At the crossroads of demographic, social, energy, and climate challenges faced by societies, the construction sector must accelerate its transformation towards a more sustainable model. This involves designing a built environment that positively contributes to the health and well-being of individuals, is resilient to climate hazards, has low carbon emissions, and provides accessible housing for all—without compromising on quality or performance.
This transition cannot happen without the collective commitment of all industry stakeholders. It is with this goal in mind that Saint-Gobain launched the Sustainable Construction Observatory in 2023. As part of this initiative, the 3rd edition of the Sustainable Construction Barometer, a global study conducted with Occurrence–IFOP, is presented today. It measures the progress made on this essential topic.
This study is structured around 24 questions, asked to 4,000 stakeholders representative of the sector, along with an additional 27,000 citizens who responded to four specific questions. The responses helped identify key levers to accelerate sustainable construction in The United States and globally.
Benoit Bazin, Chairman and CEO of Saint-Gobain: “The conclusion is simple: we must act now. For sustainable construction to become the norm, it must be better understood and fully integrated into the expectations of both citizens and professionals. Beyond its environmental impact, its tangible benefits in terms of comfort, health, and well-being are still too often unknown or underestimated. To scale up, a global approach adapted to local realities is essential, taking into account uses, territories, and on-the-ground realities.”
Mark Rayfield, CEO of Saint-Gobain in North America: “This year’s Barometer results clearly show improvement in US awareness of sustainable construction and its benefits for the environment, our health, comfort, and wallets. By building in a sustainable manner, we can strengthen the energy efficiency and resilience of buildings, saving building owners money in the long run. As key players in the industry, we must all do our part to continue to educate on these important benefits.”
A global analysis to accelerate sustainable construction all around the world
Launched in 2023 with 10 countries, the Sustainable Construction Barometer now covers 27 countries1, with a broad spectrum of stakeholders: professionals, students, elected local officials / local government representatives and members of associations. New this year, the survey also collected data from 27,000 regular citizens, giving them a voice in the debate on sustainable construction.
Four key learnings
- Greater awareness, a shared sense of urgency, and strong public support.
- A general, shared desire to go further. Across the board, private actors are seen as the most legitimate driving force, though regional priorities differ.
- A notion still centered on the environment, but resilience is gaining ground, while residents' well-being remains secondary.
- Well-informed but insufficiently trained stakeholders, which hinders concrete commitments.
A greater awareness of sustainable construction
67% of stakeholders claim to have a good grasp of the concept of sustainable construction. This figure has risen by 6 points over the past year.
The perceived urgency to act on the subject remains high: 69% of stakeholders consider the implementation of more sustainable construction a priority. This stable result is backed up by a perception shared by citizens, who are on board with the issue: 60% consider it a priority, and 95% consider it important. The challenge now lies in converting this high level of stakeholder and public awareness into concrete actions, while taking local specificities into account.
This desire to move forward is not expressed with the same intensity everywhere. In the United States, 34% of citizens surveyed acknowledged they had not heard of the concept of sustainable construction. What's more, the implementation of sustainable construction is perceived as a secondary consideration by 11% of stakeholders and 9% of citizens, the second-highest level worldwide. This points to the need for additional outreach and education on the benefits of sustainable construction to the public.
Beyond the consensus to accelerate the sector's transition, the role of private players is praised
87% of stakeholders believe that we need to “go further” in sustainable construction. Those involved in the design phase, positioned upstream in the value chain, appear as essential drivers: 56% of stakeholders consider architects and engineering firms to be the most legitimate players to advance this transition, followed by private companies in the sector at 44%.
However, priorities vary widely from region to region:
- In Asia-Pacific, Africa and the Middle East, the adaptability of buildings appears to be a recurring concern;
- In Latin America, the use of eco-friendly materials is emerging as a key issue;
- Europe stands out for its strong interest in building renovation;
- In North America, the issue of affordability is a key factor for consideration.
This diversity of regional challenges underlines the importance of tailoring sustainable construction strategies to local specificities, while preserving a strong global dynamic.
A definition still largely associated with the environment, but resilience is gaining ground, while well-being remains in the background
While stakeholders claim to better understand the concept, they still associate sustainable construction primarily with environmental issues. The energy efficiency of buildings (35%) and the use of ecofriendly materials (31%) remain the main criteria for defining the concept.
Resilience in the face of climatic hazards is becoming an increasingly important issue. This topic has seen the strongest growth since the previous edition, reaching 21% (+8 points compared to 2024). Its importance varies by region, topping concerns in Africa (35%) and Asia-Pacific (32%), regions particularly exposed.
The “human” dimension of sustainable construction is still struggling to gain acceptance and remains relegated to the background. Only 15% of stakeholders and 15% of citizens associate sustainable construction with improved occupant well-being, even though this aspect could play a key role in its acceptance and deployment.
Stakeholder awareness still insufficiently translated into concrete commitments
Although stakeholders claim to be familiar with sustainable construction, only 28% say they are fully informed on the subject, and 35% of professionals have taken dedicated training. This still partial mastery of the subject may explain a certain limit to concrete commitments.
- 78% of students consider training in sustainable construction to be differentiating for employment, but only 40% would refuse an offer from a non-committed company.
- 67% of professionals say they assess the carbon footprint of their projects, but only 30% do so systematically.
The challenge for all value chain actors is therefore to transform this collective awareness into concrete actions. This challenge is a tremendous opportunity for mobilization.
Focus on sustainable construction in the United States
- The United States, which has been part of the Sustainable Construction Barometer since its inception, continues to see advancement when it comes to knowledge of sustainable construction as a concept, with 65% of stakeholder respondents answering in the affirmative, a 15% increase since 2024.
- However, when surveying citizens not intimately involved in the field, only 30% of respondents have heard of the concept, making clear that more outreach and education is necessary on the topic.
- In addition, US respondents see building energy efficiency as most connected to sustainable construction, with 72% of respondents associating the concepts. This is a drop of 11% compared to 2024, when it was 83%.
- Like in 2024, making sustainable materials, products and solutions more competitive remains a top priority in the United States to accelerate the development of sustainable construction (40% compared to 39% in 2024). This points to the need to continue working to explain how sustainable construction can be more cost- effective for building owners in the long run.
- Resilient building and adapting buildings to withstand natural hazards continues to grow in importance, with 24% stating it is the best fit for the definition of sustainable construction, a 6% increase since 2024.
Beyond the Barometer, the Sustainable Construction Observatory
The Sustainable Construction Observatory, launched in 2023, is also structured around Sustainable Construction Talks - meetings held internationally, alongside major multilateral events, but also at national level - and an online media Constructing a Sustainable Future, which today publishes its third special edition in paper and flipbook formats on the theme: “Sustainable Construction: How to keep innovating?”. Through the eyes of experts and inspiring projects, this edition explores the levers needed to accelerate the sector's transformation towards more sustainable construction.
About Saint-Gobain
Worldwide leader in light and sustainable construction, Saint-Gobain designs, manufactures and distributes materials and services for the construction and industrial markets. Its integrated solutions for the renovation of public and private buildings, light construction and the decarbonization of construction and industry are developed through a continuous innovation process and provide sustainability and performance. The Group, celebrating its 360th anniversary in 2025, remains more committed than ever to its purpose “MAKING THE WORLD A BETTER HOME”.
€46.6 billion in sales in 2024
161,000 employees, locations in 80 countries
Committed to achieving Carbon Neutrality by 2050
1Countries: Argentina, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, Czech Republic, Egypt, Finland, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Mexico, Morocco, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Vietnam
