About Us
Our Mission
Our mission is to dramatically improve the sustainability of the built environment, by radically transforming the way it is planned, designed, constructed, maintained and operated.
The challenge
The built environment has a great influence over our daily lives, from our homes to our places of work, learning and leisure. Being so fundamental to our way of living, it's perhaps unsurprising that buildings have such a significant impact on the environment. In the UK, buildings are responsible for 43% of our total carbon emissions and they also impact on the production of waste and the consumption of water, timber and other materials.
This sector has the opportunity to be at the forefront of finding solutions to the urgent problem of climate change; solutions which are not only environmentally sustainable, but have positive social and economic effects.
Background to the UK-GBC
The UK Green Building Council (UK-GBC) was launched in February 2007 to bring clarity, purpose and co-ordination of sustainability strategy to the sector. The Government's ‘Sustainable Buildings Task Group' had earlier reported that no one body or organisation was providing clear direction for the sector as a whole. The UK-GBC was established to fulfil this role.
We are a membership organisation, primarily consisting of businesses from across the industry. Uniquely, we bring together anyone involved in the complex process of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining and operating buildings, along with NGOs, academic institutions and government agencies. Our members approach sustainability not only as a challenge, but as an opportunity and are committed to our campaign for a radical transformation in the sustainability of our built environment.
What we do
We campaign for a sustainable built environment, one which benefits people, business and the planet through the following activities:
LEADERSHIP: We provide leadership and clarity for the industry on sustainable building and champion this agenda in government, politics and the media.
INFLUENCING GOVERNMENT POLICY: We try to ensure that government policy is based on the best technical evidence and industry knowledge - ambitious, yet deliverable. Members inform the UK-GBC response to government consultations.
TASK GROUPS: Time limited task groups tackle specific problems, directly influencing government policy or providing guidance for use by the industry. Read more about our past and current task groups here
EVENTS: We offer over 20 events a year, including case studies of exemplar buildings, technical debates and networking receptions. View our list of upcoming events for members here.
TRAINING AND EDUCATION: Our Sustainability Training and Education Programme (STEP) aims to expand knowledge across the sector. Find out more about our current course offerings through the STEP website.
ONLINE RESOURCES: Our website is a key resource on UK-GBC activity, government policy, industry initiatives and other must-know information. We are gradually expanding our ‘information centre'.
A GLOBAL NETWORK: We are affiliated to the World Green Building Council - a network across almost 60 countries, providing an invaluable source of information and experience. We work particularly closely with those GBCs in the EU.
To find out more about our strategic priorities and programme of activities this year, please read about our priorities.
