The International Code Council (ICC), a leading global provider of building safety solutions and a member of the Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction (GlobalABC), will be presenting at COP28 throughout the two-week event. Held this year in Dubai, COP28 will take place from Nov. 30 through Dec. 12, 2023. 

The 28^th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP), will be hosted by the United Arab Emirates (UAE). COP28 is meant to unite countries and push for increased mitigation and adaptation efforts in response to a changing climate.  

This year’s event is focused on rethinking, rebooting and refocusing global climate action. The work of the International Code Council and similar organizations is to spotlight the need to incorporate the buildings and construction sector in climate discussions.   

The International Code Council team will provide thought leadership and offer solutions in a total of ten sessions, including “Decarbonizing the Built Environment: Building Codes and Capacity Building for Implementation and Enforcement” and “Sustainable Construction and Urban Development: Innovations for Carbon Reduction and Resilience.” Information on all International Code Council sessions at COP28 including links to available live streams of presentations can be found here. The International Code Council is also a supporter of the GlobalABC Buildings Pavilion, which will be hosting numerous building-related sessions during COP28 to raise the profile of buildings as a climate solution. 

At last year’s event, hosted by Egypt, the governments of France and the Kingdom of Morocco called for the addition of a breakthrough focused on the building sector. The Buildings Breakthrough is set to be formally accepted as part of the Breakthrough Agenda at COP28 with current support from 27 countries, including the United States and China. Additionally, 17 initiatives have been recognized as supporting initiatives to the Buildings Breakthrough, including the “Building Capacity for Sustainable and Resilient Buildings Initiative” led by the International Code Council. 

International Code Council Senior Vice President of Global Operations and Solutions Judy Zakreski will present the International Code Council’s Global Award to the Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC) during the conference. The PEC has taken an active role in improving the safety of buildings in Pakistan and has been working with the International Code Council to adapt the International Building Code® to create the Building Code of Pakistan and the International Green Construction Code® to develop the Green Building Code of Pakistan (GBCP). They are currently working with the International Code Council to adopt a commentary and user guide for the GBCP. 

“Sustainability of the built environment remains a top priority for our organization,” said International Code Council Chief Executive Officer Dominic Sims, CBO. “We look forward to the honor of participating in and presenting at this event every year to highlight the role of building codes, standards and building safety solutions in achieving international climate goals.” 

Also taking place in Dubai from December 4 through December 7 is the Big 5 Global Event. The International Code Council will be exhibiting to promote the family of building safety solutions to stakeholders from the regional and global construction markets. Additionally, International Code Council Regional Director of Operations for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region Mohamed Ahmed Amer will host a discussion on December 7 promoting sustainability and construction. International Code Council Vice President of Innovation Ryan Colker will also present on opportunities in off-site construction. More information on the Big 5 Global Event can be found here.  

Visit here for more information on COP28.