Here, experts from the social enterprise, The Utilize Project, explain how these meanwhile spaces can help a city’s sustainability levels.
They utilise existing properties
Fewer carbon emissions and raw materials are used for meanwhile spaces as they use existing buildings and storage units. To support sustainability efforts, the aim is to reduce the amount of embodied carbon, which is the carbon emitted during the construction and demolition of buildings.
According to the World Green Building Council, buildings account for 39% of global energy-related carbon emissions. That’s an estimated 15.7 gigatonnes of carbon a year.
Mahmud Shahnawaz, founder of The Utilize Project, says: “By encouraging meanwhile spaces, buildings are reused and recycled, reducing the level of embodied carbon and supporting the government’s target of being carbon neutral by 2050.”
They encourage small, local businesses
Whilst not directly linked to the environment, encouraging small and local businesses can support sustainability efforts in many ways.
Businesses that work on a smaller scale generally produce fewer carbon emissions and use fewer raw materials than large, mass-market companies.
Encouraging local businesses in meanwhile spaces is also a great way to support sustainability efforts, as products have a smaller carbon footprint, having travelled less distance to the shop floor.
They are multipurpose
Meanwhile spaces tend to be multipurpose or multiuse, meaning that a range of businesses occupies one space.
This is excellent news for the environment as it encourages a clever use of space, along with reducing the need for further construction.
Shahnawaz adds: “Multifunctional buildings are also brilliant for creating vibrant, self-sufficient communities, which can put more back into the local area."
They combat the empty space issue in cities
A report by property experts, PIUA, revealed that in 2019 there were 172,217 empty commercial buildings across the UK.
And a more recent report by London’s Green Party predicted that close to 800 council-owned buildings were not in use in London alone. A constant stream of temporary occupancy through meanwhile space projects will upkeep a building’s quality, and therefore the environment.
Shahnawaz concludes: “The stark number of spaces going unused across the country is proof that meanwhile spaces are needed more than ever to support sustainability in cities.”
“Having so many empty spaces can lead to building neglect, causing hazardous conditions that consequently affect its surrounding environment.”
