In August 2023, celebrating Women's Month, the Green Building Council of South Africa (GBCSA) initiated the annual IFC Women in Green Building Competition, a testament to the growing recognition of women's pivotal role in the property and construction sectors. The competition, introduced in 2022, was conceived with the aim of empowering and enhancing the skills of female professionals within these industries through specialized training in EDGE Expert green building practices.

Amber Freestone, a BSc Quantity Surveying (Hons) student, was selected as one of the ten finalists in this competition.  She will attend an EDGE Expert training course and stand the chance to win one of three exclusive tickets to the Green Building Convention in Cape Town in November this year.  Amber expressed her thanks to Yovka Raytcheva-Schaap from Zutari and Danie Hoffman from UP for pushing her to enter the competition.

Her motivation for participating in this competition stems from her Quantity Surveying Honours research. As cost consultants, quantity surveyors are uniquely positioned professional consultants and influence the trajectory of a construction project throughout its various phases. It is however increasingly evident that financial considerations are not the only bottom line. The decisions a quantity surveyor needs to make within the built environment industry have substantial consequences for the environment. With almost every move our industry makes, it inadvertently releases carbon into the atmosphere and produces detrimental byproducts. To reshape this industry and, by extension, our future urban landscapes, a fundamental paradigm shift in our consulting approach as built environment professionals is imperative.

Amber firmly believes that programs like EDGE, in conjunction with the sustainability assessment tools provided by the GBCSA, are setting the course for this transformation within South Africa. Consequently, she is motivated to embark on her professional journey from a sustainability-oriented perspective. By integrating these tools and frameworks into our consulting practices, quantity surveyors can actively contribute to the reduction of the environmental impact of our cities, thereby ensuring a more sustainable legacy for future generations.