The Hidden Emissions in Every Building You Walk Into (and is the Anzac Bridge a Sustainability Icon?) with Hudson Worsley, MECLA

Hudson Worsley, Chair of MECLA (the Materials and Embodied Carbon Leaders' Alliance) joins us to unpack embodied carbon in construction. The emissions baked into every building, bridge, and data centre before they're even switched on. And how in Australia, construction sits at the centre of the net zero transition that almost no one is talking about.Hudson helped set up MECLA five years ago with WWF-Australia. It now brings together more than 160 partners across construction, infrastructure, government, and finance to drive down embodied carbon in concrete, steel, aluminium, and the buildings they go into.We get into:Why government procurement is the single biggest lever for change in Australian construction, and why outcome-based targets beat input-based onesThe impact of the data centre boom Why concrete alone accounts for around 8% of global emissions, and would be the fourth-largest emitting country in the world if it were oneWhy "no" doesn't mean "never" when you're asking for low-emission materials, and how persistence has driven down the cost premium on low-carbon cementHow the Anzac Bridge, built around the Sydney Olympics with 65% recycled industrial waste in its pillars, was quietly 30 years ahead of its timeWhat AASB S2 mandatory climate reporting means for Scope 3 emissions across the construction value chainHudson's call to action is simple. Ask the embodied carbon question. Then ask it again. And again.RESOURCESMECLA (Materials and Embodied Carbon Leaders' Alliance): https://mecla.org.auMECLA Report on Reducing Embodied Carbon in Data Centre Delivery: https://mecla.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/MECLA-Report-on-Reducing-Embodied-Carbon-in-Data-Centre-Delivery.pdfNational Climate Risk Assessment: https://www.dcceew.gov.au/climate-change/policy/national-climate-risk-assessmentGreen Building Council of Australia: https://new.gbca.org.auNABERS Embodied Carbon: https://www.nabers.gov.au/ratings/our-ratings/nabers-embodied-carbonHUDSON'S RECOMMENDATIONOutrage + Optimism podcast with Christiana Figueres: https://www.outrageandoptimism.orgConnect with us! Support the showYour Hosts:Dan LeveringtonLoreto GutierrezLiked this episode? Subscribe to our podcast to get the latest Sustainability insights every two weeks. And follow us on Linkedin and Instagram.Email us your ideas, feedback and interviewee suggestions at [email protected]