The student housing market has rapidly evolved into one of the most dynamic and resilient sectors within global real estate. With demand for high-quality student accommodation surging, international capital is increasingly recognising the sector’s potential as a stable and lucrative asset class. At the forefront of this transformation is Global Student Accommodation, GSA. As part of the leadership team, John Jacobs, Global Head of Capital Markets has played an integral role in guiding the business to become a global leader in the student housing industry, managing a portfolio spanning 80 cities across 11 countries and assets exceeding $7 billion. GSA’s impressive growth and steadfast commitment to delivering exceptional student accommodation have cemented its position as a trailblazer in the sector. In this exclusive discussion, we delve into John’s insights on the evolving student housing market, the challenges it faces, and the opportunities that lie ahead. Global Expansion and DiversificationJohn Jacobs’ professional journey has taken him around the globe, and GSA reflects his global perspective. Recently, the company expanded its European footprint, by acquiring significant student housing assets, including entering Italy with a 515-bed development site in Milan, and forming a new joint venture to enter into the French market with Nuveen Real Estate through an impressive €540 million deal. This portfolio includes 18 operational assets and four development sites across five leading educational cities. John explains, “We’ve become one of the most globally diversified investment managers in the student housing market. Our international portfolio now includes markets from the US to...

Rebuilding Ecosystems: Octopus natural capital head chats with Lauder Teacher founderAlex Godfrey, Head of Natural Capital at Octopus Investments joins Andrew Teacher to discuss how to best use land to build in climate resilience from the ground up. This is genuinely one of our most interesting and unique discussions, so please share with contacts.Godfrey’s unlikely career trajectory has given him a unique perspective on the issues - and solutions - we need to consider. His ability to explain the finer points of natural capital, focusing on restoring ecosystems while generating commercial value through initiatives like reforestation and biodiversity enhancement, is gripping and will leave you to reconsider a lot of what you may think you know. The discussion also explores the built environment’s role, emphasising biodiversity net gain policies and sustainable practices for developers. Godfrey outlines Octopus Investments' scalable fund model, which restores degraded land to generate carbon credits that meet rigorous standards like the UK’s Woodland Carbon Code. Stressing urgency, Godfrey calls for policy support to scale natural capital projects and align financial incentives with environmental goals. This approach, he argues, is essential for achieving net-zero targets.

In this week's podcast, Andrew Teacher, co-founder of Lauder Teacher speaks to CogNovum founder Roelof Opperman about how data centres are evolving to meet the technical demands of developing and implementing artificial intelligence, and how this is informing the design and location of the next generation of data centres.

Andrew Teacher is joined by industry experts Ella Smith, building performance analyst, and Craig Robertson, head of sustainability at Alfred Hall Monaghan Morris, regarding their research on sustainable construction practices in speculative offices. They are joined by British Land development director, Hannah Farahar and Stephen Adams, founding director from Storey Projects. Together, they discuss how to break the cycle of ripout and refurbish that accompanies the practice of Category A in speculative office fitout, and what that would mean for meeting the industry’s carbon targets.

In a personal and candid interview with Andrew Teacher, Peter Denton, CEO of Homes England, discusses how his upbringing has shaped his career and driven him to lead the Government’s housing agency. He outlines his vision for bridging the gap between the public and private sectors in meeting housing targets, emphasising the relationship between delivery and economic growth.