Passivhaus Trust win 2017 Ashden Awards

The Passivhaus Trust are delighted to be crowned a winner at the 2017 Ashden Awards, which are a globally recognised measure of excellence in the field of sustainable energy. Former Vice-President of the USA, Al Gore will be the keynote speaker of the 2017 Ashden Awards Ceremony, taking place on the 15th June 2017, at the Royal Geographic Society in London. Seven International and four UK Ashden Awards will be presented, covering the themes of Sustainable Buildings, Innovative Finance, Sustainable Transport, Women and Girls, Smart Energy and more.

Winner of the 2017 UK Ashden Award for Sustainable Buildings, the Passivhaus Trust is blazing a trail for the Passivhaus design standard in the UK, providing advice, training, conferences and quality control to architects, engineers, suppliers and builders across the UK. More than 100 Passivhaus projects have been completed to date, representing over 500 certified buildings and it’s anticipated that the number will exceed 1,000 by the end of 2017.

Passivhaus buildings achieve significant energy savings compared to building regulations whilst simultaneously providing high levels of comfort and health. Main features include enhanced insulation, high quality windows, air tightness and controlled ventilation. They are built with meticulous attention to detail and rigorous design and construction principles which are certified through an exacting quality assurance process.

The Passivhaus Trust’s Chief Executive Jon Bootland said: “We are delighted that the UK’s Passivhaus community has been recognised for their work in promoting and delivering cutting edge, high comfort, energy-efficient construction within the UK. There are over 65,000 projects certified to the Passivhaus standard globally and awareness is growing rapidly here in the UK. We hope that by winning the prestigious Ashden Award, it will help the Passivhaus standard extend its reach into the mainstream construction industry. We hope the success has a far-reaching positive effect.”

The Ashden Award Judges said: “The Passivhaus Trust’s approach is one of rigour and quality assurance, and by acting as a bridge to a globally recognised international standard, the Trust is both changing mindsets and enabling the building community when it comes to sustainable building practices.”

The Passivhaus Trust’s Chair Chris Herring said: “I am immensely proud that the Passivhaus Trust have received an Ashden Award. Passivhaus is the leading international low energy design standard offering a robust, proven and cost-effective method to help achieve challenging carbon reduction targets for the built environment sector. The Passivhaus Trust has played a vital role in the development of Passivhaus in the UK and is seen as an exemplar worldwide. Receiving the Ashden Award will help strengthen and magnify the important work the Trust is doing.

For a full list of all winners visit the Ashden Awards website: https://www.ashden.org/awards/2017

The Trust is a subsidiary of the AECB and is the result of many years work on the Passivhaus standards and methodology by the AECB (see also our Carbonlite programme www.carbonlite.net). It is an independent, fully transparent and not for profit organisation, with the aim of preserving the integrity of Passivhaus standards and methodology..    It also aims to promote Passivhaus principles clearly and rigorously to the industry and government as a robust and proven way of reducing energy use and carbon emissions in buildings in the UK. It also undertakes research and development of Passivhaus in the UK.   

The Trust achieves its aims by gathering together the main independent experts in this field, along with certifiers and practitioners.