Cities as Leaders in Sustainable Buildings Market Transformation

H.E. Dirk Wouters, ambassador of the Kingdom of Belgium to the United States, will talk about “city diplomacy” in relation to high-performance buildings, energy, and carbon. He will explore the impact of Brussels, Belgium on other cities such as Vancouver, Canada, and Washington, D.C. He will place that discussion in the context of the history of the European Union as well as international energy policy. Finally, he will discuss possibilities for cooperation and collaboration among universities around the world on high-performance buildings. Dirk Wouters was appointed Ambassador of the Kingdom of Belgium to the U.S. in Washington, D.C. on September 2016. He represents His Majesty the King of the Belgians and Belgium’s federal government in the U.S. and in the Bahamas. He is responsible for the direction and work of the embassy and its consulates, including bilateral political and economic relations and visa services.