WEBINAR / Material Matters: How Biobased Strategies Can Drive Low-Carbon Design

Webinar overview

This talk examines timber and wood-based construction as both a low carbon material choice and a design driver that shapes architectural expression, structural strategies, spans, grids, and spatial character. You will gain insight into aligning material strategies with national and international climate goals, understanding how materials serve as a key lever for meeting quantified CO₂ reduction targets and carbon budgets through data driven, policy aligned decision making.

The session will be hosted by Janelle Wynyard, followed by a Q+A with Daniel Gudsell, Abodo's Managing Director + Founder. For over 20 years Daniel has led a movement toward sustainable innovation and driving the development of rapidly renewable New Growth™ Feature Timbers.

Learning outcomes

• Ability to explain how material choices influence whole‑life carbon performance.

• Understand how timber and wood-based construction influence architectural form, structure, and design logic.

• Connect material innovation to climate targets and regulatory ambitions.

Jakob Strømann-Andersen | Director, Innovation and Sustainability | Henning Larsen

Jakob’s work around the interaction between engineering, architecture, and modern technology, focuses on how integrated design can form the basis of healthy cities and buildings. Jakob has extensive international experience on projects prioritising intercultural design, climate adaptation, and sustainability, and works closely with Danish authorities to develop new building regulations. Through studies of healthy materials, circular economy, wind simulations, and microclimates, Jakob drives data-informed design to incorporate biobased materials, CO₂ reduction, nature inclusivity, and biodiversity in Henning Larsen projects.

Examples include Fælledby, designed to be Copenhagen's first all-timber neighbourhood, and a logistics hub for BESTSELLER in the Netherlands, designed to be the largest timber logistics centre in Europe embracing biogenic materials. Feldballe School in Denmark and the World of Volvo Experience Center in Sweden are other examples of Henning Larsen projects where the integration of ancient, biobased building materials such as straw, seagrass, and wood – with a modern twist has earned the studio recognition as one of the most innovative companies in the world by Fast Company.

Jakob manages the unique Industrial PhD program at Henning Larsen, which co-hosts PhD candidates from co-sponsoring institutions in various R&D projects based on different Henning Larsen case studies. Topics include integrated acoustics simulations, lighting design in learning environments, design for disassembly of facades, and anthropological studies focusing on knowledge dissemination in shared spaces.

Daniel Gudsell | Managing Director + Founder | Abodo

Formed in 2001 by the Gudsell family, Abodo remains a New Zealand-owned, family business with a purpose. In an industry where many exterior timbers are harvested from unsustainable old growth forests, Daniel has led a movement for over 20 years to protect irreplaceable forests through sustainable innovation, crafting feature timbers that are both beautiful and high performing.

As a member of the International Research Group of Wood Preservation (IRG-WP), Daniel relates to the world’s greatest minds in wood technology and has led much of the company’s new market development and product design.

Janelle Wynyard | MC | UK Specification + Education Manager | Abodo

A creative entrepreneur and industry connector with over 20 years’ experience across architecture and design. Janelle works with Abodo to develop educational content for architects and support the growth of sustainable timber specification in the UK. Janelle is also the founder of Teulo, a leading CPD platform, where she focuses on crafting meaningful education and facilitating conversations that connect design, materials, and low-carbon outcomes.