The colleagues of Greenbors Consulting and Rewell Consulting attended the WELL Summit in Warsaw!

Picture: IWBI

On April 9, the WELL Regional Summit for the Central and Eastern European region took place in Warsaw, Poland. The event was particularly significant, as it was the first of its kind in this area. Representing Rewell Consulting was Regina Kurucz, while Gabriella Hegedűs participated on behalf of our team.

During the event, it became clear that Poland leads the region in terms of WELL certifications, with Hungary holding a prestigious second place. Most presentations focused on the certification of newly constructed properties, however, during the panel discussion "Investing in Healthy Buildings," Regina Kurucz showcased two existing, heritage-protected buildings over one hundred years old as Hungarian examples: the ACADEMIA Office Building (one of the oldest buildings in Budapest) and the building of the Hungarian National Bank.

In her presentation, she highlighted that 80–90% of the real estate stock in the Central and Eastern European region consists of existing buildings, making their WELL certification especially important. She emphasized that the current certification practice mainly focuses on new office buildings, but it would be worthwhile to shift towards including residential properties as well.

She supported her point by mentioning that in the case of a residential complex with 200 apartments, the cost of WELL certification would be around 60,000 HUF per unit. As an entry-level approach, the Health & Safety Rating could serve as a good starting point, since it is not only accessible but also supports compliance with national operational regulations.

Among her closing remarks, she pointed out that one of the most memorable moments of the conference was when the heads of the British and American IWBI offices discussed that, due to the rapid development of artificial intelligence, simpler tasks will no longer be carried out by humans in the future. Therefore, it is crucial to retain decision-makers and talents in an environment that enables them to work as effectively as possible.

Gabriella Hegedűs, our team’s senior consultant and WELL expert, expressed her joy that Greenbors and Rewell are involved in certifying exemplary buildings that serve as outstanding examples of how existing, heritage-protected buildings can be transformed to create healthy, human-centered interiors and work environments that enhance productivity. In her opinion, it is essential to recognize that existing real estate also holds the potential for modern, contemporary design, which can be realized through WELL certification to create human-centered and healthy spaces.