Wood and biomaterials for construction: a path to decarbonisation and circular economy

Timber and biomaterials are an increasingly strategic resource for green building and for fighting climate change thanks to their ability to replace products from fossil sources, to recover waste biological materials, and to improve the energy performance of the environments built, and above all carbon storage over time.

Although the prospects of the sector have been discussed for several years, the diffusion of such buildings is still very limited, except in some specific contexts, and this is also in relation to the lack of specific policies and measures for the green building sector. A situation that could see an evolution also thanks to the definition of the carbon farming certification system for wood products; also considering the sensitivity of citizens on the issues of sustainability and health linked to biomaterials in construction.

Starting from these elements, the objective of the conference is to analyze with representatives of the world of research, associations, professionals, local administrators, etc., the strengths and weaknesses of the sector, at a national level, for a reflection on what levers should be activated to spread a model of housing and construction with lower impact, greater efficiency, and more linked to the resources of our territory, at competitive costs. This with reference to the different biomaterials and dispelling some myths about the safety of buildings made with biobased materials.

Session Chairs

Roberta Papili, Confagricoltura
Silvia Piconcelli, Confagricoltura

Programme

10.15 Greetings
Enrico Allasia, Confagricoltura

10.30-10.45 Introduction
The New European Bauhaus
(European Commission contact person) or (CEI BOIS Technical Director) (TBC)

10.45-11.00 Collaboration between science, industry and architecture
Nike Krajnc, Slovenian Forestry Institute

11.00-11.15 National policies and strategies for the new model of European construction
Representative of Difor

11.15-11.30 The supply of raw materials for construction in Italy
Marco Marchetti, Fondazione AlberItalia
Davide Pettenella, Cluster Italia Foresta Legno

11.30-11.45 Innovative and sustainable architecture
Representative of Studio Boeri (TBC)

11.45-12.00 Construction strategies for decarbonisation
Representative of Klimahouse (TBC)

12.00-12.15 Case studies and Call for Papers

12.15-13.00 Round table: Proposals for the organization of an Italian supply chain

13.00 Conclusions