A Message from our Founders: Why We Started ViridiPath

Nature and the environment have always been an important part of my life. I grew up in the countryside and now live with nature all around me in rural Norfolk.

Four years ago, the IPCC released its “Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis” report, and its conclusions hit me really hard. Reading about the human impact on the planet reaching irreversible levels and the devastation predicted over the next two decades was difficult to accept and even harder to imagine.

The thought of my children and their children growing up in a world significantly affected by climate change caused me to consider what my purpose should be as a human being on this amazing planet. What should my priorities be now?

Working in an industry that is responsible for 40% of global greenhouse gas emissions (according to the UN Environment Programme) suddenly didn’t feel so good. I decided that it was time to dedicate my working life to having a positive impact on climate change.

This is where the idea for ViridiPath originated — in fact, ViridiPath itself stands for ‘green’ and ‘path’ — pathways to a greener future. This was our starting point.

Looking at the built environment, it was clear we needed to be better. We needed (and still do need) systemic change not just in the industry but throughout humanity to live, work, and thrive in such a way that protects and regenerates our planet, not destroys it.

But this is a big task, and where does one individual start?

I kept it simple: if zero emissions is our target, then the industry must need the right level of understanding, measurement, tools, knowledge, and attitude to embrace change and decarbonise its buildings. How best to do that? Or, more importantly, how best for me to help the industry do that?

Once the fog of wanting to fix something but not knowing exactly what to fix or how to fix it lifted (a little), it was clear that pathways to decarbonisation would be fundamental in making some positive impact.

What if, in one centralised place, you could map out the carbon emissions of a project from start to finish with carbon emission information on every element of a building from concept through to construction? What if you had enough information throughout all project stages to understand where the carbon emissions were at any stage, how to reduce them, and what your final as-built emissions were? What if that information could be used to start driving down carbon in the materials and the operations; the way buildings are put together, what they’re made of, how long they last, how they’re deconstructed, and how much waste is produced throughout?

What if this information could be used by wider team members with influence on decarbonisation? What if this information could be used to ensure low-carbon buildings are designed, procured, constructed, used, and funded?

What if this could be done as easily as possible — after all, change will only happen if it’s easy. The more difficult it is to decarbonise our buildings, the less likely it is that we’ll do it.

I started ViridiPath along with my co-founder Ben because, through a shared passion for doing better, we felt we could make a positive impact on carbon reduction through a collaborative approach between the built environment and technology. Ben brings extensive expertise in software development and data analytics, complementing my background in sustainable construction. Together, we set about building ViridiPath, a Whole Life Carbon tracking and management operating system that makes it as easy as possible to understand carbon emissions and how to reduce them.

We’ve worked hard on ViridiPath to create a space where sustainability consultants, designers, contractors, and developers can understand their carbon data across their projects and whole portfolios from concept to completion. As the industry is one of multiple stakeholders all with different responsibilities for reduction, it was key for us to build something where the whole team can share in the information to make more of an impact. The more of us that can use the information, the more effective we'll be in reducing carbon emissions.

We want to join the dots, get the information to the people that need it, and reduce carbon footprints across the construction industry. Ready to make a difference? Join us in building a more sustainable future by signing up for a ViridiPath demo today and see how your projects can benefit from our carbon tracking ecosystem.