Building Sustainable, Equitable Communities

"If you work a full-time minimum wage job in America, there is not a single county in which you can afford to rent an apartment (2 bedroom) with a child." - Jonathan F.P. Rose

Jonathan F.P. Rose has been revolutionizing affordable housing and sustainable development for over 35 years, long before ESG became mainstream. Rose discusses the stark reality of America's housing crisis, revealing that full-time minimum wage workers cannot afford rent in any U.S. county. "Our current economic system cannot build new housing affordable to the bottom quartile of renters," he explains. The conversation explores innovative building materials like mycelium insulation and mass timber, showcasing how the green building ecosystem has finally matured. Can sustainable real estate development scale quickly enough to address both climate change and housing inequality?