The Global Status Report for Buildings and Construction (Buildings-GSR), published by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction (GlobalABC), provides an annual snapshot of the progress of the buildings and construction sector on a global scale. The Buildings-GSR reviews the status of policies, finance, technologies and solutions to monitor whether the sector is aligned with the Paris Agreement goals. The Global Status Report for Buildings and Construction 2024-2025 - Not just another brick in the wall highlights progress made on related global climate goals and calls for greater ambition on six challenges, including building energy codes, renewable energy, and financing. Global frameworks and initiatives such as Intergovernmental Council for Buildings and Climate, the Buildings Breakthrough and the Declaration de Chaillot are sustaining momentum towards adopting ambitious climate action plans, Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), for net-zero buildings ahead of the UN Climate Change Conference (COP30) in Belem, Brazil. Despite this progress, the sector remains a key driver of the climate crisis, consuming 32 per cent of global energy and contributing to 34 per cent of global CO2 emissions. The sector is dependent on materials like cement and steel that are responsible for 18% of global emissions and are a major source of construction waste.
Nottingham Trent University’s Bolsover Net Zero Innovation Programme continues to strengthen the link between academia and practice in sustainable construction. The initiative combines technical construction training with applied sustainability education, offering local authorities and industry professionals the skills to deliver low carbon design and sustainable building practices. By aligning its curriculum with whole life carbon assessment principles and life cycle thinking in construction, the programme demonstrates how universities can advance environmental sustainability in construction while ensuring participants understand embodied carbon in materials and the carbon footprint of construction projects.
Schneider Electric’s restructuring of its consultancy services marks a decisive step toward integrated net zero strategy in the built environment. The newly consolidated operation provides a full framework for clients pursuing net zero carbon buildings and sustainable building design. Its focus extends to life cycle cost analysis, whole life carbon management, and circular construction strategies. By promoting resource efficiency in construction and carbon footprint reduction through digital monitoring tools, the company reflects a shift across the sector from isolated energy upgrades to a systems-based model of decarbonising the built environment.
Mitsubishi Electric’s findings on commercial heating reveal the persistent challenges facing green construction. The continued reliance on fossil fuels across offices and industrial estates highlights the environmental impact of construction systems that fail to align with whole life carbon performance goals. The company urges rapid transition towards low carbon construction materials and energy-efficient buildings using electric heat pumps. These technologies contribute to eco-friendly construction and carbon neutral construction objectives while improving long-term building lifecycle performance and reducing embodied carbon over time.
The European Parliament’s decision to maintain the integrity of key sustainability directives reinforces transparency within sustainable construction and corporate accountability. By defending the reporting standards embedded in the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive and the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, policymakers signal a commitment to sustainable material specification and environmental product declarations (EPDs). Robust reporting allows investors and developers to accurately measure the environmental impact of construction, encouraging adoption of sustainable architecture and circular economy principles across European markets.
Across the UK, construction activity remains sluggish, although selective growth areas such as community and amenity projects point to renewed interest in sustainable urban development. Analysts note that progress depends on consistent application of whole life carbon and embodied carbon methodologies alongside certification standards like BREEAM v7. The sector holds the technical capacity to deliver eco-design for buildings and low embodied carbon materials, yet financing and regulatory delays continue to threaten momentum. Securing alignment between policy, supply chains, and innovation in renewable building materials will be essential for scaling carbon neutral, net zero whole life carbon outcomes across the industry.
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