Build4People

Build4People is very proud to announce the 2nd video clip of its online exhibition “Cambodia’s Green Pioneers”, introducing Chanraksmey Vorn, CEO of EGE Cambodia.

The exhibition includes a series, in which local pioneers of sustainability will be introduced to pay tribute to their environmentally friendly behaviour and sustainable entrepreneurship.

Promoting environmentally friendly behavior must be seen as an important challenge as Cambodia’s vivid economic development of recent years has led to increasing incomes among its urban population but also went along with rising environmental degradation, but was also responsible for dramatic effects on the environment and urban quality of life, such as the continuous loss of green spaces and water bodies, increasing air pollution, abundant traffic jams and enormous waste problems.

Against this backdrop, Build4People aims to raise awareness of these problems among the urban citizens, which serves as an important prerequisite for behavior change. By providing visibility and public acknowledgement to pioneers of pro-environmental behaviour, they can function as role models, inspiring the people to act in a more environmentally friendly way.

The Build4People Online Exhibition “Cambodia’s Green Pioneers” is therefore considered as an important participatory intervention to support a change of mindset among Cambodia’s population. The aim is to use role models to strengthen social norms, enhance people’s self-efficacy, and encourage more environmentally friendly everyday behaviors. By featuring a diverse set of sustainability pioneers, we aim to inspire the urban population to replicate their sustainable lifestyles.

The 2^nd video clip of the Build4People Online Exhibition “Cambodia’s Green Pioneers” introduces Chanraksmey Vorn, CEO and co-founder of the company EGE Cambodia. Her enterprise is focusing on promoting Cambodia’s energy transition by distributing solar energy materials (solar panels, solar pumps, inverters, batteries, etc.) and by providing consultancy in regard of solar energy solutions (design, installation, and project management).

Furthermore, her ambition is to spread the message of eco-friendly everyday behaviours, such as household energy saving, waste segregation, and shared mobility to reduce air pollution and traffic jams in Cambodia.

#Build4People #BMBF_SUREregions #sustainablelifestyle #environmentallyfriendlybehaviour #behaviourchange #greenpioneers #changeagents

Build4People is very proud to announce the first video clip of its online exhibition “Cambodia’s Green Pioneers” (ពិព័រណ៍​តាមអនឡាញ​ពី​ការងារ​គម្រោង​សាងសង់​ដើម្បី​មនុស្ស ក្រុមស្រឡាញ់​ភាពបៃតង​មុនគេ​នៅកម្ពុជា). The exhibition includes a series, in which local pioneers of sustainability will be introduced for their environmentally friendly behaviour and sustainable entrepreneurship.

Promoting environmentally friendly activities must be seen as an important challenge as Cambodia’s vivid economic development of recent years has led to increasing incomes of its urban population but also went along with rising environmental degradation, which shows e.g. in a continuous loss of green spaces and water bodies, growing air pollution, tremendous waste issues, as well as in excessive consumerism of parts of the urban population. 

Against this backdrop, Build4People aims to raise awareness of these problems among the urban citizens, which serves as an important prerequisite for behavior change. By providing visibility and public acknowledgement to pioneers of pro-environmental behaviour, they can function as role models, inspiring the people to act in a more environmentally friendly way.

The Build4People Online Exhibition “Cambodia’s Green Pioneers” is therefore considered as an important participatory intervention to support a change of mindset among Cambodia’s population. The aim is to use role models to strengthen social norms, enhance people’s self-efficacy, and encourage more environmentally friendly everyday behaviors. By featuring a diverse set of sustainability pioneers, we aim to inspire the urban population to replicate their sustainable lifestyles.

The first video clip of the Build4People Online Exhibition “Cambodia’s Green Pioneers” introduces Prof. Dr. Sok Serey, Vice-Head of the Research Office of Royal University of Phnom (RUPP). His ambition is to spread the message of sustainability among the staff and students at his university. This is also evident in his daily life: Serey regularly uses a bicycle as sustainable mode of urban transportation. Get more insights into his environmentally friendly lifestyle by watching the clip.

#Build4People #BMBF_SUREregions #sustainablelifestyle #environmentallyfriendlybehaviour #behaviourchange #greenpioneers #changeagents

We are proud to announce the publication of the video clip documentation of the Build4People Lecture at AmCam Exchange, Phnom Penh. On 06 December 2024, Build4People team members provided multi-disciplinary insights into the potentials of using solar energy to support a sustainable urban transformation at the AmCam Exchange in Phnom Penh. The lecture with the comprehensive title “From consumers to prosumers: the transformative power of household renewable energy production – insights from the Build4People project” got prepared and moderated by Prof Dr Tep Makathy, Dean of the Faculty of Architecture and Urban Planning at Paññāsāstra University of Cambodia.

During the first session Dr. Michael Waibel, leader of B4P Work Package “Sustainable Urban Transformation” gave an overall introduction about the rising global importance of renewable energies with a focus on Photovoltaic (PV) technologies. This was followed by discussing the potential of building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV), in general. During the concluding part of this session, a more detailed analysis was provided about so-called balcony power plants. Balcony power plants enable households to become active producers of renewable household energy and are currently booming in Germany. Finally, their application potential to Cambodia was discussed with the audience.

During the second session, Rolf Messerschmidt, CEO of the Urban Design and Architecture Practice Eble Messerschmidt Partner and leader of B4P Work Package “Sustainable Neigbhourhoods” explored the potential of urban neighbourhood solarisation to support sustainable development in Cambodia, guided by the Build4People Guideline for Sustainable Neighbourhood Development: Climate Protection and Energy Flows as part of the so-called Phnom Penh Capital Hall Transformation Toolbox currently under development. He highlighted practical strategies for integrating PV systems into urban areas to create energy-efficient communities. The session also explained how planning neighbourhoods with smart energy grids can enhance energy supply efficiency and increase the synergistic effect with other sustainable development aspects. Drawing on examples from Germany and Asia, he showed how PV systems can be attractively incorporated into building façades and rooftops, offering practical and visually appealing solutions for sustainable energy use in different settings. This input was jointly prepared by Rolf Messerschmidt and Nuria Roig, Urban Planner at the Urban Design and Architecture Practice Eble Messerschmidt Partner, Research Associate of the B4P WP “Sustainable Neigbhourhoods.

During the third session Andy Deuss, Junior Researcher at the Institute of Environmental Psychology of Magdeburg University and Research Associate of Build4People Work Package “Behaviour Change” presented about how to activate households as implementors of solarisation in Cambodia. He explained that by adopting residential photovoltaics (RPV), households can play an active role in Cambodia’s energy transition but showed that currently only a limited number of households have realized this potential yet. This is raising the question of what needs to be done for other households to follow their lead. Consequently, he provided insights into the factors that motivate households to consider adopting RPV, based on the results of a recent Build4People study conducted in Phnom Penh. The aspects presented were then used to provide an outlook on how households can be supported in the future regarding RPV adoption, enabling them to become active stakeholders in Cambodia’s renewable energy pathway. This input was jointly prepared by Andy Deuss and Dr Anke Blöbaum, Senior Researcher at the Institute of Environmental Psychology of Magdeburg University, Leader of B4P WP “Behaviour Change”.

The three sessions were followed by a vivid discussion on how to strengthen the potential of solar energy in urban Cambodia, in general, and how to convince households to adopt residential photovoltaics.

#Build4People #BMBF_SUREregions #solarization #renewableenergies #empowerment #balconypowerplants #neighbourhoodsolarisation” #transformationtoolbox #behaviourchange

[Posting by our colleagues from the SURE Facilitation and Synthesis Project]

On 28 January 2025, we had the pleasure of unveiling the first edition of our new science magazine: “SURE Solutions – Transdisciplinary Challenges in the Sustainable Development of Urban Regions”.

This inaugural volume explores the fundamentals and project concepts behind multinational partnerships, addressing key challenges in sustainable urban development while outlining expected results and impacts. Accompanying editorials provide a broader perspective, identifying overarching themes and highlighting synergy and synthesis activities within the BMBF’s (Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung) SURE funding program.

The launch event kicked off with a warm introduction by our editors, Prof. Dr-Ing. Jörg Rainer NOENNIG (HCU-Hamburg), Dr. Katharina M. Borgmann also from HafenCity Universität Hamburg (HCU) and Prof. Frank Schwartze (Technische Hochschule Lübeck). Attendees engaged in insightful discussions about the present and future of this publication format.

With SURE Solutions available in both digital and print, we embraced a hybrid launch party, ensuring participation from authors and readers across Asia and European time zones. The event provided a fantastic platform to connect with emerging voices and future contributors to upcoming editions.

Do you want to contribute to one of the next editions? Get in touch with us via sure@hcu-hamburg.de !

📖 Want to read the magazine? You can access it online, or if you’re interested in one of the limited print copies, feel free to reach out!

Read the magazine here: https://www.sustainable-urban-regions.org/solution/suresolutions1/

#SURESolutions #UrbanSustainability #GlobalCollaboration #BMBF_SUREregions #FONA #digitalcityscience #Build4People