Followblossom: Towards a Sustainable Future
Introduction
Starting a business requires not only enthusiasm and hard work but also making numerous decisions. One of these decisions is identifying your target audience, the group of people specifically seeking what you offer. You strengthen your position and protect your knowledge to stand out from the competition. At Followblossom, we emerged with a different purpose: we aspire for the term “sustainable” to cease being merely a label. We want to eliminate this tag as quickly as possible. We sincerely believe that not only the construction industry but any sector should not require this adjective. Sustainability should be an intrinsic characteristic of all human actions.
Approaching Interior Design from a Sustainability Perspective
Approaching interior design from a sustainability perspective involves much more than simply working according to its criteria. It involves sharing, spreading, and disseminating. It means insisting on bringing this concept to as many people as possible, not just clients but also competitors, colleagues, suppliers, and builders. All trades involved in construction must embrace these criteria. It concerns us all. If everyone works with these principles in mind, the work becomes effortless.
Sustainable Design as a Central Focus of the Sector.
Sustainability is a criterion that should be embedded in the DNA of this sector. It cannot be just a trend or a superficial, temporary consideration. It must be an essential and inherent part of how the sector conceives, operates, plans, and makes decisions. From the design phase, we must consider where and how the building will be situated, how it will impact its surroundings, and how this environment will enhance the project’s livability. We must also think about how we will distribute spaces and what materials we will use, considering their origin, recyclability, and potential for recirculation at the end of the building’s life.
The Environmental Impact of Construction
However, the construction sector is possibly one of the most polluting and damaging sectors to the development of the planet. According to the Global Status Report 2020 on Buildings and Construction, issued by the Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction of the UN, the sector is responsible for 38% of global CO2 emissions and 36% of CO2 emissions in the European Union. There is no other option: every single sector must review its decisions. In the construction sector, all stakeholders must do so now.
The Responsibility of All Stakeholders
This exercise of responsibility includes all stakeholders, including the client. We all must demand that these principles be incorporated into our homes. This is not only applicable to new construction, which is already subject to regulations that are supposed to make them sustainable, healthy, and efficient.
Our Commitment to the Existing Housing Stock
This is where Followblossom aims to make a difference. We have an enormous stock of already-built homes, the majority of which were constructed after 1950 using materials such as steel, concrete, and cement. These allowed for rapid and cost-efficient construction. However, from the perspective of sustainability and environmental comfort, the consequences were often detrimental. It is within this built environment where we want to intervene, offering sustainable, efficient, comfortable, and healthy design solutions for all the renovation and rehabilitation projects we undertake.
Sustainable Design in Practice
This involves considering indoor air quality, natural lighting, and the appropriate use of materials, colors, and textures. It also includes arranging elements to create harmonious and pleasant environments. Our approach is to design and execute with a focus on comfort and environmental health. We strive to minimize energy consumption, and we will detail how we achieve this in upcoming posts.
