New generation life cycle assessment (LCA) methods and tools can positively influence the environmental impact of the built environment and help mitigate the effects of climate change.  They continuously learn from real-time data while allowing for effective operation and management strategies of buildings and district ...

The circular economy (CE) is an optimal pathway to sustainable development and companies, governments and academics have formulated various proposals to measure circularity.  Ideally, circularity metrics indicate how well circularity is applied to the whole life cycle of products and services in terms of society, the e ...

For circular economy (CE) to succeed, focus must be given to the service life phase and the reuse/recycle phase of building projects.  This involves more stakeholders both in the early decision-making phases of projects as well as in the design phase and impacts the project value chain.  Life cycle sustainability asses ...

The circular economy offers business leaders and government a clear opportunity for long-term growth that is less dependent on cheap materials and energy and can restore and regenerate natural capital.  This report provides an actionable toolkit for policymakers for embarking on a circular economy transformation that d ...

Circular business models (CBMs) create additional value by taking a systemic view across the whole life cycle of assets, using new technologies, and applying advanced design approaches.  This added value demonstrates the feasibility of the business case for adopting CBMs, the social, economic and environmental benefits ...

The lack of a commonly accepted and sufficiently inclusive definition and circularity measurement methodology hampers the transition to a more circular economy in numerous ways.  To counter this, this circular economy categorization system was proposed comprising 14 circular categories organized in four high-level grou ...

Stakeholder collaboration in neighborhood projects facilitates networking and knowledge transfer.  Construction companies participate in the task definition, research institutions contribute to feasibility testing, civil society organizations (CSOs) reinforce environmental approaches, and international partners increas ...

This action checklist helps government policymakers in uptaking, implementing, and localizing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as a tool for better policies and living quality.  It covers (1) policies and strategies, (2) multi-level governance, (3) financing and budgeting, (4) data and information, and (5) sta ...

The oil industry invented “net zero” as the perfect alternative to slowing oil production to halt global heating.  The netting deducts some carbon from total CO₂ emissions to create “net zero emissions”.  The oil industry thereby claims to capture and store CO₂, while using this “captured carbon” for enhanced oil recov ...

Construction circularity is identified in 1) material design, 2) building design, 3) construction and facility management, 4) urban sustainability development, and 5) system precondition.  These five broad categories represent different levels of circularity implementation in construction and can be further decomposed ...

The Material Circularity Indicator (MCI) allows companies to identify circular value from their products and materials and mitigate risks from material price volatility and material supply.  It enables users to analyze and evaluate a range of environmental, regulatory, and supply chain risks for their designs and produ ...

The private and public sectors need to create a level playing field for circular materials, products and services to become the new normal in the built environment.  The transition to a circular economy calls for introducing new valuation methods and implementing long-term policies that encourage the scaling of circula ...

To avoid the use of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for greenwashing, construction projects must include both long-term and short-term factors in assessing their SDG sustainability.  However, companies rarely use SDG assessments as a tool for decisions for real change towards more sustainable and equitable cor ...

Climate change transition and a rapidly evolving regulatory landscape confront the asset management industry with considerable challenges and present risks and opportunities for investing.  Asset managers must strengthen disclosure of the climate-related risks and opportunities and support “sustainability” initiatives ...

Collaboration with businesses, public institutions, and civil society organizations is generally seen with a thumbs-up or a comment on a social media posting.  Individuals often express interest in engaging in a collaborative initiative, but seldom follow through with collaborative action.  This article suggests that w ...