Featured Insights

woman sitting on a concrete bridge

How can lower carbon cements and concretes reduce embodied carbon in the built environment?

Higher building standards and renewable electricity generation are also leading to reductions in CO2 emissions from the day-to-day, operational energy used in buildings. However, construction industry stakeholders are increasingly focused
BREEAM Version 7 set to embrace new Biodiversity Net Gain legislation

BREEAM Version 7 set to embrace new Biodiversity Net Gain legislation

To preserve biodiversity of land that assets occupy, the UK government is making Biodiversity Net Gain mandatory for all England-based developers during 2024. Discover how BREEAM Version 7 will help
Built Environment Carbon Database calls for industry collaboration

Built Environment Carbon Database calls for industry collaboration

In response to the need to address the built environment’s impact on climate change, the Built Environment Carbon Database (BECD) has been developed and is now available. The initiative aims
solar panels with a sunset in the background

COP 28 to begin in Dubai, highlighting need for immediate climate action

The annual COP conferences are a key platform for world leaders, experts, and organisations to address the climate crisis. This year’s COP 28 takes place as
Jane Goddard stands at a podium laden with yellow and blue flowers, behind which a is BRE-branded background

BRE China Awards 2023 highlight pioneering sustainability initiatives

The 2023 BRE China Awards recently concluded in Shanghai, celebrating exceptional contributions to sustainability through BREEAM.
A man sitting at a desk looking at a PC screen showing various building schematics.

The power of specification: building a sustainable future with BREEAM

Specification plays a pivotal role in creating a more sustainable built environment. A strategic approach to specification can embed sustainability at the outset of a project. This involves considering the
Houses being built with exposed roof trusses

BRE responds to reports of UK government’s u-turn on biodiversity net gains

BRE responds to reports that the UK Government is to delay new environmental building guidelines, which are designed to ensure developers leave the natural environment in a measurably improved state
Aerial view of green tree tops

BRE responds to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s update to UK green policies

BRE has long argued that we urgently require a clear, long-term plan to transition our homes and buildings away from fossil fuel boilers and on to clean heat, and the
A man sitting at a desk looking at a PC screen showing various building schematics.

Environmental Product Declarations for construction products with BRE

The built environment contributes 40% of greenhouse gases globally. In an era defined by growing environmental consciousness, businesses are increasingly recognising the need to adopt sustainable practices to mitigate their
Indoor environment with houseplants in foreground

Navigating urbanisation: a focus on better standards for indoor air quality

The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that outdoor and indoor air pollution contribute to millions of premature deaths annually. As we primarily live within indoor spaces, we become more susceptible
contemporary apartments

Advancing ESG: Driving asset sustainability with BREEAM and GRESB

Hear from Breana Wheeler, US Director of Operations at BREEAM, and Dan Winters, Senior Director of Market Development and Strategic Initiatives at GRESB, as they discuss how the commercial real
Biodiversity and the natural environment | BREEAM

Building an effective net zero strategy with BREEAM

Investors and owners in every major real estate market in the world are grappling with the risks and opportunities presented by climate change, and the pressing need to decarbonise the
The gesticulating arms of an unseen person sits at a desk. On the desk sits a mobile phone and a laptop with a blurred screen

Driving change: BREEAM and net zero carbon update

As the need to address the impact of the built environment becomes more urgent, the launch of BREEAM Version 7 consultation and BRE’s net zero carbon survey aims to put
A child washing her hands at the sink

Changing the way we heat our homes to meet net zero: putting households at the centre.

According to BRE research, sixty two percent of British home owners wouldn’t feel at all confident explaining how a heat pump works and in Autumn 2022 a UK government survey
Sustainable housing development

Why we welcome the National Planning Policy Framework evolving to reflect carbon

Only by understanding the full carbon impact of all planned developments, including embodied and operational carbon emissions, can the planning system begin to incentivise carbon neutral or – even better
green building

BRE responds to the Net Zero Review

The UK Government has published the review of net zero targets and policy by former minister Chris Skidmore MP, which BRE fed into. The review is comprehensive, with sensible and
Mother and child in bathroom

As energy bills rise, how can we tackle fuel poverty in the UK? 

As energy bills continue to rise, the latest fuel poverty data, which we produced for the UK Government, reveals the household groups who are most at risk.
terraced houses

What does the Chancellor’s Spring statement mean for the built environment and net zero?

On Wednesday 23 March, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak MP issued his 2022 Spring Statement, setting out the state of the UK’s economy amidst rising inflation and a cost
Gillian Charlesworth CEO at BRE

How decarbonising the built environment is the key to meeting net zero

Gillian Charlesworth, CEO at BRE The climate change crisis is not just about power plants and car engines: our homes and buildings play a huge role in warming our planet.
Newcastle city centre

What does the Levelling Up White Paper mean for the built environment and net zero?

Tuesday 2 February 2022 saw the publication of the UK Government’s long-awaited Levelling Up White Paper, setting out its plans to “spread opportunity and prosperity