BANGKOK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The International WELL Building Institute™ (IWBI™) celebrated the most recent stop of its WELL Journey in Bangkok, Thailand, with much fanfare by bringing together a diverse group of local stakeholders committed to promoting healthy buildings and healthy communities in the country.
The WELL v2™ pilot, the latest version of IWBI’s WELL Building Standard™ (WELL™) became the focus of the highly engaging forum on sustainability held in Thailand’s capital city on August 21, 2018, at the Research & Innovation for Sustainability Center (RISC). RISC is now registered to pursue WELL Certification™.
IWBI collaborated with RISC owner Magnolia Quality Development Corporation (MQDC) and Frasers Property to launch the WELL Journey event in Bangkok. Industry stakeholders, including Thai developers, sustainability experts, architects and designers, convened to express a strong market demand for healthier buildings and communities in Thailand, and how to promote WELL in their efforts to deliver health and wellness benefits to the people in Thailand.
WELL Journey is a series of events organized by IWBI to celebrate local achievements in WELL Certification, to engage and educate local stakeholders to help them achieve WELL, and to raise awareness about the role buildings and communities can play in advancing people’s health and wellness. WELL Journey initially kicked off in Sanya, China, in 2017, and since that time has been celebrated in multiple cities including Shenzhen and Taipei. WELL Journey is scheduled to land in Hangzhou, Chengdu, Shanghai and Beijing by the end of 2018.
Thailand is responding to the global WELL movement with a strong market traction. So far, three projects of almost 6 million square feet in total space are actively pursuing WELL Certification.
“What can we do to create a sustainable future? Why does sustainability remain elusive to us all?” asked Associate Professor Dr. Singh Intrachooto, chief adviser for RISC, when delivering the keynote introduction to WELL Journey in Bangkok. “I believe committing to all well-being may hold the key to sustainability; and when I say ALL wellbeing I don’t mean just us, humans, since we won’t survive without plants, insects, or animals. We then need to understand how to balance the wellbeing of all living beings within our ecosystem if we stand any chance of achieving sustainable developments.”
TCC Assets and Frasers Property, both major players in the Southeast Asian real estate market, are at the forefront of WELL adoption. As big believers in WELL, TCC Assets and Frasers Property have registered over 5 million square feet of their project space for WELL Certification, including the high-profile commercial office towers at One Bangkok and The PARQ. TCC Assets and Frasers Property are committed to registering more projects for WELL Certification during the WELL Journey event.
“In recent years, the WELL Building Standard has emerged as the best practice in design and construction supported by evidence-based medical and scientific research,” said Anthony Arundell, director, sustainability, smart city and estate management at Frasers Property. “When we talk about sustainability, it no longer concerns purely the environment. Today human sustainability is also a priority.”
“As we celebrate a booming real estate market in Thailand, it’s important to ensure all stakeholders work together to build healthier spaces where people work, live, learn and play,” said Tony Armstrong, senior vice president of IWBI (Asia). He noted that WELL is designed as a global system with local flexibilities so that countries such as Thailand can employ interventions that are achievable and relevant for their specific environment.
Panelists participating in the conference came from various backgrounds but shared a concerted sense of urgency to address indoor environmental challenges, underscoring how better buildings can help advance the health and wellbeing of the people who use them every day. These experts include Dr. Naree Phinyawatana, director of Atelier Ten (Asia); Dr. Hyunju Jang, green building consultant for Africvs; and Lalit Thitipaisal, environmental sustainability design manager at Meinhardt Thailand.
“The cost of not doing WELL far outweighs any other concerns,” said Dr. Naree Phinyawatana, Thailand’s first WELL Faculty member. “The return on investment shows up not only in productivity enhanced, it shows up in a better, healthier quality of life. And that matters.”
About MQDC and RISC
Magnolia Quality Development Corporation Limited (MQDC) is a business unit of DTGO Corporation Limited (DTGO) that develops, invests in, and manages villa, condominium, and mixed-use projects with a corporate commitment ‘for all well-being’. MQDC develops residential and mixed-use projects under the luxury Magnolias brand and the youthful, urban Whizdom brand. The company has also set up The Aspen Tree to provide eldercare residences and full-spectrum services, enabling ‘aging in place’. Applying its philosophy of ‘sustainnovation’ MQDC aims to lead its sector in sustainability. MQDC is determined to operate with concern for all life on Earth, advancing this agenda through sustainable development for the wider benefit of society. For more information, visit www.mqdc.com. The company supports the Bangkok-based Research & Innovation for Sustainability Center (RISC), Asia’s first research base for sustainable building with a focus on well-being, which provides public information resources and operates an international network of researchers. RISC is committed to making its resources available to spur change within property sector. RISC curates Thailand’s first ‘eco-material library’, for example, with publicly accessible samples and details of over 300 materials. More information is available at www.risc.in.th.
About TCC Assets
TCC Assets (Thailand) Company Limited is an investment holding and fully integrated real estate company with a registered capital of THB 10 billion. Incorporated in 2013, it is part of the TCC Group, one of Thailand’s most prominent conglomerates. TCC Assets’ investment themes focus on enhancing asset value through insightful development of products and services. Together with its subsidiaries and affiliated companies, TCC Assets maintains a portfolio of residential, commercial, and retail properties, along with hospitality and technology-related services. For more information, please visit www.tccassets.com.
About Frasers Property:
Frasers Property Limited is a multi-national company that owns, develops and manages a diverse, integrated portfolio of properties. Listed on the Main Board of the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited ("SGX-ST") and headquartered in Singapore, the Company is organized around five asset classes with total assets of approximately S$32 billion as at 30 June 2018. Frasers Property's assets range from residential, retail, commercial and business parks, to logistics and industrial in Singapore, Australia, Europe, China and Southeast Asia. Its well-established hospitality business owns and / or operates serviced apartments and hotels in over 80 cities across Asia, Australia, Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The Company is unified by its commitment to deliver enriching and memorable experiences to customers and stakeholders, leveraging on its knowledge and capabilities from across markets and property sectors, to deliver value in its multiple asset classes. For more information on Frasers Property, please visit frasersproperty.com.
About IWBI and WELL
The International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) is leading the global movement to transform our buildings and communities in ways that help people thrive. The WELL v2 pilot is a recently launched version of its popular WELL Building Standard, and the WELL Community Standard pilot is a district scale rating system that sets a new global benchmark for healthy communities. WELL is focused exclusively on the ways that buildings and communities, and everything in them, can improve our comfort, drive better choices, and generally enhance, not compromise, our health and wellness. IWBI convenes and mobilizes the global wellness real estate community through management of the WELL AP credential, the pursuit of applicable research, the development of educational resources, and advocacy for policies that promote health and wellness everywhere. For more information about IWBI and WELL, please visit us here.
