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Sustainable Construction through Industry Self-Regulation: The Development and Role of Building Environmental Assessment Methods in Achieving Green Building

Author

Listed:
  • Roine Leiringer

    (Department of Real Estate and Construction, University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong, China)

Abstract

The role of industry self-regulation in facilitating sustainable development has gained increasing recognition over the past two decades. As a result, voluntary certification standards have become ever more common and have been portrayed as effective means of enforcing more environmentally beneficial practices across a range of industries. In this paper, we consider the role of one such type of standard, building environmental assessment methods (BEAMs), and the role they have played in the transition towards green building in the construction industry. Drawing on the theory of strategic action fields, and using the case of HK BEAM in Hong Kong, we investigate the origins, development and impact of BEAMs in what is a highly de-centralised and fragmented industry. The paper concludes with reflections on the need to extend focus from the contents of the BEAMs in terms of categories, criteria and weightings, to instead more actively consider the “taken-for-granted” assumptions around sustainability and the dominant institutionalised practices in construction.

Suggested Citation

  • Roine Leiringer, 2020. "Sustainable Construction through Industry Self-Regulation: The Development and Role of Building Environmental Assessment Methods in Achieving Green Building," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(21), pages 1-16, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:12:y:2020:i:21:p:8853-:d:434405
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    7. Wassermann, Sandra & Reeg, Matthias & Nienhaus, Kristina, 2015. "Current challenges of Germany’s energy transition project and competing strategies of challengers and incumbents: The case of direct marketing of electricity from renewable energy sources," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 76(C), pages 66-75.
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    Cited by:

    1. Jingqing Hong & Isabelle Chan & Pei Ma, 2025. "Towards an Integrated Socio-Ecological Approach in Green Building Transitions: A Systematic Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(12), pages 1-34, June.
    2. Mohamed Marzouk & Rana Ayman & Zaid Alwan & Nehal Elshaboury, 2022. "Green building system integration into project delivery utilising BIM," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 24(5), pages 6467-6480, May.
    3. Rodrigo Rodrigues de Freitas & Márcio de Almeida D’Agosto & Lino Guimarães Marujo, 2021. "Methodological Proposal for Recognition Systems in Sustainable Freight Transport," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(13), pages 1-16, July.
    4. Shirley Kempeneer & Michaël Peeters & Tine Compernolle, 2021. "Bringing the User Back in the Building: An Analysis of ESG in Real Estate and a Behavioral Framework to Guide Future Research," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(6), pages 1-12, March.

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