A new report has found that Australia’s green building expertise is sort after, especially across the fast-urbanising ASEAN region.

The report, Australian Green Building: Developing a smart, sustainable ASEAN, was created by the Australian Government and the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA).

According to the federal minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment, Steven Ciobo, Australian companies can “help the region’s cities transition to a low-carbon future”.

“Australian companies offer results, ranging from niche products to complete, end-to-end solutions. They can deliver buildings with lower operating costs, higher values and improved environmental and productivity outcomes,” says Ciobo.

For example, in 2017, the Australian government launched the National Carbon Offset

Standard for Buildings and the National Carbon Offset Standard for Precincts.

These standards, developed through close collaboration between the Australian

government, the National Australian Built Environment Rating System (NABERS) and the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA), provide clear definitions of carbon-neutral buildings and precincts in operation.

This allows building owners can use the robust Green Star or NABERS process to demonstrate compliance.

Among Australia’s sustainability stars are Westfield Sydney, one of the most visited shopping malls in the world; One Central Park, a globally admired tall building adorned with living green walls; and Barangaroo South in Sydney, on track to be the first carbon-neutral precinct globally.

The GBCA’s CEO, Romilly Madew, says Australia has one of the world’s most mature green building markets, with more than 40 million sqm of green building space projects to be Green Star-certified by 2020.

“With the support of our 700-plus member companies, we have spent more than a decade driving sustainability throughout the property and construction supply chain."

"The results speak for themselves. GRESB, the global real estate sustainability benchmark, has ranked Australia’s market first in the world for the last seven years in a row,” Madew says.

The ASEAN region is already the fifth largest global economy, and is expected to grow by over five percent each year until almost 2030.

“Our visionary companies, skilled industry practitioners and forward-thinking policymakers have transformed our construction supply chain and it’s now time for our industry to export these skills as we work together to deliver zero carbon buildings, communities and cities, and better places for all people in our region,” Madew says.