Sustainable Construction: Green Building Design and Delivery
About this book
Sustainable Construction by Charles J. Kibert is one of the most comprehensive and authoritative textbooks on the intersection of the building industry and environmental responsibility. Now in its fifth edition (2022), the book has become a cornerstone reference for students, practitioners, researchers, and policymakers who seek to understand how the built environment can be designed, constructed, operated, and decommissioned in ways that minimize ecological harm and maximize human well-being.
The book opens by establishing the conceptual and historical foundations of sustainable construction. Kibert traces the evolution of environmental awareness in the building sector from early energy conservation efforts in the 1970s to the sophisticated green building frameworks of the twenty-first century. He situates construction within broader planetary boundaries discourse, drawing on concepts from industrial ecology, systems thinking, and environmental science.
The opening chapters make a compelling case that the construction industry, responsible for roughly 40 percent of global energy consumption and a significant share of raw material extraction and waste generation, must undergo a fundamental transformation. A central theme of the book is the integration of sustainability principles across the entire lifecycle of a building. Kibert systematically examines each phase — site selection and planning, design, material procurement, construction processes, building operation and maintenance, renovation, and eventual deconstruction or demolition — through the lens of environmental impact.
This lifecycle perspective distinguishes the text from narrower guides that focus only on design or only on operational energy performance. The treatment of materials is particularly thorough. Kibert devotes substantial attention to the environmental attributes of building materials, covering topics such as embodied energy, carbon footprint, toxicity, recyclability, and sourcing.
He introduces readers to tools like life cycle assessment (LCA) and discusses how material selection decisions can have far-reaching consequences for ecosystems, human health, and climate. The book also addresses the emerging concept of the circular economy in construction, exploring how closed-loop material flows can reduce waste and resource depletion. Green building rating systems receive detailed coverage.
Kibert provides an in-depth examination of LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), BREEAM, the Living Building Challenge, and other certification frameworks. He explains the structure, credits, and underlying philosophy of each system and discusses their strengths and limitations. Because Kibert was a curriculum leader for the U.S.
Green Building Council, this section carries particular authority and reflects deep insider knowledge of how these systems were developed and how they function in practice. Energy performance is addressed comprehensively, with chapters dedicated to passive design strategies, high-performance building envelopes, mechanical and electrical systems, renewable energy integration, and net-zero and net-positive energy targets. Kibert explains the physics of heat transfer, solar gain, and air infiltration in accessible terms, making these topics approachable for readers without a deep engineering background.
He also addresses water efficiency, indoor environmental quality, site ecology, and the social dimensions of sustainability, including equity, community impact, and occupant health. The later editions of the book reflect the growing importance of climate resilience. Kibert incorporates discussions of how buildings can be designed to withstand and adapt to the increasing frequency and severity of extreme weather events, rising temperatures, flooding, and other climate-related risks.
This forward-looking perspective ensures the book remains relevant as environmental conditions change. Policy and regulation form another significant thread throughout the text. Kibert surveys building codes, energy standards such as ASHRAE 90.1, environmental regulations, and government incentive programs that shape sustainable construction practice across the United States and internationally.
He also addresses the role of procurement policies in driving market transformation toward greener building products and practices. The pedagogical approach is a strength of the book. Each chapter includes learning objectives, key terms, discussion questions, and case studies drawn from real projects around the world.
The writing is clear and well-organized, making complex technical and policy content accessible to a broad audience. Extensive references guide readers to primary sources and further reading. Sustainable Construction has gone through five editions between 2005 and 2022, each updated to reflect advances in technology, evolving rating systems, new research findings, and shifts in policy and market conditions.
The fifth edition, published posthumously after Kibert's passing, stands as a capstone achievement of his career and a lasting contribution to the field he helped define. It remains essential reading for anyone serious about making the built environment more sustainable.