Five Reflections from A Buzzing Climate Week NYC

Last week I spent a few days (or what felt like a few years) running around New York City for Climate Week. And it was good. While the global mood can sometimes feel heavy, with momentum pushing in the wrong direction, the atmosphere in New York was buzzing. 

My biggest takeaway? The conversations are becoming more tangible, more grounded, and more urgent. We’ve moved from debating whether to build differently, to asking how, and how fast. I came back energised, hopeful, surrounded by people who don’t just talk, but walk it. 

Here are five reflections that stuck with me. 

1. Transformation needs focus

The transformation we need can feel abstract, but it starts with tangible action. That’s what we do at Built by Nature. We mobilise stakeholders around a solution that we know can make a difference: advancing the use of bio-based building materials in construction. Done well, this has huge potential to decarbonise the built environment while also creating healthier spaces and systems. It was inspiring to see similarly ambitious projects presented at the Climate High-Level Champions’ session about the Regional Platforms for Climate Projects (RPCP). 

2. We have the solutions, but it matters how we scale

That’s why the Principles for Responsible Timber Construction are so fundamental: they offer a North Star, ensuring that implementing timber construction as a climate solution benefits people equitably and safeguards ecosystems. Scaling isn’t about speed alone, it‘s about integrity, and about building resilience into our cities, not just for today’s challenges but for the conditions we know are coming. 

3. We must unite for global impact

I was struck by the parallels between the challenges faced in North America, highlighted by the Biobased Materials Collective catalysed by MASS Design and the Mass Timber Tipping Point research brought forward by Pilot Project and Architecture 2030, and those we encounter across our Built by Nature Networks in Europe. In both regions, frontrunners across the value chain are working to overcome fragmented supply chains and regulatory barriers to scale bio-based construction. Whether it’s navigating building codes, unlocking insurance pathways, or connecting harvesters to architects, the work is deeply collaborative and system-focused. The challenges we face are shared across borders. And that’s good news. Because shared challenges invite shared solutions.

Built by Nature Networks

Biobased opportunities in East Africa 

4. Trust is the currency of collaboration

In 2024, Built by Nature was honoured with the Giving to Amplify Earth Action (GAEA) Award for Impactful Innovation. At the GAEA awards community meeting, as we unpacked the power of systems partnerships, one theme came through loud and clear: community meeting, one theme came through loud and clear: trust is the currency of collaboration. We need to strengthen our partnerships by grounding them in trust, organising ourselves around common challenge, curating our networks with the right actors, meeting face-to-face and spending time in 3D, and celebrating successes together when we achieve them. 

Making Collaboration Work: read the WEF’s 2024 report

5. Amplify what’s already working

If someone is already doing it, it can be done. That’s what we try to achieve with the Built by Nature Accelerator Fund and Prize: to codify what frontrunners are doing, whether that’s cracking building codes, finding new insurance pathways, or developing construction processes. Not glamorous, but undeniably game changing. The challenge is getting these solutions into the right hands, in the right format, to be scaled. Our Prize proves that responsible timber construction is happening worldwide, and our Knowledge Hub provides the tools to replicate and implement these efforts across geographies. 

See all shortlisted projects

In the words of Architecture 2030: we will add the equivalent of one New York City to the global building stock every month until 2060. A massive challenge, but also a massive opportunity: building those 400+ New York Cities in timber and other biobased materials can bring global carbon emissions down with 40% and will ultimately bring us closer to living in harmony with nature.