Peter Graham

Primary areas of research and supervision: 

• Building Sector greenhouse gas emission mitigation and energy efficiency policy, assessment and reporting;
• Urban resilience, adaptation and climate change mitigation policy strategies.
• Architectural Science, and ecological design education.

Peter Graham’s career in sustainable building spans all levels of the industry, from the construction site to university, and from boardrooms to international negotiations. He is the Executive Director of the Global Buildings Performance Network (www.gbpn.org), an international network of experts dedicated to achieving the mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions from the buildings sector. He has more than 15 years experience in international advocacy, research and education in sustainable building design, construction, evaluation and policy. Previously he has been the Technical Advisor and past Coordinator of the United Nations Environment Programme’s (UNEP) Sustainable Buildings and Climate Initiative where he developed and managed many of UNEP’s key research projects and publications in the building sector. His previous roles include Deputy Director of the Centre for Urban Transitions, and Node leader for the CRC for Low Carbon Living at Swinburne University of Technology, Head of Discipline for Architecture & Design and Stream-Leader in the Architecture Program at the University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.  He began his academic career at RMIT as lecturer in Sustainable Construction.  

Peter was a contributing author to the IPCC AR5 Working Group 3 Buildings Chapter, the Global Energy Assessment, UNEP Emissions Gap Report, Global Status Report on Buildings & Construction, and contributor to drafting the UN Sustainable Development Goals. He also led the content development, organizational strategy and implementation planning for the Paris COP21 Buildings Day and Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction.  He holds a Bachelor Degree in Construction Management, a Masters Degree in Applied Science and a PhD in Architecture.

In these roles Peter worked closely with the public, civil, and private sectors to assist the implementation of sustainable and resilient building and construction policies and practices. Recent research includes studies on the status of building energy policies for the OECD and APEC, the status of buildings sector actions in Nationally Determined Contributions and National Adaptation Plans for the UN Environment Program, and the development of climate policy evidence bases for the CRC for Low Carbon Living and Global Buildings Performance Network.