How Does Design for Social Impact Create Value in the Built Environment?

Environmental, Social and Governance “ESG” has become an important consideration for global real estate. Increasingly, governments, public and private funds, developers and investors are adhering to guidelines, benchmarking and reporting frameworks, supporting the idea that ESG will increasingly affect long-term property value and how we design the built environment.

Join us for the second instalment of the Design for Inclusion Webinar series as Human Space and an interdisciplinary panel of global experts discuss how designing for social impact creates value in the built environment.

The panel will explore how design considers human health and equity as drivers of long-term property value, how design that embeds social impact can encourage investor optimism in ESG goals, community-level based contributors, and how accreditations can help.

The invited panel of subject-matter experts includes Pino Di Mascio (Head of Impact Strategy and Delivery, Dream), Jake Heitland (Place + Growth Manager – Europe, Lendlease), Flora Samuel (Professor of Architecture in the Built Environment, University of Reading) and Kathryn Tombling (Principal, BDP). The session will be moderated by Jesse Klimitz (Principal - North America, BDP and Director of Human Space).

Jesse Klimitz

Principal - North America, BDP and Director, Human Space

Jesse is driven to positively contribute toward healthy and equitable built environments.

Jesse is a principal and licensed architect based in Toronto, Canada responsible for helping steer the future direction and growth of the practice across North America. Jesse oversees the Toronto studio’s strategic planning, business development and marketing efforts, the growth and operations of BDP's New York City studio and the global evolution of Human Space, BDP’s inclusive design consultancy.

Pino Di Mascio

Head, Impact Strategy and Delivery, Dream

Pino is dedicated to achieving better environmental and social outcomes through the leveraging of real estate investments and innovations in development processes.

As Head of Impact Strategy and Delivery, Pino is responsible for the execution of Dream's impact pathways, which includes delivering measurable positive outcomes for specific social and environmental. Pino also works to identify opportunities with external stakeholders and community partners to further advance Dream’s impact initiatives and broader community objectives. Throughout his career, he has worked with numerous municipalities, developers, institutions, and public-sector landowners and agencies to leverage and manage significant land assets to achieve public policy objectives and maximize impacts.

Jake Heitland

Place and Growth Manager - Europe, Lendlease

Jake is a passionate urbanist, strategist and systems changer seeking to bring forward an equitable and thriving future of living (in and out of cities) for people and planet.

As Place & Growth Manager, Jake works within a unique cross-project and global role moving Lendlease towards improved decarbonization, social value and inclusive placemaking outcomes across large-scale urban regeneration projects.

With a background in city economics and sustainability, they are driven by the urgent need to improve life in cities and unlock the systems change required to create a just transition towards a regenerative future. Most recently, they delivered an Urban Health Toolkit in partnership with neuroscience-led Centric Lab and led the creation and launch of a new inclusive innovation district across London’s Olympic park, SHIFT, focused on delivering better urban futures through climate adaptation, health and mobility innovations in cities.

Flora Samuel

Professor of Architecture in the Built Environment, University of Reading

Flora is an expert on the social value of architecture and is passionate about social justice, community empowerment and mapping for evidence based, transparent and democratic decision making.

Previously head of the highly ranked University of Sheffield School of Architecture, Flora believes that research is vital for making sure that we create places and buildings that work and for evidencing the value of architects. She was the first Vice President of Royal Institute of British Architects for research and the author of Why Architects Matter (2019). Her next book, Housing for Hope and Wellbeing, will be published at the end of 2022. She has received extensive grant funding for her research in this area – her most recent project being Community Consultation for Quality of Life.

Kathryn Tombling

Principal, BDP

Kathryn is passionate about working with residents to effect real change in communities.

As architect principal, Kathryn is widely experienced in delivering major projects which create new sustainable communities by integrating housing, mixed use and learning. Kathryn also leads BDP’s Housing Sector Caucus and is the residential regeneration specialist within BDP’s London Studio having undertaken a variety of residential projects working with existing communities to create a very strong sense of place. She is a member of the NLA (New London Architecture) Expert Panel for Housing.