From policy to practice: Regulating for sustainability in construction

Global environmental conditions are degrading at an alarming pace, leading the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to shift its narrative with additional warnings and critical consequences of global warming. This crisis calls for immediate action, prompting both global policymakers and the European Union to introduce a series of regulatory initiatives and agreements. Within the European Union, the Commission has presented an extensive array of legislation and action plans designed to align with these political ambitions and pave the way for a climate-neutral continent by 2050. A specific portion of the European engagement in sustainability laws focuses on sustainable finance. This entails new economic demands on private market participants, encouraging them to find economic advantages in investing in sustainability. These laws are intended to incentive all levels of the value chain, encompassing investors, building clients and construction companies, to embrace sustainability as a common objective.