Podcast Videos

Construction and AEC leaders — Sustainable buildings are no longer a premium. They're a requirement. In major markets, if your building isn't sustainable, it doesn't get rented. But here's the problem: the certification systems meant to support green construction aren't built for speed or innovation — and that gap is costing the industry real opportunity. Allison Dring, CEO of Made of Air, breaks down exactly what's blocking sustainable buildings from going mainstream — and what needs to change. 🎙️ From the Activating Curiosity™ podcast — where AEC & construction leaders learn to lead change with clarity and confidence. 🔔 Subscribe for weekly insights on construction leadership, change management, and the future of the built environment.

Construction and AEC leaders — what if the standard toolkit of building materials is missing an entire category? In this clip, Allison Dring explains that the construction industry has operated with the same core materials for over a century — concrete, wood, steel. But a new category is emerging: biochar composites — a permanent form of carbon that can be integrated directly into building components. Here's what that means in practice: → Roofing materials that store carbon instead of just covering a building → Insulation that locks carbon away for the life of the structure → Window frames, flooring, and wall panels that make the building an active participant in carbon storage — not just a passive emitter This isn't about replacing concrete or steel. It's about adding a new material category that sits alongside them — one where the building itself becomes part of the carbon solution. The more carbon stored in the building, the more active that building is in reversing …

Construction and AEC leaders — Sustainable buildings are no longer just a premium; they are a necessity for renting properties, especially in major European cities. This shift presents a significant market opportunity within sustainable real estate, despite challenges like expensive and misaligned green building certification processes. The discussion highlights the need for processes that are more aligned with eco friendly products and green construction practices.🌱 In this clip from Activating Curiosity™, Allison Dring shares the reality shaping the construction industry today: The demand for sustainable buildings is real—and growing. But the systems meant to support innovation—certification, adoption, and cost structures—aren’t built for speed. So even when the industry is ready to change… It struggles to follow through. This is the gap between demand and delivery—and where real transformation needs to happen. 🔗 Full podcast + episodes: https://www.activatingcuriosity.com/ep…

Buildings don’t just produce carbon—they can store it. The construction industry contributes nearly 40% of global emissions, largely driven by the materials we use. But what if buildings could reverse that impact instead of adding to it? In this Activating Curiosity™ conversation, Ryan Ware sits down with Allison Dring, CEO and Co-Founder of Made of Air, to explore how biochar and carbon-negative materials are redefining what’s possible in the built environment. Why materials—not just operations—are the biggest driver of emissions How biochar turns buildings into long-term carbon storage systems Why the construction industry struggles to adopt new materials How certification, supply chains, and risk slow innovation Why sustainable buildings are becoming a market requirement—not a premium How leaders can move innovation forward despite resistance If you’re leading change in the construction industry, this episode will challenge how you think about materials, sustainability, and you…

Construction and AEC leaders — the 40-hour workweek wasn't designed for how projects actually move. So why are we still measuring work by hours? In this clip, Erin Fantozz — who works primarily with architectural firms — challenges one of AEC's most entrenched assumptions: that 40 hours is the default measure of productivity. For many architecture and design professionals, especially early in their careers, the question "Do I really need to work these 40 hours?" never even gets asked — because the culture makes it feel non-negotiable. Erin calls it what it is: an arbitrary, old-school mentality. And while this conversation spans the full AEC industry, it hits architecture firms especially hard because: → Firm billing models are built on hourly rates — challenging the 40-hour week means challenging how firms make money → Project timelines in design don't follow a 40-hour rhythm — they accelerate during deadlines and pause during approvals → The talent sustainability crisis in …

Construction and AEC leaders — at some point, the conversation shifts. It's no longer about work-life balance. It's about sustainability. In this clip, Erin Fantozz shares a moment many AEC professionals experience but rarely say out loud: sitting across from your firm and saying, "This is not sustainable for me and my family." Her commute was an hour each way. She had to make the choice to bring her personal situation to her firm — something many AEC cultures discourage. But here's what happened next: her firm didn't push back. They said, "We don't want to lose you again — what can we do together to make this work?" That response is the difference between a firm that retains talent and one that loses it: → The threshold moment: when a professional decides to speak up instead of quietly leaving → The firm's reaction: collaboration, not resistance — "What can we do together?" → The real issue isn't long hours or commuting — it's how work is designed and whether expectation…

Efficiency isn’t about working more hours—it’s about how work is structured in the first place. That’s where many AEC firms are getting stuck. Not because of effort, but because the traditional work model—built on billable hours, rigid workflows, and in-office expectations—is creating friction, limiting performance, and constraining people. In this Activating Curiosity™ conversation, Ryan Ware sits down with Erin Fantozz, founder of EF Designs, to explore how rethinking the structure of work can unlock better outcomes across architecture, engineering, and construction teams. They challenge the notion of a staffing shortage in the AEC industry, reframing it as a work model problem. Traditional approaches create inefficiencies and underutilize talent, impacting project performance and individual personal growth. We explore how aligning flexible, high-skill talent to projects, rather than businesses, improves how work gets done and fosters a more effective mindset. Why the 40-hour wor…

Construction and AEC leaders — prefabrication isn't just a new construction method. It's a shift in mindset — and that's where contractors get stuck. In this clip, we break down what happens when traditional builders walk into a factory environment carrying traditional construction thinking. The construction industry has been adding technology within its existing process for years — but prefab introduces new twists that require new workflows, new coordination, and a fundamentally different way of approaching production. The friction isn't adoption. It's adaptation. → Bringing traditional construction flows into a factory creates immediate misalignment → The way a contractor thinks about the build has to change — not just the location → Mature manufacturers already operate this way — contractors are starting from zero The contractors who figure this out first will own the prefab advantage. The ones who don't will keep trying to build warehouse projects like jobsite projects …

Offsite construction isn’t struggling because of complexity— it’s struggling because workflows aren’t connected. Production, quality, materials, and labor often operate in silos, creating inefficiencies and slowing adoption. The opportunity isn’t just better tools— it’s better integration. When workflows are aligned, factories become more efficient, predictable, and scalable. https://www.activatingcuriosity.com/ https://connectiveconsultinggrp.com/ #OffsiteConstruction #ConstructionTech #Workflow #Manufacturing #Innovation

Prefab isn’t just a factory problem. It’s a trust problem across the entire project. Prefabrication and offsite construction promise faster delivery, better quality, and improved efficiency. But there’s a deeper challenge slowing adoption across the industry. In this clip from Activating Curiosity™, Vikas Murali (Co-Founder & CEO of Offsight) explains why scaling prefab isn’t just about improving factory performance—it’s about building trust across the entire project ecosystem. Owners, developers, and project teams are taking on significant financial risk when committing to prefab and modular construction. Unlike traditional construction, where progress is tied to visible milestones, offsite construction requires confidence in what’s happening inside the factory. “You’re fronting a large project with significant capital upfront… in a very different way than traditional construction.” Without visibility into production, quality, and progress, that trust becomes difficult to build…