Global Green Rating Systems: 5 Programs that aren’t LEED

By Vicki Zambito

LEED, LEED, LEED. In the United States you can’t discuss green building rating systems without focusing on the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating program. But it’s not the only party on the block—nor was it the first.

The first environmental certification program—the Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM)—was created in 1990 in the UK. Since then, a variety of assessment programs have been developed around the world. Different rating systems apply differently in different climates and geographical conditions. Here’s a look at five other programs taking hold around the globe.

1. The First. The Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) in the UK touts itself as the world’s foremost environmental assessment method and rating system for buildings, with 200,000 buildings certified: http://www.breeam.org/index.jsp


2. Doing Good Down Under. The Green Building Council of Australia’s Green Star program has registered or certified more than 12 million meters of space in Australia and transformed the country’s property and construction market: http://www.gbca.org.au/


3. Hong Kong Goes Green. The Building Environmental Assessment Method (BEAM) used in the world’s most vertical city provides standards for building assessment, performance improvement, certification and labeling: http://www.beamsociety.org.hk/general/home.php


4. LEED’s Biggest U.S. Competitor? Green Globes® is a revolutionary green building guidance and assessment program that offers an effective, practical and affordable way to advance the overall environmental performance and sustainability of commercial buildings: http://www.thegbi.org/green-globes/default.asp


5. LEED India. Okay, this is still LEED, but it’s specific to India. LEED-INDIA launched in 2007 and provides building owners, architects, consultants, developers, facility managers and project managers the tools they need to design, construct and operate green buildings: http://www.igbc.in/site/igbc/tests.jsp?event=22869