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BREEAM, NABERS, LEED, and many, many more. Buildings are increasingly being rated 鈥榁ery Good鈥�, 鈥楨xcellent鈥� and 鈥極utstanding鈥�; being awarded three, four and five stars; and receiving bronze, silver, gold, and platinum certifications.

Green building rating systems

Green building rating systems are used to evaluate and recognise buildings that meet sets of environmental and broader sustainability standards. Comprehensive audits are carried out by accredited assessors, who evaluate and consequently score buildings against sets of criteria spanning topics such as energy and water efficiency, embodied carbon, indoor environmental quality, and even health and wellbeing. The resulting scores translate into ratings for benchmarking.

These tools aim to help occupiers make informed and sustainable choices regarding their workplaces. They also guide and elevate the green ambitions of developers鈥� projects, as well as indirectly influencing government building codes and regulation, setting new, higher standards for an increasingly sustainable built environment.

Building rating tools

The World Green Building Council (WGBC) currently administers a total of 58 rating tools, spanning the gamut of global real estate markets. Since the launch of the Building Research Establishment's Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM), the world鈥檚 first green building rating back in 1990, certifications from various providers have become recognised standards for sustainable commercial real estate, and in turn helped to foment the proliferation of certified green buildings worldwide. In its latest annual report, the WGBC revealed that the cumulative area of certified space reached 4.2 billion square metres at the end of 2021 鈥� up by around 20% year-on-year, and around 1,300% since 2010.

This fast and sustained growth correlates with heightened demand, with occupiers driving the push for more and better green buildings. Our survey of global occupiers found that 58% of the 400 executive respondents believe their Net Zero commitments will influence future real estate choices.

This demonstrates that corporate occupiers understand the role their real estate will play in the fight against climate change. Moreover, with 37% reporting that they have a clear target to increase the proportion of their real estate accredited with environmental certifications, it is evident that occupiers are turning to accreditations as a means of understanding the green credentials of the spaces they inhabit, as an assurance of sustainability, and a metric for tracking progress towards ESG goals.

Adding value

As such, the leading green certifications can add value to a building鈥檚 long-term proposition.

Occupiers should be familiar with the most eminent certifications, and understand the rating systems behind them, if they are to fully leverage the benefits they offer. This is no small order. Today鈥檚 green rating systems are manifold and complex, they vary in terms of focus and approach, and the scores and accreditations they deliver can differ greatly as a result.

In the articles to follow, I will demystify three of the most recognised and prevalent green certifications: BREEAM, NABERS, and LEED. I will explore the scope of their coverage, unpick their methodologies and, in turn, examine what they represent for occupiers.

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