Key sustainability appointments at The Concrete Centre
MPA announces three senior built environment sustainability appointments at The Concrete Centre
THE Mineral Products Association (MPA) has announced three senior built environment sustainability appointments at The Concrete Centre.
Andrea Charlson has taken up the role of senior built environment sustainability specialist and circular economy lead and Jake Attwood-Harris is appointed as senior built environment sustainability specialist. Also joining the team as a consultant is senior sustainability architect Helen Raymond. The appointments follow the recent promotion of Elaine Toogood to senior director for MPA Concrete and the retirement of building physics advisor Tom de Saulles.
Andrea Charlson has worked in sustainability in the built environment for 15 years, with a focus on materials, carbon footprinting, and the circular economy. She originally trained as a structural engineer, starting out at Arup before moving on to roles with HS2, ReLondon, and Useful Projects. A chartered environmentalist, Ms Charlson most recently ran software company Madaster, giving materials a digital identity to help improve circularity and sustainability in buildings.
Jake Attwood-Harris studied architecture before joining a sustainable engineering design consultancy as an analyst/illustrator. Working in similar roles for a number of progressive architects, engineers, and developers, he created internal and external sustainability policies and some key analysis tools, including the first whole-life carbon calculation tool for the BIM software Revit. Mr Atwood-Harris is also a BREEAM-accredited professional and PassivHaus-accredited designer.
Helen Raymond is a qualified architect with a post-graduate certificate in Energy and Sustainable Building Design. Having worked as joint head of sustainability for the architecture team in a large consultancy, she helped guide a range of projects across all sectors to improve their sustainable design. Ms Raymond set up RAW Architecture in 2009 to focus on sustainable housing. She is a firm advocate for ‘less is more’, design efficiency, and passive strategies, with a focus on thermal mass, thermal comfort, daylighting, and resilience. She is member of the ARB, RIBA, Green Register, and UKGBC.
Elaine Toogood said: ‘I am thrilled to bring on board such a wealth of expertise to join our line-up of industry experts in The Concrete Centre. With the pace of research into whole-life performance, building design and materials innovation, there’s never been a more important time to make the case for concrete as part of a low-carbon, low-waste and resilient built environment. I wish Andrea, Jake and Helen the very best in their new roles and look forward to working with them to deliver results for our members.’
The Concrete Centre provides guidance, resources, and training on sustainable concrete design, construction, and performance, supporting architects, engineers, and clients with best practice, innovation, and compliance across the built environment.
