MAKING AN IMPACT

GREENOVATE TURNS 10

The Greenovate Awards return in 2025 with new categories, and a major milestone: 10 years of supporting student-led sustainability innovation in South Africa’s built environment. Founded by Growthpoint Properties and Green Building Council South Africa (GBCSA), the competition gives honours and final-year students a chance to apply their ideas to real-world challenges and connect with industry leaders. Over the past decade, Greenovate has grown into a recognised talent pipeline, helping launch careers in property, engineering and proptech.

“Reaching the 10-year mark with Greenovate is a proud moment,” says Engelbert Binedell, Growthpoint Properties’ COO. “What excites us most is seeing student ideas translate into solutions that can be implemented in our world today.” CEO of GBCSA Lisa Reynolds adds, “Greenovate has become a powerful platform for the next generation of leaders. Every year we see young people tackling complex challenges with creativity and rigour, and that gives us real confidence in the future of green building.”

New for 2025 are the Sustainability in Action Award and the Transformative Impact Award, focused on practical implementation and alignment with global sustainability goals. The competition is open to honours and final year students in property studies, construction, quantity surveying and engineering. Look out for the interviews with the winners in our next Awards issue! Entries for the 2025 Greenovate Awards close on 10 November 2025. For more information, visit www.greenovatecompetition.co.za/register.

GBCSA NEWS & TRAINING

EPC deadline!

A reminder that by 8 December 2025, certain public and private sector buildings in South Africa must publicly display their Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) – Join GBCSA for an engaging online workshop designed to equip you with essential knowledge about EPCs before the new requirements take effect. This training will prepare participants to fulfil the training requirements established by SANEDI for individuals aiming to become EPC-registered professionals. GBCSA is a SANEDI-approved training provider.

GBCSA Insights: EPC Workshop

Wednesday, 3 December 2025, 09h00 – 14h30 (Zoom)
www.gbcsa.org.za/course-date/1967/; www.epc.sanedi.org.za/info

EDGE Version 2 retirement update

EDGE Version 2 will now officially be retired in June 2026, according to the International Finance Corporation (IFC). Projects registered or Preliminary Certified under this version must complete Final EDGE Certification (Post-Construction) by the June deadline to remain compliant.
To meet this timeline, GBCSA advises that Round 2 EDGE certification submissions be received no later than 19 May 2026. Projects should ideally submit for audit between November 2025 and January 2026 to allow enough time for both review rounds and final certification prior to the deadline. For any queries, please contact the GBCSA team: www.gbcsa.org.za/contact

BLOCKCHAIN MEETS RENEWABLE POWER

Growthpoint Properties launched its e-CO₂ green energy initiative in October, delivering certified renewable electricity to 10 of its Sandton office buildings via the national grid. The energy is sourced from the Boston hydroelectric plant, developed in partnership with Serengeti Energy, and backed by a 195GWh Power Purchase Agreement with Etana Energy. Tenants benefit from zero carbon power that’s both cost-effective and aligned with sustainability goals.

THE REAL COST OF GREEN

GBCSA has released the fourth edition of its flagship study, Green Building in South Africa: A Guide to Costs and Trends, offering the clearest business case yet for building green. Developed in partnership with the Association of South African Quantity Surveyors and the University of Pretoria’s (UP) Department of Construction Economics, the report draws on data from 199 Green Star certified office buildings to unpack both the cost and investment performance of sustainable design. This year, for the first time, these costs are connected to the investment performance of certified buildings, delivering a clear “green building business case”, supported by data from the MSCI South Africa Green Annual Property Index.

Lead researcher at UP’s Department of Construction Economics, Dr Danie Hoffman, explains: “The study confirmed a very modest and constantly declining green building ‘cost premium’ that totally refutes the often held perception of an unaffordable cost of green building.”
Georgina Smit, GBCSA Head of Technical and Executive Director, says: “The report reflects that the average green cost premium for office projects certified in the period 2022 – 2024 has positively decreased from 3.15% for the previous period 2019 – 2021, to 2.40%. But what is particularly pleasing is that there is now clear evidence that these green buildings are more profitable in the long run.”
Download the full report here.

What sets this rollout apart is Growthpoint’s partnership with Fuel Switch, Africa’s first open blockchain-enabled Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) exchange. Until now, Africa’s access to voluntary REC markets has been limited by cost, slow manual processes and opaque trading. Fuel Switch changes that by certifying each unit of green electricity using IoT, blockchain and AI, and issuing RECs directly to tenants’ digital wallets. These can be redeemed to reduce emissions or sold for revenue.

“It is a game-changer for how businesses can participate in clean energy markets and carbon reduction reporting,” says Werner van Antwerpen, Growthpoint’s Head of Corporate Advisory. “We’re opening the green energy market to businesses of all sizes.” Gideon Maasz, COO of Fuel Switch, adds: “Our mission is to make participation in the green economy easier, quicker, more cost-effective and more transparent. With blockchain as the backbone, every REC is verifiable, tradeable and audit-ready.”
growthpoint.co.za; www.fuelswitch.io

GREEN MILES AHEAD

The V&A Waterfront’s partnership with The Green Cab is helping reshape urban mobility in Cape Town. Since launching in December 2024, the women-led sustainable transport company has provided over
30 000 riders with free electric shuttle rides, saving an estimated 1 176kg of CO₂ emissions. The six-stop hop-on, hop-off route connects key areas across the precinct, offering visitors, tenants and residents a cleaner way to get around.

“Sustainability is at the heart of everything we do,” says Donald Kau, Head of Public Relations at the V&A Waterfront. “Together, we’re proving that sustainable business is not only possible, but essential for the future of our community and our planet.” Beyond transport, The Green Cab is also a social enterprise, employing seven young women as drivers, with plans to grow. “Through initiatives like the Driving Hope Project, the company not only tackles climate change but also addresses pressing social issues such as gender-based violence, by empowering women with financial independence and opportunity,” says Managing Director Amiene van der Merwe. www.thegreencab.co.za; www.waterfront.co.za

TOWARDS A REGENERATIVE FUTURE

Marloes Reinink, founder and director of leading sustainability firm Solid Green Consulting, has been selected for the EY Entrepreneurial Winning Women™ EMEIA Class of 2025, along with a group of inspiring women entrepreneurs from Europe, the Middle East, India and Africa who are making a positive impact through their businesses.

The programme, run by global accounting and professional services firm Ernst & Young (EY), helps women-led companies grow by offering expert advice, resources and access to a worldwide network. Reinink’s selection shows how sustainability-focused leadership is playing a bigger role in shaping the future of business.
www.ey.com/en_gl/entrepreneurial-winning-women