tark ehf. Teiknistofan Tröð THG arkitektar VSB verkfræðistofa Vegagerðin Umhverfis- og orkustofnun Verkvist VA Arkitektar Vista Verkfræðistofa VSÓ Ráðgjöf exa nordic Staðlaráð Íslands Íslenskir staðlar Örugg verkfræðistofa 4th Category Arnhildur Pálmadóttir architect and owner of sap arkitektar Anna María Bogadóttir , architect and owner of URBANISTAN Finnur Sveinsson , Visthús Hildur Ýr Ottósdóttir, Ydda arkitektar Sigríður Maack , architect, arctic space Anna Sigríður Jóhannsdóttir , architect Heimir Hermannsson , CEO, GigOver Bryndís Ósk Jökla Björnsdóttir , MPM Stefanía Sigfúsdóttir , architect at Atrium arkitektar

Past projects On-going projects Here you can find our current and past projects that cover various topics, e.g., circular construction, BREEAM certification, and a net-zero building in Iceland. Projects Mynd: Ástrós Steingrímsdóttir On-going projects Bauhaus Goes North (BGN) 2024-2027 About Better data on carbon emissions from construction sites using real-world data 2025-2026 About Hringvangur – the Icelandic network for circular construction 2025-2026 About Carbon-neutral building in Icelandic conditions 2023-2025 About Guidelines to emission-free construction sites (BGF 2.9) 2023-2025 About Investigate the possibilities and opportunities for the increased implementation of a circular economy in the use of building materials 2025-2026 About Turf houses – can we learn from the past? 2025-2026 About Past projects Establishing clear requirements for reporting actual waste volumes (BGF 4.7 ) 2024-2025 About Establishing clear requirements for reporting actual waste volumes (BGF 4.7 ) 2024-2025 About Guidelines for the reuse of building materials and responsible demolition (BGF 4.9 , 4.10 ) 2024-2025 About CIRCON (The circular economy in construction: eco-design of circular buildings) 2022-2024 About Partners Newsletter CIRCON website Nordic Circularity Accelerator (NCA) 2023-2024 About Report Nordic Networks for Circular Construction (NNCC) 2021-2024 About Report Nordic Sustainable Construction - Emission-free Construction Sites 2022-2024 About Energy use - designed and measured 2022-2024 About BREEAM - An cost-benefit analysis of sustainable building certificates 2022-2023 About HringRás (Circularity) 2022-2023 About Mapping and guidance on the utilization potential of different construction waste 2022 About

Bauhaus Goes North (BGN) About the project The Bauhaus Goes North (BGN) project is realised by the Green Building Council Iceland together with 13 partners and associated partners from the Northern Periphery and Arctic (NPA) region. The project received funding from the Interreg NPA Programme , co-funded by the European Union. The project aims to increase stakeholders' knowledge and facilitate the implementation of best practices that align with the New European Bauhaus (NEB) in the NPA region. The project's main focus are practices linked to circularity and resource efficiency. The NEB initiative was launched to make the European Green Deal a 'tangible experience' - offering a new cultural approach for Europe, a systemic change that is innovative, attractive, and human-centred. It has three core values guiding it: Sustainability (circularity, zero pollution, biodiversity) Aesthetics (quality of experience, style beyond functionality) Inclusion (valuing diversity, securing accessibility and affordability) Deliverables The project will deliver: a Co-Design Playbook and a Replicability Index tool aiming to ensure the replicability of identified best NEB practices, considering local contexts, competencies, capacity building and policy for supporting the transition to circular and resource-efficient economies; three annual Calls for Best Practices in NEB in the NPA Region , which aim to accelerate take-up of replicable solutions; four jointly developed demonstrator projects (i.e., a district plan, a campus and a historic building, and a sustainable island development) to illustrate the practical implementation of NEB aspects in diverse settings and contexts. Project website Overview Green Building Council Iceland is responsible for Work Package 2 (WP2) in the project: NEB Best Practices Competition: Assembling and Disseminating Exemplary Cases in the NPA Region. The main objective of WP2 is to identify best practices aligning with NEB in the NPA region. This will be done through three annual calls. The chosen winning and front-running practices will be highlighted on the Project website and circulated among various Nordic and European networks to disseminate them effectively. Eventually, the identified best practices will be a part of one of the project outcomes – the so-called Co-Design Playbook. Project partners are as follows: University College Cork , Cork, Ireland; Green Building Council Iceland , Reykjavík, Iceland; OULU University of Applied Science , Oulu, Finland; UIT The Arctic University of Norway , Tromsø, Norway; City of Bodø , Bodø, Norway; Umeå University , Umeå, Sweden; Cork County Council , Cork, Ireland. In the project, we also have 7 associated partners from Denmark, Finland, Faroe Islands, Ireland, and Sweden. Partners The BGN project's total budget is €1,632,526.95, and it benefits from € 1,019,056.94 in Interreg NPA co-financing, including 7.59% of funding covered by the European Regional Development Fund for Icelandic partners (ERDF_IS). The ERDF_IS funding amounts to € 123,930.30.

Green Building Council's (Grænni byggð) events in 2023. 2025 Morning meeting: Frakkastígur 1 03/12/2025 The project on Frakkastígur 1 , owned by Iða fasteignaþróunarfélags and designed by Lendager Ísland, is another example of ambitious construction aiming to reduce the carbon footprint by 50% compared to conventional buildings. Do you want to hear more about how it was done and what the experiences and challenges were for the designer and material provider? Grænni byggð and the GBCI networking group on LCA held a morning meeting on 3. December at 9:00-10:00 on Zoom. Watch the recording below ⬇ Recording Morning meeting: Standards in the built environment - the knowledge in the standard 26/11/2025 GBCI and Icelandic Standards (IST) have joined forces to promote a sustainable construction industry - where standards play a key role. If you want to know more about: the importance of standards in a sustainable construction industry current and upcoming standards …and hear about the upcoming mirror committee with the European Technical Committee TC350, join us for a morning meeting on November 26th from 9-10 am on zoom. The Technical Committee TC350 discusses standards related to sustainability in the construction industry, with the subcommittee on the circular economy and working groups working on building simulation, construction, digital transformation, etc. The mirror committee will monitor the development of new standards and have the opportunity to influence their creation, in addition to receiving first-hand news from the standards world. At the meeting, Helga Sigrún Harðardóttir, Director of the Icelandic Standards, will bring us closer to the above topics and answer your questions at the end. The meeting will be moderated by Bergþóra Góa Kvaran . Recording Nordic Climate Forum for Construction 28/10/2025 On 28 October, Nordic stakeholders gathered at the Nordic Climate Forum for Construction in Copenhagen. The conference discussed practical steps towards a green transition in the construction industry. The conference focused on two topics: Life cycle assessments and how to make them more efficient, cost-effective and digital. Better utilisation of existing buildings and their reuse instead of new construction. The conference discussed the Energy Performance of Buildings (EPBD) and new rules on the lifetime carbon footprint (GWP) of buildings in Europe, as well as sufficiency in connection with the increased emphasis that the European Commission intends to place on the utilisation of existing buildings in Europe. Representatives from the Nordic countries reported on progress and innovations in their countries, including Elín Þórólfsdóttir from HMS, who reported on, among other things, the new building regulations in Iceland and the digital LCA submission portal. Stakeholders from various countries and sectors reported on innovative projects related to digital solutions and building reuse. Discussion and ideas from the conference are a good starting point for the Nordic Sustainable Construction 2025–2027 project, which aims to promote a green transformation in the construction industry with a focus on circularity and digital solutions, among other things. More on NCFC Healthy Buildings Conference Series, Europe 2025 (HB 2025) 08/06/2025 - 11/06/2025 The European Regional Conference on Healthy Buildings was held in Reykjavík from 8 to 11 June. During these times of climate change, we must ensure that buildings do not harm the planet or the health of those who live in them. We need to focus on both the environment and people. In order to reduce the carbon footprint of buildings and promote sustainability, we need to combine diverse interdisciplinary knowledge. At the same time, we must ensure that indoor air is as safe and healthy as possible. The condition and design of buildings play a key role in shaping indoor air quality. The conference lasted three days and after the main program ended, a symposium was held for Icelandic professionals on 11 June at 13:00. HB 2025 Webpage HB 2025 Facebook page HB 2025 Event Icelandic symposium | Event Katarzyna Jagodzińska from Green Building Council Iceland gave a talk on New European Bauhaus at the end of the symposium and discussed how NEB can be used to improve the quality of buildings. A recording of the seminar can be found below. Recording Workshop: Can New European Bauhaus be the answer to the challenges Icelandic architecture and design face? 04/06/2025 A workshop on the New European Bauhaus concept was held on Wednesday, June 4th, at 9:30-11:00 in Fenjamýri in Gróska in collaboration with the Icelandic Association of Architects and GBCI. Elín Þórólfsdóttir gave a short talk about New European Bauhaus and Katarzyna Jagodzinska from Grænni byggð then took over and explained the ideology further. After that, the participants took part in a workshop where discussions took place in smaller groups and at the end the groups shared their ideas with the whole group. About 35 people participated and interesting and necessary discussions took place about sustainability, beauty and inclusion in the construction industry! Background Beauty and sustainability For several years now, there has been much discussion about sustainability in relation to Icelandic architecture and design, and the environmental impact has often dominated the discussion. However, social and aesthetic aspects are gaining more and more importance, as can be seen from the recent and ongoing discussion about the aesthetics of new Icelandic buildings. The question that arises most is whether it is possible to combine these three aspects - aesthetics, the social aspect and sustainability? New European Bauhaus (NEB) The idea of the New European Bauhaus (NEB) could answer this question, as it combines sustainability, beauty and inclusion in the construction industry. It defines these three aspects in a clearer and more practical way that is on the verge of being measurable. But what is the usefulness of NEB in the Icelandic context? Can NEB help solve the problems that Icelandic architecture and design are facing? What is New European Bauhaus? New European Bauhaus (NEB) is a policy and funding initiative that makes green transformation in the built environment – and beyond – attractive, enjoyable and accessible for all. Even the smallest communities have the right to a quality of life in spaces that enhance their well-being and sense of belonging. The project promotes solutions that are not only sustainable, but also inclusive and beautiful, while respecting the diversity of places, traditions and cultures in Europe and beyond. Niðurstöður Eftirfarandi eru niðurstöðurnar úr vinnustofunni . Þátttakendur röðuðu lykilatriðum innan þriggja aðalhluta NEB - sjálfbærni, fegurðar og inngildingar - eftir mikilvægi. Ítarlegri umfjöllun um niðurstöðurnar, auk niðurstaða úr annarri vinnustofu um NEB sem haldin var 11. júní á málþinginu Byggjum til framtíðar (Healthy Buildings 2025) kemur út í fréttabréfi Grænni byggðar í haust (skráðu þig á póstlista ). Við stefnum á að halda umræðunni um NEB á lífi áfram - fylgist með samfélagsmiðlunum okkar! Sjálfbærni: Tvö lykilatriði voru sett í efsta sæti í hlutanum um sjálfbærni, þó margir hópar hafi einnig talið mörg önnur lykilatriði mikilvæg: - Hringrásarhagkerfi í byggingargeiranum (S.9); - Að ná sem bestum grænum áhrifum opinbera geirans hvað varðar efnahagslega þátttöku hans í sjálfbærni byggða umhverfisins (S.7). Algengasta ástæðan fyrir því að Hringrásarhagkerfi í byggingargeiranum var valið var að hugtakið er margþætt og nær yfir mörg atriði, sem gerir það yfirgripsmikið og þar af leiðandi viðeigandi fyrir stóran hluta af hagsmunaaðilum byggingargeirans. Hóparnir lögðu einnig áherslu á mikilvægi þess að fjármálageirinn og opinberir aðilar taki þátt í sjálfbærni aðgerðum. Eftirfarandi tvö lykilatriði enduðu í neðstu sætunum: - Lágmarka umhverfisáhrif á loft og vatn sem ekki tengjast orku (S.5); - Lágmarka notkun jarðefnaeldsneytis í byggðu umhverfi (S.1). Ástæðan fyrir þessu var að samkvæmt þátttakendum hefur mikil áhersla þegar verið lögð á þessi atriði og fjölmargar aðgerðir nú þegar í gangi í tengslum við þau. Fegurð: Líkt og í sjálfbærni hlutanum voru tvö lykilatriði í efstu sætunum: - Að hámarka endingu og líftíma (B.6); - Að tryggja heilsu, þægindi og vellíðan íbúa (B.4), en Stafræn umbreyting í byggingariðnaði (B.1) var afgerandi sett í neðsta sæti. Margir hópar lögðu áherslu á mikilvægi þess að lengja líftíma bygginga og byggingarhluta, sem og mikilvægi þess að leggja meiri áherslu á vellíðan fólks í byggðu umhverfi (dagsbirta var til dæmis nefnd sem eitt af mikilvægustu atriðunum í þessu samhengi). Í tengslum við umræðu um að lengja endingu bygginga nefndu hóparnir einnig að hugarfarsbreyting væri nauðsynleg og að meðhöndla þurfi byggingar öðruvísi en aðrar neysluvörur sem er hent/breytt í samræmi við tískustrauma. Þegar kom að Stafrænni umbreytingu í byggingariðnaði þótti þátttakendum erfitt að sjá tengslin milli skilgreiningar NEB á fegurð og forsmíði bygginga og byggingarhluta, forsmíði virðist vera andstæða fegurðar, sérstaklega hvað varðar fagurfræði. Inngilding: Þessi hluti vinnustofunnar var mesta áskoruninn fyrir þátttakendur, en þeim fannst skorta sérhæfða þekkingu til þess að meta þessi atriði. Mörg atriði voru einnig talin nátengd og sum sköruðust við lykilatriði í hlutanum um fegurð. Tvö atriði voru samt sem áður metin mikilvægust í íslensku samhengi: - Hagkvæmni (e. affordability) (I.2); - Alhliða gæði, jafnrétti og aðgengi (I.3). Í tengslum við Hagkvæmni (e. affordability ) voru vandamál á íslenskum húsnæðismarkaði nefnd og áhrif þeirra á samfélagið í heild, en sérstaklega áhrif á viðkvæma hópa (t.d. hversu erfitt það er að eignast húsnæði á Íslandi). Alhliða gæði, jafnrétti og aðgengi var talið tengjast Hagkvæmni á beinan hátt sem og lengri endingu bygginga (þ.e. rétt viðhald rýma og þjónustu). Hér má finna ýtarlega skýrslu um NEB sem og tól sem hægt er að nota til þess að meta atriði úr NEB í eigin verkefnum. Dagur Grænni byggðar - GBCI Day 08/10/2025 Green Building Council Iceland Day was held at IÐNÓ on October 8! The program began at 1:00 PM and ended with the presentation of the Green Shovel at 5:00 PM. After that, drinks and snacks were served. Moderator was Sigríður Ósk Bjarnadóttir from Hornsteinn and board member of GBCI. This year's conference placed a special emphasis on the social aspects of sustainability - the well-being of users in the built environment. ✨Program ✨ 💡Keynote speaker: Natalia Olszewska 💡 🏡 Natalia Olszewska is a doctor and also holds an MSc degree. She is passionate about health-oriented design and the creation of environments that support health and well-being. With this goal in mind, she specializes in utilizing neuroscience and psychology in architecture and building design, basing her work on a deep understanding of physiology and medicine. 📖 Natalia has a unique interdisciplinary background, with degrees in medicine, neuroscience, and neuroscience in architecture, as well as research at Harvard University and the Collège de France. ✏ Natalia is one of the founders of IMPRONTA, a research and consulting firm focused on the science behind design that focuses on health and well-being. She has worked on architectural projects around the world that have in common the design of buildings to support cognitive, emotional, and social development. 👩🏫 Natalia teaches Neuroscience in Architecture at IUAV University in Venice. All of her work is based on the belief that architecture should do more than just serve its basic purpose and should fulfill our deepest biological, emotional, and social needs. She lectures and writes on the connections between health, neuroscience, and the built environment. 💡 Lecture: The healing power of nature – landscape design with an emphasis on recovery - Íris Reynisdóttir, Efla💡 🏗 The built environment and its inhabitants are diverse, landscape architecture works in an interdisciplinary way to create green spaces for different user groups. The talk discusses how the team of landscape architects at Efla approaches their projects to create a healthy environment for all. 💡 Lecture: The present and future of daylight in Icelandic buildings - Ásta Logadóttir, Lota💡 🏗 Light has a direct impact on health, vision and our experience of spaces. In the lecture, Ásta Logadóttir, team leader at LOTU, discusses the state of daylight in Icelandic buildings and RB blöð connected to it. 💡 Lecture: Energy classification of houses in Iceland - Björn Marteinsson💡 🏗 Presentation of the activities of the working group organized by HMS regarding the energy classification of residential buildings in Iceland and ongoing work regarding the energy classification of other types of buildings. 💡 Lecture: Action Plan Building a Greener Future - new actions - Elín Þórólfsdóttir, HMS 💡 🏗 The latest actions in the Action Plan Building a Greener Future will be presented. They support the goals of carbon neutrality, circular economy, sustainability in the construction sector and the implementation of nature-based solutions. 💡 Lecture: New hotel site rises with sustainability at the forefront - Berglind Ósk Ólafsdóttir, Reitir 💡 🏗 Reitir is currently building a HYATT hotel at Laugavegur 176. The talk will discuss how sustainability has been integrated into the design, construction and future operation of the hotel on this historic building site at Laugavegur 176. 💡 Lecture: Less waste and more value creation - Emilía Borgþórsdóttir, Húsasmiðjan 💡 🏗 Húsasmiðjan has worked diligently to improve processes within its operations, which promotes the renewal of materials and the value creation of building materials. In the talk, the sustainability project manager at Húsasmiðjan will discuss how sustainability is used in innovation within the company. 🗣 Panel: User Well-being in the Built Environment - The Biggest Challenge of Our Time 🗣 🏗 The panel will include experts and representatives from various stakeholders within the construction industry. Confirmed panelists are Páll Jakob Líndal from ENVALYS and Reykjavík University, Guðrún Ragna Yngvadóttir from ASK Architects, Guðrún Álfheiður Thorarensen from EIK and Ingvi Jónasson from Klasi. Moderator of panel discussion is Anna Sigríður Jóhannsdóttir, architect and board member of GBCI. Opening: New European Bauhaus in an Icelandic context 21/08/2025 Green Building Council Icelands thanks everyone for coming to the opening of the exhibition New European Bauhaus in an Icelandic Context in Arctic Space on August 21st! The exhibition introduces the concept of New European Bauhaus (NEB) and places special emphasis on its applicability in the Icelandic context. The history, development and background of the NEB concept are reviewed, as well as the main elements, values and working principles related to NEB are explained. Examples of Icelandic projects that follow the values and working principles of NEB are also shown. New European Bauhaus is a concept that promotes solutions in construction, architecture and design that are not only sustainable but also inclusive and beautiful. Could NEB help us solve the problems that Icelandic architecture and design are facing? What aspects of the NEB concept can we use in architecture and design in Iceland? All are welcome to view the exhibition during Arctic Space opening hours: Fri : 15:00 - 18:00 | Sat : 13:00 - 16:00 or by appointment by sending an email to info@arcticspace.is Arctic Space Visit to Urriðaból - 2024 Green Shovel Award winner 23/05/2025 On May 23, Green Building Council Iceland and HJARK hosted a visit for GBCI members to Urriðaból preschool in Garðabær, the winner of the Green Shovel Award in 2024. During the visit, Hulda Jónsdóttir from HJARK, the main designer and design manager of the building, walked with participants through the building in its entirety and talked about the design process, the construction, the certification process and more. The participants then had the opportunity to ask questions and gain valuable insight into various aspects of the design process. Information about Urriðaból can be found on our website under Green shovel. Thank you to those that came on the visit and to Hulda for an interesting introduction! GBCI General Meeting 2025 29/04/2025 Green Building Council Iceland general meeting was held on Tuesday, April 29th at 3:00 PM in the HMS offices in Borgartún. All member companies of GBCI were invited to the meeting and there was a good turnout. Traditional general meeting business was carried out in addition to elections for three board seats. The following were elected to the GBCI board: Alex Ingi Espersen, structural engineer at COWI Anna Sigríður Jóhannsdóttir, architect FAÍ Bergþóra Góa Kvaran, specialist at the Icelandic Environment and Energy Agency Alex and Bergþóra are new members of the board and Anna Sigríður is re-elected. Anna Kristín Hjartardóttir, Elín Þórólfsdóttir, Sigríður Ósk Bjarnadóttir and Sunna Hrönn Sigmarsdóttir have a mandate for one more year and will therefore remain on the board. Íris Þórarinsdóttir and Alexander Helgason are stepping down from the board and we would like to thank them very much for their good work. The annual report and financial statements for GBCI's operations in 2024 can be found under Documentation on the website. In addition to the traditional general meeting activities, GBCI staff gave short presentations on two exciting projects that GBCI is working on. Aðalsteinn and Ástrós presented new guidelines for emission-free construction sites that are intended to be useful to all those who want to reduce emissions from construction sites. The brochures with the guidelines can be found under Publications - Emission-free Workshops on the website. Katarzyna spoke about the New European Bauhaus concept and GBCI's role in the Bauhaus Goes North project. Morning meeting - Car cellars or parking garages: impact, hindrances and future visions 25/02/2025 Green Building Council Iceland held a morning meeting on February 25th at 9:00 AM about parking garages and car cellars. The meeting consisted of two presentations and a panel discussion. Over 90 people attended the meeting, which was live streamed. Recordings of the presentations and panel discussions can be found below. Thanks for coming! Carbon-neutral Reykjavík 2030: development and climate impact - Hrönn Hrafnsdóttir and Herdís Sigurgrímsdóttir , City of Reykjavík Hrönn and Herdís presented a project that recently began at the City of Reykjavík and revolves around revolutionizing residents' choices of transportation and how different parking solutions hinder or facilitate changes in transportation habits in the city. One of the questions the project aims to answer is: will car cellars change our transportation habits or solidify the car as our primary mode of transportation? Parking garages and Borgarlína in Keldnaland - Þorsteinn R. Hermannsson , Betri Samgöngur ohf. Þorsteinn presented a proposal for the development of a new district at Keldur and Keldnaholt with three Borgarlína stations, which envisages the construction of several parking garages in the area. The parking garages, each of which will be shared by a number of apartments and commercial buildings on nearby plots, will largely replace private basements and private parking on plots. It is intended that the buildings can accommodate central services for the adjacent area on the ground floor and that they can be converted into commercial or residential premises if the need for parking decreases in the future. Panel discussion The panel included: Elín Þórólfsdóttir, team leader from Húsnæðis- and mannvirkjastofnun Borghildur Sölvey Sturludóttir , architect and head of the department of local planning, City of Reykjavik. Ólafur Árnason , Director, Icelandic Planning Agency. Íris Þórarinsdóttir, the chair of the board of Green Building Council Iceland, was the meeting moderator. Upptaka Upptaka Upptaka Small steps, big impact – reducing the environmental effect of the construction industry 03/04/2025 In connection with DesignMarch, the Icelandic Association of Architects, in collaboration with Green Building Council Iceland, Húsnæðis- og mannvirkjastofnun, Miðstöð hönnunar og arkitektúrs and Viska union, held a symposium on eco-friendly construction. The symposium was also supported by Starfsþróunarsetur háskólamanna. One of the keynote speakers at the symposium, architect Sinus Lynge , is one of the founders of EFFEKT design studio. His vision is to reconnect people with nature through good design in a broad sense. EFFEKT is also one of the founders of the non-governmental organization Reduction Roadmap , which has published a roadmap of the same name. Sinus Lynge presented the philosophy behind the roadmap, which is very ambitious and also shows how much emissions from construction need to be reduced in order to meet the requirements of the Paris Agreement. The other keynote speaker was Harpa Birgisdóttir, Professor and Head of the Department of Sustainable Buildings at Aalborg University. She has worked on developing software that calculates the ecological footprint of buildings, research that has supported the implementation of legislation regarding the ecological footprint of buildings, and research that shows what actions are needed to ensure that buildings do not exceed planetary boundries. Elín Þórólfsdóttir , architect MAA , MA in environmental and resource science and team leader at HMS, then discussed Vegvísir að vistvænni mannvirkjagerð (roadmap for sustainable construction) , the achievements made and the next steps. She also discussed life cycle assessments (LCA) in regulations, how they are implemented in Iceland and what impact they have on the construction industry. After the lectures, a panel discussion took place, with the following members of the panel: Sinus Lynge, speaker Harpa Birgisdóttir, speaker Elín Þórólfsdóttir, speaker Logi Einarsson, Minister of Culture, Innovation and Higher Education Borghildur Sturludóttir, architect and Department Head at City Planning in Reykjavik Municipality Arnhildur Pálmadóttir, architect and Icelands representative in the Venice Biennale in Architecture Sigríður Ósk Bjarnadóttir, engineer og CEO of the Environment and Quality Department at Hornsteinar Andri Snær Magnason, writer and environmentalist Morning meeting: the benefits of the maintenance of embodied carbon in real estates 24/01/2025 Green Building Council Iceland recently held a morning meeting in collaboration with Iðun fræðslusetur and Verkís , about the benefits of maintaining embedded carbon in real estate. Real estate maintenance is rarely discussed in the context of reducing carbon emissions. Much more is discussed about the economic feasibility of maintenance measures. Ólafur Ástgeirsson , leader of the construction and civil engineering sectors at Iðan, opened the meeting and welcomed the audience. Ragnar Ómarsson, structural engineer and business manager for sustainability at Verkís, then gave a lecture and discussed among other things how reducing carbon emissions and cost efficiency can go hand in hand, what it means to maintain embedded carbon, what the rescue value of buildings is and how it is calculated. There was a good turnout at the meeting, which was livestreamed. A recording of the meeting will be available here shortly. Visit to Landsbankinn 23/01/2025 Members of Green Building Council Iceland were invited to visit the Landsbankin's new building at Reykjastræti 6 on 23. January. The building was nominated for the Green shovel award in 2024 and has a BREEAM certification for example. Attendees got a lecture on the history of the building and construction, design, use, certification process and more. After that attendees were invited to walk through the building with a guide. Thank you to Landsbankinn for inviting us!

2021 Nordic GBC Webinar #3: Renovation of buildings and the Circular Economy 30/09/2021 The webinar was organised by Green Building Council Denmark within the Nordic Green Building Councils Network initiative. Arnhildur Pálmadóttir (architect at sap architects) and Sigríður Ósk Bjarnadóttir (the board member of Green Building Council Iceland and Docent at the University of Iceland) represented Green Building Council Iceland. Among other things, they presented a new BM Vallá's project on circular concrete. Slides from the event (in English) are available here: → Introduction to circular economy (Lau Raffnsøe, Technical director, Green Building Council Denmark) ; → Sweden: Recycle and reuse an entire building (Magnus Tengberg, Head of real estate, Gothenburg Region, Vasakronan) ; → Norway: First circular building (Trond Simonsen, Manager sustainability, Entra ASA) ; → Finland: Circular approaches to planning in Hartaanselänranta, Oulu (Tuuli Kassi, Circular economy specialist/Architect, Ethica Finland) ; → Iceland: Circular concrete (Arnhildur Pálmadóttir, Architect, sap architects & Sigríður Ósk Bjarnadóttir, Docent, the University of Iceland) ; → Denmark: Construction waste reused as resources in new constructions in the initiative City Loop (Klaus Kellermann, Sustainability architect, Roskilde Municipality). Nordc GBC Webinar #3 Nordic Climate Forum for Construction 2021 27/09/2021 The conference Nordic Climate Forum for Construction 2021 was held on September 27, 2021, at 8-13. The event took place in English. Further information can be found here . Agenda: → Moderator's welcome (Sigríður Ósk Bjarnadóttir, Board member of Green Bulding Council Iceland); → Opening words (Ásmundur Einar Daðason, Minister of Social Affairs in Iceland); → On time and water (Andri Snær Magnason, Writer); → Oslo: How to reduce GHG emissions by 95% by 2030? (Heidi Sørensen, Director of Oslo’s Climate Agency); → European Commission: Construction products regulation and Environmental product declarations (Tapani Mikkeli, Head of Sector, Sustainable Construction, European Commission, DG GROW); → Status and current issues from academia (Jukka Heinonen, Professor, University of Iceland and Aalto University in Finland); → Status and current issues from authority (Kristina Einarsson, Boverket, Sweden & Luzie Rück, Bolig- og Planstyrelsen, Denmark); → Status and current issues from industry (Björt Ólafsdóttir, Real Estate Developer, Iða and former Minister of the Environment in Iceland) ; → Implementation of limit values in the Netherlands (Jos Verlinden, Senior Advisor, Ministry of Interior and Kingdom Relations in the Netherlands) ; → Limit values in the Nordic countries (Matti Kuittinen, Senior advisor, Ministry of the Environment in Finland) ; → Roundtable discussion: Limit values and Nordic harmonisation 20-24/09/2021 World Green Building Week 2021 In September every year, the so-called "Green building week" is organized by the World Green Building Council. This year, the main topic is "Building resilience", which deals with how to build resilience in the built environment. More information about the event can be found here . Green Building Day 2021 02/09/2021 The annual Green Building Day was held in IÐNÓ this year on Thursday, 2nd September. The talks were given by leading professionals in design, planning and civil engineering, where sustainability in the built environment will be the guiding principle. The event was held in Icelandic but two presentations was given in English. Unfortunately, the recording of the meeting was lost and streaming is not available this year. Facebook event can be found here . Agenda: Moderator : Elín Hirst Opening speech : Katrín Jakobsdóttir, Prime Minister of Iceland → Catastrophic warming as an icentive for change (in English) (Jukka Heinonen, Professor, Department of Environmental and Civil Engineering, the University of Iceland); Jukka Heinonen's presentation: → Græn framtíðí í Hafnarfirði (Rósa Guðbjartsdóttir, Mayor of Hafnarfjörður); → Tækifæri og áskoranir við það að fjármagna grænni byggð (Kristrún Tinna Gunnarsdóttir, Head of Strategy & Sustainability, Íslandsbanki); → Grænþvotturinn leysir ekki loftslagsmálin (Þorsteinn Víglundsson, CEO, Hornstein ehf); → Kynning á fagviðurkenningunni Græna skóflan (Ragnar Ómarsson, Chairman of the Green Building Council Iceland board); → The change that has taken place in the Norwegian construction industry in terms of sustainability, and the drivers behind this change (á ensku) (Marit Kindem Thyholt, Chief adviser on climate and environment, Skanska); Marit Kindem Thyholt's presentation: → Grænir hvatar í tengslum við uppbyggingu og rekstur fasteigna með fókus á atvinnuhúsnæði (Friðjón Sigurðarsson, Executive director, Reitir); → I nnri og ytri hvatar í umhverfismálum (Hrólfur Karl Cela, Architect, Basalt); → Byggjum grænni framtíð, samstarfsverkefni stjórnvalda og hagaðila byggingariðnaðarins um vistvænni mannvirkjagerð (Þóra Margrét Þorgeirsdóttir, Specialist, Húsnæðis- og mannvirkjastofnun). 03/06/2021 Morning meeting - Energy transition at the construction site On June 3, Grænni organized an exciting seminar in collaboration with Landsvirkjun, Húsnæðis- og mannvirkjastofnun, and Green Energy. The topic of the seminar was energy transition at the construction site. The live video can be found here (in Icelandic ). Nordic GBC Webinar #2: How can we half emissions from construction in two? 27/05/2021 The webinar was organized by the Norwegian Green Building Council with the Nordic GBC Network initiative. Recordings of the presentations are available here: → Our sector as a solution to the Paris Agreement ( Katharina Th. Bramslev, CEO, Norwegian Green Building Council ) → Marked initiatives and common practice in our countries ( CEOs from the GBCs in Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland ) → Concrete goes low carbon in Denmark ( Jan Søndergaard Hansen, Managing director, Unicon A/S ) → Nordic collaboration for low carbon construction ( Matti Kuittinen, Senior advisor, Ministry of the Environment in Finland ) → Low carbon dwellings in Iceland ( Benedikt Ingi Tómasson, General manager, Vistbyggð ) → Lidl Visby and Noll CO2- why and how? ( Mattias Tas, Sustainability manager, Lidl ) Annual Green Building Council Iceland Meeting 21/04/2021 The meeting agenda depends on the general meeting duties according to the GBCI's bylaws and was as follows: 1. The board's report on the GBCI's work in the past year. 2. The board's work plan for the next working year. 3. The board's budget for the following operating year. 4. Invoice submission. 5. Proposals and changes to the GBCI's bylaws. 6. Election of the board of directors. 7. Inspectors' remuneration (cf. Article 9) 8. Other matters. Minutes of the general meeting can be found here (in Icelandic) . Nordc GBC Webinar #2 Strategy meeting with GBCI' partners 17/03/2021 Lectures on sustainability in the construction industry 10/2020-02/2021 IĐAN educational centre and Green Building Council Iceland organised a series of lectures on the sustainability of the construction industry: 1. BYKO's sustainability and environmental strategy. 2. Purchase of building materials and Iceland's first Swan-certified residential building. 3. Swan-certified Kársnes School and Húsasmiðinn's environmental policy. 4. Socially certified Selfoss and vision of sustainability. 5. Innivist and the "unsustainable generation". 6. Garbage as a resource and reuse of structures. See all the lectures that have been given and recordings from them (in Icelandic ) on the IDUNNAR website here.

Torfhús - getum við lært af fortíðinni? About the project In the preliminary study done in 2024, we analysed the climate sustainability of turf houses by performing a life cycle assessment (LCA) for a model turf house and estimating its carbon footprint throughout its whole life. This gave us a baseline for addressing the following question: Could we learn from the past and change our ways of living and building inspired by turf houses? In this project, we'll investigate past techniques, attitudes toward material use, and living conditions we could adopt to current practices. Within the project, we'll also work on designing a circular house that can be built in Icelandic conditions. Eventually, we'll compare the carbon footprint of a modern circular house to that of a model turf house. Grænni byggð works with Lendager Island and Minjastofnun in this project. Collaborators Overview The project's objective is twofold. It aims to facilitate circular construction in Iceland by providing a proof-of-concept in the form of a circular house design and, simultaneously, bringing attention back to a vital part of Icelandic heritage: turf houses. The project received a grant from Askur - mannvirkjarannsóknasjóður which is funded by Húsnæðis- og mannvirkjastofnun, Ministry of Social Affairs and Housing and the Ministry of Culture, Innovation and Higher Education.

Certifications There are many different types of environmental certificates for buildings, but in general, it can be said that the goals of using them are to: - Increase the quality of buildings. - Reduce negative environmental impact. - Build healthy and safe buildings. - Reduce operating costs. In Iceland, two certification systems have been extensively used to certify buildings and areas: BREEAM and the Nordic Swan. BREEAM BREEAM is one of the most well-known environmental certification systems for buildings today, which encourages sustainable building design and ecological management during construction and operation. The BREEAM certification system uses a recognized requirements framework to assess the performance of a building's design, construction time and operating time, taking into account numerous factors, from ecology to energy consumption. These factors are included in the form of nine environmental sections having varying degrees of weight, as can be seen below: More about the BREEAM certification can be found here . BREEAM-certified buildings and construction in Iceland can be found here . The annexe for the BREEAM certification of Sundhöll Reykjavíkur (swimming pool in Reykjavik) in Icelandic can be found here . THE NORDIC SWAN ECOLABEL The Nordic Swan is a co-Nordic certification system that can be seen widely on products of various kinds. The Swan's certification system is rapidly growing buildings in the Nordic countries and elsewhere. In Iceland, the Environmental Agency is the coordinator of the Swan, and its staff is responsible for assisting companies through the certification process and granting permission to use the logo. More information on the Swan certification and the list of Swan-certified buildings can be found here . Other certification types LEED Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a green building rating system commonly used in the U.S. and Canada. It was created in the early 90s by the United States Green Building Council. More information on LEED can be found here . Level(s) Level(s) is a framework developed by the European Commission to assess and report on the sustainability performance of buildings. More information on Level(s) can be found here or in the video below.

Green Building Council's (Grænni byggð) events in 2023. Newsletters GBCI publishes a monthly newsletter. Here you can find links for newsletters that GBCI has published in the last 12 months. Mynd: Ástrós Steingrímsdóttir March 2026 In this newsletter: Past events 👏 Verk og vit 2026 Upcoming events 📅 Conference: Accelerated Circular Construction in Europe New publications 📖 Opinion: Short time thinking and long time consequences Roadmap news To think about 💡 Woodstock awards Good news ☀ Trees from Öskjuhlíð becoming houses Networking groups 🤝 February 2026 January 2026 GBCI Day August 2025 April 2025 December 2025 October 2025 June 2025 March 2025 November 2025 September 2025 May 2025 February 2025