Sustainability Street: Why Heat Is a Business Risk
Thu Jan 22 2026
Welcome back to Sustainability Street, our podcast on the intersection of commercial real estate and the world we live in.
My guest for this episode is Savills Vice Chair Katrina Kostic Samen, who heads the company's Workplace Studio. She and I discuss "Heat and Humanity: Protecting People and Building a Resilient Future," a white paper that she co-wrote with Jose Ramirez, co-lead of Savills Human Capital Solutions group.
The white paper examines the impacts of the global warming crisis on workplaces, particularly office buildings, and on occupant behavior. And it highlights examples of buildings whose owners are facing the crisis head-on with adaption strategies.
"It's not just a comfort issue," Samen said. "It's a critical business risk if our people are not performing, and if they're making mistakes. And so that's really, ultimately, what I want to make sure that we bring back to the table."
Samen has a global view of workplace design trends, and her insights are unique and thought-provoking. Here are the key topics our conversation covered:
(1:24) Workplace design guru(3:16) The post-COVID workplace(4:26) Why air conditioning is a band-aid(7:34) The mental impacts of heat(9:40) Aligning with sustainability goals(12:44) What can employers, owners do(18:28) What the U.S. can learn from the world(25:10) Samen's call to action
More
Welcome back to Sustainability Street, our podcast on the intersection of commercial real estate and the world we live in. My guest for this episode is Savills Vice Chair Katrina Kostic Samen, who heads the company's Workplace Studio. She and I discuss "Heat and Humanity: Protecting People and Building a Resilient Future," a white paper that she co-wrote with Jose Ramirez, co-lead of Savills Human Capital Solutions group. The white paper examines the impacts of the global warming crisis on workplaces, particularly office buildings, and on occupant behavior. And it highlights examples of buildings whose owners are facing the crisis head-on with adaption strategies. "It's not just a comfort issue," Samen said. "It's a critical business risk if our people are not performing, and if they're making mistakes. And so that's really, ultimately, what I want to make sure that we bring back to the table." Samen has a global view of workplace design trends, and her insights are unique and thought-provoking. Here are the key topics our conversation covered: (1:24) Workplace design guru(3:16) The post-COVID workplace(4:26) Why air conditioning is a band-aid(7:34) The mental impacts of heat(9:40) Aligning with sustainability goals(12:44) What can employers, owners do(18:28) What the U.S. can learn from the world(25:10) Samen's call to action