Transnational common sustainability indicators for harmonising built environment assessment systems in relation to SDGs

Abstract

Common Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs) have been set by the 2030 Agenda of United Nations in 2015. The European Commission committed to implement the SDGs and now Member States are preparing National Sustainable Development Strategies for contributing in the SDGs achievement. At a lower government level, regions and cities are also implementing their local strategies. Concerning the SDGs dealing with the built environment, how would it be possible to connect the global and local level strategies? To measure the progress towards SDGs and relative targets, a global framework of indicators has been set by UN. Many UN indicators have been adopted by the European Commission. The value of global indicators depends on the results achieved at local level, consequently quality and reliable local disaggregated data are necessary for the measurement of the progress towards the common goals. In the building sector, rating and assessment systems at building, urban and territorial scale can play a key role in this sense. The implementation and adoption of a core set of key performance indicators (KPIs), based on common metrics, in the existing and future assessment systems would allow to aggregate the information from the single building to the global level connecting the indicators trough the spatial scales. Common KPIs would also allow to compare the performance reached by buildings certified with different systems in relation to SDGs. The paper will illustrate the core sets of indicators elaborated and tested in 10 European countries by CESBA (Common European Sustainable Built Environment Assessment) in collaboration with iiSBE (international initiative for a Sustainable Built Environment) through two European Interreg projects at building, urban and territorial scale, in the form of a built environment Passport for the harmonization of assessment systems in relation to SDGs.