More support for building health and sustainability
The Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) and the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) have released a guidance document that will both support the health and wellbeing of people inside buildings as well as ensure sustainability.
The document compares and aligns the Green Star and WELL Building standard rating systems.
‘Green Star and WELL Building Standard: Approaches to buildings or fitouts seeking a dual rating’ maps the Green Star credits and criteria that may be used for an assessment under the WELL Building Standard, and vice versa.
“As owners and investors increasingly look to third-party certification to demonstrate transparency, accountability and a commitment to best practice, we must ensure certification is an easy and cost-effective process,” said Jorge Chapa, the GBCA’s Head of Market Transformation.
“By working together to map out the synergies within the two rating tools, project teams can avoid duplication of effort, and achieve both Green Star and WELL ratings faster, and cheaper. Building owners don’t have to choose between health and sustainability — both are more easily achieved as a result of this work.”
The document provides guidance specific to new buildings or new fitouts being rated under Green Star – Design and As Built or Green Star – Interiors. Future versions will include guidance specific to buildings seeking Green Star – Performance ratings.
“By every measure, Australia has long been a global sustainability leader,” said IWBI Chairman and CEO Rick Fedrizzi.
“It’s no surprise that its real estate community has been at the forefront of efforts to use buildings to more intentionally advance the health and wellbeing of the people who spend so much time in them. By taking advantage of the natural synergies between Green Star and WELL, we can have rapid and significant impact on both planetary and public health.”
Download ‘Green Star and WELL Building Standard: Approaches to buildings or fitouts seeking a dual rating’ from the GBCA and IWBI websites: www.wellcertified.com or https://gbca-web.s3.amazonaws.com/media/documents/green-star-%26-well-2016-lowres-010217.pdf.
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