Knowledge centre
Carbon Emissions
Ireland’s built environment drives major emissions. Cutting carbon in design, operation and materials is essential to creating a low-carbon built environment.
Publications
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Building a Zero Carbon Ireland: 2026 Government Policy Scorecard
In 2022, the Irish Green Building Council (IGBC) published Building a Zero Carbon Ireland – A Roadmap to decarbonise Ireland’s built environment across its whole life cycle. The roadmap is […] -
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Pre-Demolition Guidance
How circularity can be embedded at the demolition and enabling phase, using Opera Square as a case example -
Circular Economy Playbook For the Built Environment | Circular Design Principles Brief
Support the industry stakeholders in the transition towards a decarbonised and circular built environment environment. -
Circular Economy Playbook For The Built Environment Sector | Circular Construction Brief
Support industry stakeholders in the transition towards a decarbonised and circular built environment -
Vacant To Vibrant Building Alliance – Final Recommendations
Recommendations to help meet the target of 300,000 new homes by 2030, supporting compact growth and vibrant urban living. -
Home User Guide Template
Template for home-builders and developers providing guide to home users -
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Co-Designing An Ambitious National Building Renovation Plan: Workshop Findings
Workshop Key Findings -
PRE-BUDGET SUBMISSION 2026
Recommendations to decarbonise Ireland’s built environment for Budget 2026 -
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INDICATE: Ireland National Policy Brief
Current status of whole-life carbon assessments in the context of the Irish built environment -
3 MEASURES FOR A BETTER, GREENER BUILT ENVIRONMENT
Three actions which will create better, greener homes for all -
Life cycle Global Warming Potential in the Energy Performance in Buildings Directive
EPBD Factsheet -
Minimum Energy Performance Standards and renovation trajectories in the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive
EPBD Factsheet -
Net Zero Carbon Definitions
Guide for IGBC members and the broader Irish construction industry to voluntarily demonstrate NZC performance -
Building A Zero Carbon Ireland – Government Policy Scorecard
#BuildingLife Policy Scorecard - Full Report -
National Upskilling Roadmap 2030
EU funded upskilling roadmap for sustainability in the built environment. -
Bridging the Gap Between Energy Poverty and Energy Renovation
Developing Residential Retrofitting as a Tool to Combat Energy Poverty -
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Building A Zero Carbon Ireland – Government Policy Scorecard Summary
#Building Life Policy Scorecard Summary -
Viable Homes
Guidelines for planner on the design and building of low carbon, low rise, medium density housing in Ireland -
National Upskilling Roadmap 2024-2030 Draft For Public Consultation
Draft For Public Consultation -
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Implementation of Circularity, WLC and LCC in Public Construction Projects
Green Public Procurement Handbook -
Building a Zero Carbon Ireland
A Roadmap to decarbonise Ireland’s Built Environment across its Whole Life Cycle -
Whole Life Carbon In Construction and in the Built Environment in Ireland (V4)
Report by Building in a Climate Emergency (BIACE) Research Lab, UCD School of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy for the IGBC -
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Sustainability and Commercial Real Estate
Joint paper introducing key concepts to investors and developers, in the context of climate risk impacts on both the financial sector and the built environment. -
Net Zero Whole Life Carbon Roadmap for the Built Environment in Ireland – Preliminary recommendations: Vision for 2050
This report aims to set out an initial vision for the roadmap for the decarbonisation of the building and construction sector in Ireland. -
Build Upon² Energy Renovation Framework – Methodology
The objective of this technical manual is to support Irish local authorities in using the core indicators of the Build Upon² Energy Renovation Framework. -
BUILD UPON2: A Tool to Deliver the Renovation Wave
Ahead of the release of the final version of the BUILD UPON2 Renovation Framework in 2021, this new report aims to give a flavour of: What the Framework is. How […] -
Supporting the Development of Quality Data
This report includes recommendations on availability, quality and use of construction product LCA data for Ireland. -
Developing a Register of Building Professionals & Construction Workers who have upskilled in Energy Renovation
This document, developped by the IGBC and LIT and supported by SEAI, presents how a Renovation Register could work in Ireland. The launch of the register could address several barriers […]
News
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Faster decarbonisation of buildings will increase resilience to energy price shocks
Progress has been made on policies to decarbonise our built environment in recent years but the government must... -
Roadstone – Becoming the First Company in Ireland to Achieve Level 5 on the CO2 Performance Ladder
Introduction Roadstone Ltd, one of Ireland’s leading supplier of construction materials, has become the first company in Ireland... -
Wrapping Up Ireland’s CO2 Performance Ladder Pilot Project – A Major Milestone in Green Public Procurement
Ireland’s two-year pilot of the CO2 Performance Ladder (2023-2025), led by the Irish Green Building Council (IGBC) in... -
IGBChats #19: Energy Upgrades in Apartment Buildings
By David Rouse, MUDs Advisor with The Housing Agency Tús maith leath na hoibre. A good start is... -
Home Performance Pathway will help accelerate the delivery of sustainable homes, says Minister for Housing
Dublin, 23 March 2026: Home Performance Pathway is a new certification for small home builders to deliver high... -
Sustainable Urban Planning: Population Growth and Location
This posts examine contemporary policy at the national and regional scales in relation to sustainable urban development. -
Two Paths to Energy Management: ISO 50001 and the CO2 Performance Ladder Compared
Energy efficiency is no longer a nice-to-have; it’s a business imperative. Yet with a growing number of frameworks, certifications, and... -
LEED v4 and v4.1 Certification Deadlines: What Project Teams Need to Know
The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has announced updated certification deadlines for LEED v4 and LEED v4.1, marking... -
Sustainable Urban Planning: Urban Boundaries and Their Impacts
Previous articles in this series have provided an overview of how spatial policy in Ireland structures plans across... -
Sustainable Urban planning: Settlement Hierarchies and Compact Growth in Ireland
In the first post of this article series, we looked at how plans are structured in Irish spatial... -
Cross-sector coalition calls for stronger action on vacancy & dereliction to deliver more housing
Dublin, 5 November 2025: Dedicated vacancy teams in local authorities, expanded reuse grants and a wider suite of... -
Sustainable Urban Planning: An introduction to Irish spatial policy in 2025
The Irish Green Building Council is launching a new blog series, “Sustainable Urban Planning,” by Michael Hayes, an... -
Developing an ambitious National Building Renovation Plan
Ireland has made significant progress on energy renovation in recent years, but a lot more work needs to... -
Building industry ready to decarbonise but needs support, guidance and regulation – new IGBC report shows
Dublin, 8th September 2025: The building industry stands ready to decarbonise, but needs support, clear guidance and ambitious... -
How Compact Urban Growth Can Cut Carbon Emissions in Ireland
As cities and towns in Ireland and around the world continue to grow, the push for more sustainable... -
New Resources Launched to Support SMEs with Energy Renovations
Dublin, 18th June 2025: The Irish Green Building Council (IGBC), in partnership with Dublin Chamber, Sustainability Works, the University of Galway, and the Society... -
IGBChats #18: Design for Disassembly
From Construction Waste to Material Resource: How Design for Disassembly helps lead to a Circular Future By Kevin... -
New ‘Design for Performance’ framework is a critical new initiative for decarbonising Ireland’s built environment
Dublin, 27th of May. A national initiative to decarbonise Ireland’s built environment has been launched today by the... -
Innovative Tools Empower Local Authorities to Cut Their Carbon Emissions Through Procurement
In a year marked by record-breaking temperatures, with the construction and built environment matching agriculture’s 37% share of... -
Transforming Ireland’s built environment in 2025
First published in Irish Construction News The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has confirmed that 2024 is officially the... -
#BuildingLife Series: “We need to speed up the decarbonisation of the construction industry by taking action ourselves” – John Casey, CORA Consulting
First published by Passive House Plus In the #BuildingLife Ambassador Spotlight Series, we are profiling leaders who have... -
The Irish Green Building Council launches a new report on the transposition of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) into Irish law
Dublin, Monday 17th February: Today, the Irish Green Building Council (IGBC) launched a report aimed to support the... -
IGBC ANALYSIS OF 2024 GENERAL ELECTION MANIFESTOS
On Wednesday, 13th November, the Irish Green Building Council (IGBC) launched its General Election Manifesto “3 Measures for... -
Irish Green Building Council Hosts Week of Events Focused on Climate Action and Nature Positive Design
Monday, 9th September: The Irish Green Building Council (IGBC) kicks off a week of events across Ireland today,... -
Only a green “revolution” can deliver sustainable homes & liveable streets for all, IGBC conference hears
Ireland needs a revolution in how it delivers homes if it is to reach its climate targets –... -
National Upskilling Roadmap To Achieve Climate Targets in the Built Environment Launched Today
Dublin, 27th of March 2024: A National Upskilling Roadmap for Sustainability in the Built Environment was launched in... -
Research by Friends of the Earth & The Irish Green Building Council shows how to bridge the gap between home energy renovation and energy poverty
Today Friends of the Earth launches significant research [1] on energy poverty and home retrofitting undertaken by the Irish Green Building... -
New buildings law can lower energy bills and scale up renovation – MEPs Cuffe & Kelly
Dublin, 15th March 2024: The new Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) can help to lower energy bills,... -
IGBC launched their first policy scorecard on the decarbonisation of Ireland’s Built Environment.
Dublin, 21st February 2024: The IGBC launched their first policy scorecard on the decarbonisation of Ireland’s Built... -
#BuildingLife Series: Addressing the environmental impacts of buildings across their lifecycle – Pat Crean, Marlet
First published in Passive House Plus, Issue 46 In this #BuildingLife Blog Post, Pat Crean, CEO of the... -
#BuildingLife: “Cross-sector collaboration is the only way to achieve a zero-carbon construction sector” – David Browne – RKD
This excerpt originates from an article featured in the most recent edition of Irish Construction News. Read the... -
The Irish Green Building Council Unveils Planning Guidance to better address carbon emission in new residential development at Better Homes Conference
Dublin, 1st December 2023: The implications of planning on Ireland’s carbon emissions and the importance of building climate-safe... -
Transitioning to a more integrated approach to energy renovation to increase carbon savings and yield additional benefits
Author: Marion Jammet While Irish and EU policies have made the energy renovation of buildings a priority[1], the... -
Research Reveals Critical Skills Shortages Threatening Ireland’s Climate Targets
Dublin, 23rd October 2023 –The EU-LIFE funded Build Up Skills Ireland 2030 initiative has identified significant skills and... -
#BuildingLife: Setting the foundations for a zero carbon future – Eugene O’Shea, Walls
Walls Construction CEO and IGBC #BuildingLife Ambassador Eugene O’Shea discusses the contractor’s expanding portfolio of work and the... -
Ireland to harness the power of green procurement with the CO2 Performance Ladder
Dublin, 28/08/2023 – The Irish Green Building Council (IGBC) have launched a pilot of the highly successful CO2... -
Design for Performance – Moving to a design for performance based approach for Ireland’s Built Environment
The Irish Green Building Council (IGBC) and the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland (RIAI) have joined... -
Europe not yet on track: one year on since EU Policy Roadmap launch to deliver a climate neutral built environment by 2050
It has been one year today (24 May 2023), since World Green Building Council (WorldGBC) launched a bold... -
Enhancing Sustainability in Public Construction: A Handbook for Green Indicators
In today’s rapidly changing world, sustainable construction practices have become more important than ever. With a focus on... -
Irish Green Building Council call for faster and more ambitious actions in industry to decarbonise Ireland’s built environment
Dublin, Friday 12th May 2023 – The Irish construction and property industry needs to act faster and to... -
#BuildingLife Series: “Decarbonising our society and economy it’s a challenge we must all embrace” – Sarah Ingle, ACEI
In this new #BuildingLife Ambassador Blog Post, Sarah Ingle, Secretary General at the Association of Consulting Engineers of... -
#BuildingLife: “Embodied carbon is the elephant in the room that needs to be addressed” – Robbie McGrath, D/RES
IGBC #BuildingLife Ambassador and D/RES Properties’ Head of Sustainability Robbie McGrath speaks with Irish Construction News about how... -
#BuildingLife Ambassador Claire Pomroy: Is it time to review our approach to the use of timber for taller buildings?
The full version of this article was published in Irish Construction News Claire Pomroy, #BuildingLife Ambassador and Director... -
IGBChats #17: Careers to make an impact: the 2023 ESG & Sustainability Salary Guide & Market Insight
By Jake Scully, Director & Managing Consultant, Lumen Search 2022 was a significant period across the Irish market... -
#BuildingLife: “Developers not shying away from sustainability responsibilities” – Susie Crawford, Cairn Homes
The full version of this article was published in Irish Construction News #BuildingLife Ambassador and ESG Manager with...
Events
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Carbon in the Built Environment Community of Practice #3
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Accelerating to Zero Together
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IGBC Lunch & Learn: Why Smart Buildings Don’t Always Deliver Energy Savings – and How to Fix It
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IGBC Lunch & Learn: Whole Life Cycle Assessment- From Compliance to Competitive Advantage
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Home Performance Index Training, Sept ’26
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IGBC Lunch & Learn: Designing for Decarbonisation – Supporting High‑Performance Project Delivery with EXEED
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LEED Green Associate Exam Preparation – June 2026
Projects
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Vacant to Vibrant Building Alliance
Key actions to address vacancies and derelictions in our towns and cities and deliver the homes we need. -
Vacant to Viable
Report into the reuse of existing buildings (Including traditionally built buildings) -
Transition to a Circular Economy
Provide a Transition to Circular Economy Template and a Best Practice Guidance Document to assist builders in adopting circular practices within the Irish construction sector. -
Renovation Passports
Prototyping a Renovations Passports (RP) Pipeline for Commercial Properties -
Regulatory Sandbox
Exploring innovative regulatory approaches to address regulatory barriers to green construction -
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Material Passports
Pioneering and promoting the Material Passport technology in the Irish Construction Sector -
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Home User Guide
Easy to understand Home User Guide for home occupants to operate and maintain their homes more efficiently. -
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Design for Performance
Guidance to help put Ireland on a pathway to a net-zero-carbon built environment -
One Stop Shop – Turnkey Retrofit
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Energy Renovation – Supporting Local Authorities
“Dublin City is committed to renovating its older buildings to improve energy performance. This will also contribute to sustainability, economic growth and employment. The Council is pleased to be working […] -
Energy Renovation – Standards
At the current speed and depth of renovation, the EU will not achieve a highly energy-efficient and decarbonised building stock by 2050, while millions of people would still live in […] -
National Renovation Upskilling Committee – Build Up Skills
Ireland’s National Renovation Upskilling Committee (Reno-NUC) was officially launched by Minister Damien English T.D. in February 2019. Reno-NUC was formed as a recommendation of the SEAI funded ECCoPro project. Objectives […] -
Build Upon – Energy Renovation
The BuildUpon project is an innovative collaborative policy creation project to assist European Governments develop ambitious renovation roadmaps. It is been developed by a consortium of twelve European Green Building Councils. Watch this space for further details.
Guides
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Life Cycle GWP Assessment – Methods and Resources
Overview The Irish Green Building Council (IGBC), as part of the INDICATE initiative, has developed a prototype Life Cycle Global Warming Potential (GWP) Assessment Methodology for Ireland. This methodology has […] -
Life Cycle Assessment tools and other useful links
There are many Life Cycle Assessment tools for performing building LCA. Here’s a list of LCA tools and useful links. Carbon Designer for Ireland (No Longer Available) One Click LCA […] -
GWP Generic Data
Products and materials that perform the same function may have different production processes and therefore different environmental impacts. For example, the CO2e impact of concrete can vary from 70kgCO2e/m3 to […] -
What is embodied carbon?
Upfront embodied carbon refers to the emissions associated with all the activities of procuring, mining, harvesting raw materials, transforming these materials into construction products, transporting them to site and incorporating […] -
Nearly Zero Energy Building standard
The European Energy Performance of Buildings Directive requires all new buildings to be Near Zero Energy by the end of 2020.
Certifications
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Water Label
The Unified Water Label is a European-wide initiative by companies involved in the bathroom industry. It’s a smart tool that provides a means to identify water-using products with a common label that offers clear, concise and easy-to-understand messaging about water energy usage. -
Green Building Accredited Certifiers
Access a full list of IGBC Members who are LEED, BREEAM, HPI and WELL accredited professionals -
LEED
Learn more about LEED, a widely used rating system for green buildings developed by the U.S. Green Building Council. -
BREEAM
Information on the BREEAM multi criteria environmental assessment system and its application in Ireland