GREEN ARCHITECTURE

SUSTAINABILITY, ECO- &

GREEN ARCHITECTURE
ARC 353
Dr. Dina El Kordy
 Lecture 2: SUSTAINABILITY, ECO- &
GREEN ARCHITECTURE
01 -
SUSTAINABILITY
Definitions and
02
SUSTAINABLE
BUILDING, ECO
Aspirations
- Challenges BUILDING, & GREEN
BUILDING
- Sustainable architecture
and urban planning

03
GREEN CERTIFICATION

-
BOARDS
Green product certification 04 ASSIGNMENT 1
- Green building rating & certification
H
 01
SUSTAINABILITY
- Definitions and aspirations
- Challenges
- Sustainable architecture
and urban planning

H
 DEFINITIONS
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT FORMAL DEFINITION:
The term has emerged through concern over ecological issues.
‘Sustainable development’ was formally defined by the Brundtland WCED (1987), in the ‘Our
Common Future’ report, as follows:

‘Sustainable development is the development that meets the needs of the present
without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs’, the
report continues to state that ‘the development process is not easy or straightforward
… and in the final analysis sustainable development must rest on political will’
(Hulse 2007, pp. 301-322).

Hulse, J. H. 2007, Sustainable Development at Risk: Ignoring the Past, IDRC Books, Ottawa,
ON, CANADA
H
What are the aspirations of
sustainability? What did the world do to
agree over those aspirations?
H
 SUSTAINABILITY GOALS
• Agenda 21 was adopted at the United Nations Conference on Environment & Development
(UNCED) Summit meeting on 14 June 1992. It outlined actions that governments,
international organisations, industries and communities can take to achieve sustainability
through recognising the effects of human behaviour.

• Agenda 21 aimed to accomplish the following objectives: the alleviation of poverty,

hunger, sickness and illiteracy worldwide while halting the deterioration of ecosystems
that sustain life according to the Department of the Environment and Heritage of the
Australian Government [DEH] (2004).

This was by balancing between three pillars : economy, society, and the environment

H
Did sustainability’s goals change
over time?

H
 SUSTAINABILITY GOALS
• In 2015, all United Nations Member States adopted The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development . 2030 Agenda aims to provide a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity
for people and the planet, now and into the future.

• The 2030 agenda contains the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which are an
urgent call for action by all countries - developed and developing - in a global partnership.

• They recognize that ending poverty and other deprivations must go hand-in-hand with
strategies that improve health and education, reduce inequality, and spur economic growth
– all while tackling climate change and working to preserve our oceans and forests.

H
Is it easy to reach those goals?
What are potential challenges for
a true sustainable development?

H
 CHALLENGES FACED BY
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

• Since its beginnings, literature show varying challenges to sustainable development. Some
scholars have responded to a number of these challenges. However, other challenges, for
example, the complexity of the relationships among stakeholders and the difficulty in
communicating potential technical information still exist.

H
 CHALLENGES FACED BY
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
• At least, there are two major challenges for sustainable development that have not been
settled nor addresses pragmatically by the literature:

1- One of the challenges is relevant to implementation due to lack of consistency from many
perspectives.
2- The other pertains to time being the core of sustainable development, at least when
questioning how long a development is expected to be sustainable for?

H
 CHALLENGES FACED BY
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Examples of varying definitions as an aspect for inconsistency

Profession Definition

Urban planner ‘The term “sustainable urban development” is like its parent sustainable development, represents an aspiration

only... (Stren et al. 1992; Atkinson and Atkinson 1994; Nijkamp and Capello 1998) We do not know if it is

sustainable or not, but clearly it is a desirable goal’ cited by (Devuyst, Hens, & De Lannoy 2001, p. 51)

Ecologist Sustained abundance and genotypic diversity of individual species in ecosystems subject to human exploitation

or, more generally, intervention (Gatto 1995)

Economist Sustained economic development, without compromising the existing resources for future generations (Gatto

1995)

Human resources Sustainability is to be applied as an ethical, moral value (‘social responsibility’) (Ehnert 2009)
H
manager
 CHALLENGES FACED BY
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Examples of how varying perspectives among stakeholders about the time required influences
their decisions differently (Brandon & Lombardi 2010):

Stakeholder Perspective impacting decision making

Politician or party The political support for the development in an area could be influenced by the term of office of

an elected politician or party.

Finance houses May view the development in relation to the required time to obtain a profit on their investment.

Lawyers May be interested in the development at many levels, one of them being the implication of

changes in the law over a longer period of time.

Brandon, P. & Lombardi, P. 2010, Evaluating Sustainable Development in the Built Environment (2nd Edition), Wiley-Blackwell, Hoboken, NJ, USA,

H
What is one way to confront some
of sustainable development
challenges?

H
In his book, Sustainable Development at Risk, Ignoring the Past, Joseph
Hulse (2007, p. xv) stated that:

Few organisations, governmental and non-governmental

appear to maintain a lively, up-to-date institutional or
corporate memory: a critical, analytical record of past
experience from which to define and formulate productive
courses of action for the future, activities that avoid repeating
errors of the past … failure to learn from history and past
experience results in mistakes being repeated.
Can we define sustainable
architecture and urban planning?

H
 ‘The term “sustainable urban development” is like its parent
sustainable development, represents an aspiration only... We
do NOT know if it is sustainable or not, but clearly it is a
desirable goal’

Devuyst, D., Hens, L., & De Lannoy, W. (eds) 2001, How Green Is the City? : Sustainability Assessment and the Management of Urban
Environments, Columbia University Press, New York.
 02
SUSTAINABLE
BUILDING, ECO
BUILDING, & GREEN
BUILDING
H
What is the difference between
sustainable building, eco building,
and green building?

H
• The three terms are used interchangeably
• A building that aspires to have minimum
environmental impact by being ecologically
SUSTAINABLE
BUILDING
correct.
• This is achieved by using resources efficiently,
using internal recycling, renewable energy
sources, recyclable or biodegradable
construction materials, and blending in with the
local environment, particularly in out-of-town
locations.

H
• A building that has been made in a way that ECO-
BUILDING
does not harm the environment using
sustainable materials (= ones that will continue
to be available and not all be used up) and uses
natural energy for heat, etc.

H
• Green building is a resource-efficient method of
construction that produces healthier buildings
which have less impact on the environment and
GREEN
BUILDING
cost less to maintain. This sustainable approach
to construction accounts for a building’s entire
life cycle: siting, design, construction,
operation, maintenance, renovation and
demolition (read Life Cycle Assessment for
more)

H
 The most
common
building life
cycle
According to our global situation,
who tells if a building is ‘green’ or
not?

H
 BREAK

H
 03
GREEN
CERTIFICATION
BOARDS
H
 GREEN PRODUCT & BUILDINGS
To build ‘green’ in a country, certain elements to be considered:

• Building standard, e.g. ANSI/ASHRAE/USGBC/IES Standard 189.1-

2017, Standard for the Design of High Performance Green Buildings
• Green Codes, e.g. The International Green Construction Code (IgCC)
• Green Product Certifications that confirm that a product meets a
particular standard and offers an environmental benefit.

https://trekbaron.com/types-of-cities
 GREEN PRODUCT CERTIFICATION
Multi-attribute programs Single-attribute programs

Are product labels and certification Are product labels and certification
programs that certify products based programs that certify products based
on life-cycle parameters, e.g. energy on a single parameter such as water,
use, recycled content, and air and energy, or chemical emissions that
water emissions from manufacturing, directly impact Indoor Environmental
disposal, and use. Examples: Quality (IEQ). Examples:
 GREEN PRODUCT CERTIFICATION
ISO-DEFINED TYPES OF GREEN PRODUCT CERTIFICATION LABELS

TYPE ISO NUMBER WHAT THE LABEL DOES

Type I ISO 14024 Seal of approval for multi-attribute requirements

Type II ISO 14021 Verifiable single-attribute environmental claims for issues such as energy consumption,
emissions, or recycled content. Can be first-party, self-declared manufacturer claims.
However many manufacturers are beginning to seek third-party verification of those claims
in response to industry demand.

Type III ISO >14025 Comprehensive environmental product disclosure and detailed product information. Similar
to an Environmental Product Declaration (EPD)
 IMPORTANT
• Many product certifications are recognized within comprehensive green building
rating systems - that will be discussed next - such as LEED, Green Globes,
BREEAM, and the National Green Building Standard.

• As a result, green product certifications are on the rise as the demand for
greener products continues to increase.

• It is important to note that ‘greenwashing’, which is defined as the use of

‘green claims’ that are NOT true but used to sell products or a corporate
image, has become commonplace as companies try to stay competitive.
GREEN BUILDING RATING & CERTIFICATION

• Green building rating or certification systems broaden the focus beyond

the product to consider the project as a whole.

• Rating systems: are a type of building certification system that rates or

rewards relative levels of compliance or performance with specific
environmental goals and requirements. Rating systems and certification
systems are frequently used interchangeably.
What is assessed in a building to
confirm if it is ‘Green’?

H
GREEN BUILDING RATING & CERTIFICATION

• Green building rating and certification systems require an

integrated design process to create projects that are
environmentally responsible and resource-efficient throughout a
building's life-cycle: from siting to design, construction,
operation, maintenance, renovation, and demolition.
What do you expect the types of
green building rating or
certification systems?

H
 GREEN BUILDING RATING & CERTIFICATION
Multi-attribute programs Single-attribute programs

Address emissions, toxicity, and Focus solely on water or energy.

overall environmental performance in Examples:
addition to water and energy. Some
are American and some are
international. Examples:
 04
ASSIGNMENT 1

H
 ASSIGNMENT 1
• Choose a Green building system’s case study, e.g. one from Fitwel,
CASBEE, or any other.
• Describe the building: location, year of built, and
• What was changed in the building to make it more green?
• Reflect: tell us what do you think, did that change really made the
building green / eco-friendly / sustainable?
This link provides example case studies from BREEAM, but also find your
own:
https://bregroup.com/products/breeam/breeam-case-studies/
THANKS!

CREDITS: This presentation template was

created by Slidesgo, including icons by
Flaticon and infographics & images by
Freepik and illustrations by Storyset

Please keep this slide for attribution