Green Building

Published on February 17, 2022

Green buildings are considered to provide a solution to many of the infrastructural concerns impacting our ecosystem today. The green building movement, almost two decades old, have seen the most progressive trends and outcomes in the last few years. With the amount of awareness, knowledge, and research available on the topic, green buildings have developed as a discipline of its own. Several definitions of a green building are discussed in the vast body of literature available. Simply put, a green building’s structure is designed and constructed such that resource use is low in the construction and operation ofa building. Once constructed, the building continues to reduce environmental impacts; create economic benefits; and improve social and well-being outcomes. It is only when all economic, environmental, and social aspects are integrated in the building system throughout its life cycle, that a building can serve its purpose of being green.

This entry discusses that green buildings cannot be successfully implemented if all dimensions of sustainability are not considered holistically. A fragmented approach focusing on only one stage of a building life cycle or only one aspect of the TBL cannot support desired green building outcomes. The use ofappropriate technological interventions and management practices impact performance of green buildings. Operational issues can be addressed by undertaking monitoring, engaging with the stakeholders, and understanding stakeholder priorities by making the building systems accessible and comprehensible to building users. Stakeholder involvement at each level, from design through to operation is essential for a building to meet their predicted and actual green performance targets. This research is directly related to the work of the SBC programme.