Kindly sponsored by ecomerchant: together promoting ethical, healthy sustainable building materials.

What are the challenges in attracting, training and retaining women working in sustainable construction and what activities need to be undertaken to really address the missing pieces? In this Twilight Talk, Leah Robson from Your Energy Your Way and Ellora Coupe from Her Retrofit Space explored the needs and challenges faced by professional women in the sustainable construction industry.

The recording is available below. Please click here to access the chat. Please click here to access Ellora’s presentation, and here to access Leah’s presentation.

Below are some additional resources in response to the discussion:

• Girls under Construction: Founded in 2021, Girls Under Construction C.I.C is the Relatable bridge & supportive Community Network for Young Diverse Women pursuing Construction & Built Environment careers.
• Digital Boost: Is a completely free government-funded platform with webinars, mentors and resources for helping to set up a small business and for the self employed.
• Stopcocks: The world’s only national company of women plumbers and heating engineers.
• Women Installers Together Conference – Stopcocks – Tradeswomen: Stopcocks conference running twice a year.
• Home – Female Founders Rise: a community of Female Business Founders that offers good support, especially a LinkdIn course, which can be really useful when you’re starting out.
• Buy Women Built | Explore great brands, built by women: a place to showcase your female built brand.

For further training opportunities on retrofit, check out our upcoming training events:

• Using WUFI for Assessing Moisture Risk in Retrofit: This new seminar has been created in response to the evident need for a greater awareness and understanding of WUFI® and of moisture risk assessment in general. It will be a practical look at its functions, strengths and weaknesses, how it can be used in projects and how much certainty (or otherwise) should be expected from a WUFI® assessment. 22nd October, 9:30am-11:30am
• Where Do Clients Start With Retrofit?: Trainers Geordie Stewart and Natasha Ginks will take you through the inspiring process they are using to help customers understand how to tackle retrofit, and how their guidance leads to successfully completed projects. 7th November, 11am-1pm.

Our next Twilight Talk will be held on 11th November. The UK’s new government has pledged to build 1.5 million homes over the next five years. What if, instead of building more, we stopped building altogether? Following a brief introduction to the findings of an exploratory study with English housing associations, we will reflect on the potential consequences of a new housebuilding moratorium for the construction sector. Join us for Is Stopping Building New Homes the Solution to the Twin Climate and Housing Emergencies?