Scotland’s third Green Home Festival is set to be launched by Scottish Government minister Dr Alasdair Allan, who will open the week-long series of shows delivering practical assistance and advice to help Scotland reach net zero by 2045 by transforming our homes.
Dr Allan, who was recently appointed as the acting Minister for Climate Action, is due to be the keynote speaker at the first session of the five-day renewables and retrofit celebration, which runs from 12-16 August and is again being organised by the Construction Industry Collective Voice (CICV) as part of the official Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
He said: “I am very pleased to see the Green Home Festival back for its third year. Heat from our homes and buildings is responsible for a fifth of Scotland’s overall carbon emissions and the Scottish Government is committed to tackling this to reach net zero and ensure Scotland’s homes are warmer and more affordable to heat.
“Events like the Green Home Festival can play a really important role in informing and empowering householders to make sustainable choices and make their homes more eco-friendly.”
Justin Sullivan, President-elect of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) said: “We’re excited to welcome Dr Allan to open and celebrate the third edition of the Green Home Festival, dedicated to inspiring and guiding the public on embracing sustainable, green practices at home.”
“The Green Home Festival is arguably more important now than ever before, with growing interest in heat pumps, retrofit and other energy saving solutions as well as recent policy developments, such as the Scottish Government’s Heat in Building Strategy.”
This year, the Green Home Festival has moved to the fantastic Charlotte Square Gardens, opposite the festivals original home at the RICS Edinburgh office. There will be demonstrations and hands-on guidance to help people reduce their carbon footprint and become more energy efficient, topics covered will include contributions from CICV members and others, including SNIPEF, SELECT and Home Energy Scotland.
The opening day will see a focus on retrofit, with Retrofit Explained: The Right Way to Deliver Retrofit, a dedicated session from RICS, RIAS and FMB members. Later, Professor Sean Smith of the University of Edinburgh will deliver Back to the Future: The Retrofit Journey, a look at the scale and accelerations required for the retrofit of Scotland’s 2.7 million homes.
There are also shows looking at Passivhaus Made Simple, Debunking Heat Pump Myths in Pre-1919 Homes and Unlocking Home Efficiency: The Value of Multiple Technologies. Built Environment – Smarter Transformation will also host an in-person show to talk about the rise in community heating networks as part of The Community Heating Show.
The festival is the latest in a string of practical and constructive initiatives launched by the CICV since its creation at the start of the pandemic in March 2020.
Made up of 29 trade associations, professional services bodies and companies, it has maintained a steady supply of information and practical advice to the sector as well as carrying out surveys, producing animations and posters, hosting webinars and maintaining close dialogue with Scottish Government ministers.
- Full details, including how to book tickets for each event, are available here.