22 Jun 2023
The Green Building Council of Australia has announced the 2023 Green Star Champions. This award recognises 26 industry leaders who have made significant contributions toward a more sustainable built environment.
The Green Star Champions award celebrates the efforts of planners, engineers, architects, professionals, consultants, and leading advocates who have helped to deliver a more sustainable built environment through Green Star certifications.
Chief Impact Officer, Jorge Chapa said GBCA is delighted to honour the industry leaders who are the driving force behind positive change.
“This year’s Green Star Champions have paved the way for more sustainable outcomes in their immediate environment and have been a source of inspiration for others around them,” Mr Chapa said.
“We applaud their achievements and thank them for their ongoing commitment to a more sustainable future”.
One of this year’s recipients is Country Road’s Store Design Development Manager, Alicia Buffinton who has led the charge to integrate sustainable design into Country Road stores across Australia.
Ms Buffinton said the award recognises the commitment of Country Road to design and develop retail fit-outs that aspire to be more sustainable. “We led the fashion retail industry by embracing the Green Star framework in 2019 and are now more driven than ever to achieve higher sustainability credentials for our future fit outs.”
The Country Road Group’s recent NORA award win for sustainability elevates their mission even further, proving they are leaders of the fashion industry.
Jennifer Saiz, Commonwealth Bank’s Executive General Manager of Group Corporate Services - responsible for driving Green Star in Commonwealth Banks offices and retail fit outs - said, “receiving the Green Star Champion award reaffirms my commitment towards creating a better, more sustainable world for generations to come. I look forward to continuing to work with GBCA and the industry to drive sustainable outcomes in the built environment.”
As the person responsible for driving sustainability in one of the largest real asset portfolios in the country, Rob Sims, General Manager, Environmental and Operational Sustainability at Dexus described his passion about driving change across the built environment sector, “I am lucky to be part of fantastic team at Dexus, an organisation that truly believes in walking the talk.”
Ryan Rathborne, Director for Rewiring the Nation at the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, who has also been responsible for driving the uptake of Green Star through sustainable finance explained how “ramping up sustainability goals for property sector is crucial for us to meet our emissions targets as we get closer to 2030 and build a greener, healthier and more resilient built environment.”
The year’s Green Star Champions have been celebrated at the Green Building Day events across Australia.
Full list of Green Star Champions 2023: