The role of standards and exemplars in consolidating labels for sustainable construction

Abstract

Drawing on a category perspective, this chapter examines the role of standards and exemplars in consolidating labels for sustainable construction. We analyze in a Danish context how the confluence of mandatory and voluntary standards associated with the Danish Building Regulations encourages construction actors to build exemplars that consolidate labels for sustainable construction. We suggest that the combination of voluntary and mandatory standards stimulates the construction of exemplars and increases the social status of construction actors, both of which, in turn, consolidate labels for sustainable construction. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the wider implications of these processes for the category of sustainable construction in the contemporary economy.