During the CSU Fall Conferences: Carbon-Free Cities: Climate Action in the Built Environment and Urban Thinkers Campus: Housing Decarbonization Lab events, we brought together passionate professionals, researchers, and policy makers dedicated to a shared goal: advancing sustainable urbanization through decarbonizing the built environment. Here are the top 10 insights from the conference series:

1. We’re Optimistic: The urgency of the climate crisis may feel overwhelming, yet advancements in sustainable technologies and design approaches offer hope. With 70% of Americans concerned about climate change, demand for sustainable buildings and communities is stronger than ever and reflected in shifts in practice. Meaningful change is not just possible—it’s underway!
2. Professional Voices Make a Difference: It can be particularly effective to leverage the credibility endowed by professional memberships to share professional expertise with policymakers. For example, joining a committee of a local or national chapter of the AIA, APA, or NOMA can be a powerful way to bring your expertise to the ears of policymakers.
3. Smart Growth: Smart growth is one of the most effective strategies for climate change prevention and adaptation. Compact, walkable communities, with density sufficient to make transit viable have much lower carbon footprint than car dependent development patterns. Impacts such as sea level rise, wildfires, and drought are also better addressed when homes are not dispersed throughout harm’s way. 
4. The Time Value of Carbon: Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good. We know that minimizing carbon entering the atmosphere prior to 2050 is essential. Significant reductions in carbon now, even if not complete, will buy us the time needed to develop and implement even better solutions. 
5. Traditional Materials Hold Unrealized Potential: New materials like Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT) open new low-carbon possibilities, but traditional materials like heavy timber may offer an even lower carbon footprint for many low-rise buildings. Typical carbon accounting today undervalues the benefits of many traditional materials. 
6. The Public Sector is Needed to Scale Up: Individual projects show what is possible, but the public sector must set the playing field so that development practices–from smart growth to low carbon materials–become the new norm. The German government’s role in making photovoltaics as common as they now are is a testament to effective long range policymaking. 
7. Cross Sector and Global Collaborations: Collaboration across sectors and countries is key. Designers, businesses, policymakers, and researchers working together leverage different areas of expertise, develop greater buy-in, and build the relationships necessary to shift common practices. 
8. Profitability in Carbon Solutions: Making decarbonization profitable is achievable, as illustrated by companies such as CarbonBuilt, which produces ultra low-carbon concrete products. Companies that align their business goals with sustainability can turn environmental stewardship into a competitive advantage.
9. Get Creative: Artists, writers, and architects have special skills to communicate what is possible but not yet real to a broad audience. These visualization and communications skills are essential in fostering the demand for climate solutions in the built environment. 
10. Adaptive Reuse is Paramount: Remember, “The most sustainable building is the one that is already built.” Demolition is a tremendous carbon offender so it is essential to plan for flexibility in future uses. Despite media coverage to the contrary, office to residential conversion can be feasible, particularly with additional facilitation from the public sector. Tools like Conversions+ provide an early assessment of the feasibility for specific buildings. Reallocating some existing floor area to new residential floors above the current roofline can make projects pencil out. 

As we look to the future, these lessons remind us that every community has the potential to be carbon-free and that the design of buildings and urbanization processes of cities are a core part of the overall climate solution. The CSU’s commitment to fostering collaboration and innovation empowers urban optimists everywhere to push the boundaries of what’s possible, building more sustainable and equitable buildings and cities for future generations. Let’s move forward with determination, as our choices today shape tomorrow’s urban future.