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Making Zero-Carbon Pencil (Without Killing the Pro Forma) with Fin MacDonald

Author

Charlie Cichetti
February 05, 2026

QUICK TAKE

Zero carbon isn’t a tech problem anymore — it’s a business model problem.

Fin MacDonald breaks down how developers can hit LEED Platinum + Zero Carbon goals by shifting costs smartly, partnering creatively, and treating finance like an ally instead of a villain.

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🌱BREAKING GROUND ON BETTER BUILDING

In this episode, Fin revolutionizes how sustainability teams talk about decarbonization — shifting the conversation from “nice-to-have” to “makes-the-deal-work.”

[Key Insight #1] Zero carbon scales when you make the business case real

  • What's outdated: “Zero carbon” gets value-engineered out when it looks like a cost center.

  • The innovation: Speak developer: pro formas, risk, ROI, vacancy, and investor appetite — then connect decarbonization to what actually moves money.

  • Impact: Faster lease-up, lower vacancy, stronger investor demand, and access to sustainable finance pools that aren’t available to “business as usual.”

[Key Insight #2] Energy-as-a-Service turns upfront pain into operational logic

  • What's outdated: Condo developers build and walk away — so why would they pay higher upfront capital costs for long-term savings they’ll never capture?

  • The innovation: Use structures like Energy-as-a-Service so the developer doesn’t eat the geothermal (or other low-carbon system) capex — and tenants pay for delivered heat over time.

  • Impact: Enables geothermal (and similar systems) across every project while keeping upfront costs down and aligning payers with beneficiaries.

[Key Insight #3] The next wave after “carbon tunnel vision” is holistic performance

  • What's outdated: Carbon became the only metric — and other essentials (people, place, resilience, whole-building outcomes) got sidelined.

  • The innovation: Once teams learn the new carbon playbook, return to holistic thinking — without losing the momentum decarbonization created.

  • Impact: Better buildings that win on carbon and quality of life: especially in residential, where sustainability is personal and lived every day.

♻️ YOUR GREEN BUILD CHALLENGE

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✅ CONNECT AND CONTINUE

🌿 Access full episode resources: Green Building Matters Podcast 

🗒 Read the transcript: HERE 

📄 Read the transcript: HERE

🔗 Connect with Fin MacDonald: