Diffusion of green building technologies in new housing construction

What are the green technologies for sustainable housing development? An empirical study in Ghana

“…There are various green technologies that have been introduced to achieve sustainability in housing development and can be found in the literature (Ahmad et al, ; Koebel et al, ; Roufechaei et al, ; Zhang, Platten, et al, ; Zhang, Shen, et al, ). Some researchers focused on green technologies in the design stage (Ahmad et al, ; Roufechaei et al, ), whereas others focused on those in the whole lifecycle (Zhang, Platten, et al, ; Zhang, Shen, et al, ).…”

“…There is consensus in the literature that employing green technologies in building projects provides a cost‐effective option for developers, decision makers, and policy makers aiming to attain long‐term building environmental, economic, and social performance improvements (Kingsley, ; Zhang, Shen, & Wu, ). Several green technologies, such as high efficiency windows, high efficient heating, ventilation, and air‐conditioning (HVAC) system, and solar technology, have been introduced in housing projects and then studied in the literature (Koebel, McCoy, Sanderford, Franck, & Keefe, ; U.S. Green Building Council, ). Although it is easy to directly select from the pool of green technologies available in the global community, the identification and knowledge of green technologies that are appropriate for any country's context are necessary for the success and effectiveness of implementing and achieving sustainable housing development (Kahraman, Kaya, & Cebi, ; Zhang, ).…”

“…Given the above background, this study aims to identify the green technologies that are important to achieve sustainability objectives in the design phase of housing developments, particularly in Accra, Ghana. As Koebel et al () indicated, climate has the greatest influence in decisions relating to the identification and selection of green technologies for sustainable housing development in a particular region—builders build to the local climate. Accordingly, given the differences in climatic conditions in different geographical areas of Ghana (Dickson & Essah, ; VIGS‐GHANA, ), focusing on Accra helps validate the findings of this study (Roufechaei et al, ).…”

“…For example, in 2015, the commercial and residential sectors were responsible for 41% of the total energy use (including operation and maintenance of buildings) in the United States, with residential alone responsible for 23% (U.S. Energy Information and Administration, ). Other available data show that while office and commercial buildings respectively account for only 1% and 7% of building energy consumption, residential buildings account for 11% (Koebel et al, ). Due to the large amount of nonrenewable energy consumption, residential buildings also negatively impact the environment and society through significant carbon emissions.…”

Processo de Mudança para uma Orientação Sustentável: Análise das Capacidades Adaptativas de Três Empresas Construtoras de Santa Maria-RS

“…Apesar da existência dessas barreiras, como foi mencionado anteriormente, novas tecnologias estão surgindo. A exemplo disso, Koebel et al (2015) versam sobre a difusão de produtos de eficiência energética, mais especificamente sobre o uso de janelas com eficiência térmica por construtoras nos Estados Unidos. Sieffert, Huygen e Daudon (2014) discorrem a respeito da reutilização de materiais de construção em prédios na França e Raut, Ralegaonkar e Mandavgane (2011) apresentam diversas alternativas de resíduo sólido que podem ser utilizadas na produção de tijolos.…”