GlobalABC Annual Report 2025: 10 years of Global Action for Zero-Emission and Resilient Buildings

In 2025, GlobalABC focused on strengthening the policy, institutional and technical foundations needed to accelerate the transition to a zero-emission, resilient and affordable built environment. Through its global membership of more than 400 members, including 71 countries, the Intergovernmental Council for Buildings and Climate (ICBC), and its Hubs and Action Groups, the Alliance supported governments and stakeholders to advance climate ambition, strengthen enabling environments, and integrate buildings and construction more effectively into national and international climate processes.

A key priority during the year was supporting countries to incorporate buildings and construction into climate planning and policy frameworks. Technical assistance, guidance and stakeholder engagement contributed to progress on NDC development, climate action roadmaps, implementation planning and sector-specific policy development in countries including Bangladesh, Ghana, Kenya and Senegal. GlobalABC also advanced practical tools, recommendations and frameworks on priority topics such as sustainable materials, climate finance, adaptation, procurement, and near-zero emission and resilient buildings.

A major milestone was the operationalisation of the ICBC as the principal political platform for international cooperation on buildings and construction. Through ministerial and technical engagement, governments advanced common priorities, endorsed and acknowledged GlobalABC tools and recommendations, and strengthened international coordination on sector transformation. Complementing this work, GlobalABC's Hubs and Action Groups developed guidance, recommendations and implementation tools while fostering collaboration between governments, industry, financial institutions, academia and civil society.

The Annual Report presents GlobalABC's activities and achievements in 2025 against its strategic objectives and programme priorities. It covers progress in political engagement and international cooperation, national climate planning and policy development, technical guidance and knowledge products, stakeholder collaboration, and implementation support across the buildings and construction sector, reflecting the Alliance's progress over the reporting period and its continued commitment to transforming the sector.

Kenya Buildings & Construction Roadmap provides a shared vision for decarbonising the buildings sector through innovative stakeholder-led bottom up practices, collaboration, partnerships, and accountability. It demonstrates what can be achieved when public and private sectors work together towards a common goal – to create an industry that builds responsibly and sustainably.

The Global Buildings Performance Network are honoured to work alongside Kenya State Department for Public Works, Architectural Association of Kenya, research institutions, and industry partners to accelerate this transformation. By aligning our actions with Kenya’s national goals and focusing on implementable actions and measurable outcomes, we can deliver real change, today and for generations to come.

Learn more here: https://gbpn.org/towards-sustainable-kenya/

The construction sector in Mexico is a fundamental pillar of the national economy. It accounts for approximately 7% of the gross domestic product (GDP) and employs around 4.5 million people. The construction market in Mexico is estimated to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 2.5% between 2025 and 2034, according to expert reports.

Not only is the construction sector crucial to urban development, but it also faces a significant challenge: the need to adopt sustainable practices. With growing urban development and demand for infrastructure, the opportunity arises to transform construction with a more responsible and energy-efficient model.

In this context, GBCI Mexico, PEEB Cool, SUMe and THREE Environmental Consulting collaborated in the development of the Green Financing Guide for Sustainable Buildings. This resource seeks to connect the financial and construction sectors, promoting the use of financial instruments that facilitate the development of sustainable buildings. The guide is presented as an essential tool for builders, developers and other stakeholders, providing access to clear information on green financing options and compiling case studies and success stories that demonstrate the economic benefits of such practices.

Main objectives

The guide has two main objectives: to boost the development of sustainable buildings through the promotion of green financial instruments and to encourage the creation of financial models that accelerate the sustainable building market in Mexico. This effort is crucial, considering that the construction sector is one of the largest consumers of natural resources, energy and generators of waste.

In addition, the guide details the current situation in Mexico regarding the applicable legislation and sustainable taxonomy, as well as how sustainable building certifications complement the available financial instruments. It includes a compendium of financing tools, an overview of the process for obtaining green financing and relevant contacts for evaluating projects.

Participants

The guide was developed with the participation of eight commercial entities, Banorte, BBVA Mexico, Banco Inmobiliario Mexicano (BIM), HSBC, Mifel, Sabadell, Santander and Scotiabank, and three development banks, Bancomext, International Finance Corportation (IFC) and NAD Bank, as well as important Mexican organizations that have benefited from green finance instruments such as Fibra Uno, Fibra Macquarie and Vinte and other confidential participants.

The guide will be updated annually, with the aim of reflecting market developments and increasing the participation of financial institutions. This initiative represents a significant step toward the integration of sustainable practices in the urban development of Mexico, contributing to the creation of more resilient and responsible communities.

This book is a timely response to the triple planetary crises facing humanity: climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss. The built environment impacts all three through the processes of planning, design, construction, operation, and end of life. The One Planet Network’s sustainable buildings and construction (SBC) programme was launched in 2015 to improve the knowledge of sustainable construction and to support and mainstream sustainable building solutions. By focusing on circular practices and material efficiencies in the built environment, the SBC programme provided a clear pathway to deal with this trifecta of planetary crises. The sector’s value chain and actors have been reassessed whilst key projects promoting sustainable buildings and construction were seeded. For the first time globally, circular built environment indicators were mapped against relevant Sustainable Development Goals. Key learnings include challenges and opportunities to hone further, the impacts derived from pursuing circular practices in the buildings and construction sector.

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In 2024, the Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction (GlobalABC) continued to strengthen its position as the leading global platform for a zero-emission, efficient, and resilient built environment. Membership rose to 339, including 42 countries—with a 19% growth from low- and middle-income countries—while the Alliance expanded its impact through high-level convenings, strategic partnerships, and the launch of the Intergovernmental Council for Buildings and Climate (ICBC). From publishing flagship reports and roadmaps to coordinating COP29’s Buildings Pavilion and mobilizing private sector action, GlobalABC is driving systemic change across the buildings sector worldwide.

As the world works toward the goals of the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals, the buildings and construction sector stands at a critical intersection of climate action, sustainable development, and urban resilience.

This first report from the Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction (GlobalABC) Subnationals Action Group focuses on the importance of localizing climate action. It highlights how subnational governments, in collaboration with national authorities, the private sector, and civil society, can drive meaningful change by integrating sustainability, resilience, and circularity into building policies and practices.

With more than half of the global population living in urban areas—and this figure expected to rise—the report examines how cities and local governments are well-positioned to implement climate-responsive solutions. It explores opportunities for multilevel governance, sectoral linkages, and inclusive planning, offering examples and recommendations to support a just and equitable transition.

The report also underscores the need for investment and innovation to scale up efforts, reduce emissions across the building life cycle, and ensure access to safe, affordable, and sustainable housing. It calls for a holistic, people-centered approach to decarbonization and resilience in the built environment—grounded in informed choices, coordinated action, and strong partnerships.

Since its launch at COP 26, the Breakthrough Agenda has become established as an annual collaborative process centred around the Conference of the Parties (COP) meetings of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). It is currently supported by 59 countries representing over 80% of global GDP, and by over 100 initiatives working to enhance collaboration within major emitting sectors. Countries can endorse Breakthrough goals to make clean technologies and sustainable practices more affordable, accessible and attractive than their alternatives by 2030 in the power, road transport, hydrogen, steel, cement, buildings and agriculture sectors. This report covers six of the seven sectors, with agricultural covered in a separate report.

The Breakthrough Agenda establishes an annual cycle to track developments towards these goals, identify where further coordinated international action is urgently needed to accelerate progress and then galvanise public and private international action behind these specific priorities in order to make these transitions quicker, cheaper, and easier for all.

To initiate this cycle, world leaders tasked the IEA and the UN Climate Change High Level Champions to develop an annual Breakthrough Agenda report to provide an independent evidence base and expert recommendations for where stronger international collaboration is needed.

This document, the 2024 Breakthrough Agenda Report, is the third of these annual reports. It provides an assessment of progress against the recommendations made last year, updating recommendations for what more needs to be done.

This year's report includes the second edition of the Buildings Chapter, developed in collaboration with the GlobalABC. The chapter highlights progress in the built environment and calls on governments to strengthen collaboration, in five priority areas: standards & certification, demand creation,  finance & investment, research & deployment, capacity & skills– to accelerate decarbonisation and enhance resilience in buildings. 

Download the report here

The Global Status Report for Buildings and Construction (Buildings-GSR), a report published by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction (GlobalABC), provides an annual snapshot of the progress of the buildings and construction sector on a global scale. The Buildings-GSR reviews the status of policies, finance, technologies, and solutions to monitor whether the sector is aligned with the Paris Agreement goals. It also provides stakeholders with evidence to persuade policymakers and the overall buildings and construction community to take action.

As outlined in the latest edition, the buildings and construction sector contributes significantly to global climate change, accounting for about 21 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions. In 2022, buildings were responsible for 34 per cent global energy demand and 37 per cent of energy and process-related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.

Policy progress is evident with more comprehensive climate action plans covering buildings and construction in Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). However, few align with net-zero operational emissions, and while over 81 countries have building energy codes, many are outdated.Investment in building decarbonisation exceeded US$285 billion in 2022 but is expected to decline in 2023, largely due to a less favourable investment environment due to rising costs. The necessary increase in investments falls short of the net-zero targets for new and existing buildings by 2030 and 2050, respectively.

The 2022 update of the Global Buildings Climate Tracker (GBCT) paints a concerning picture: the gap between the current state and the desired decarbonisation path is significant. To align with the 2030 milestone, an annual increase of ten decarbonisation points is now required, a substantial jump from the six points anticipated per year starting in 2015.

The GBCT shows a negative rebound since 2020 in the decarbonization of the buildings sector, with increased energy intensity and higher emissions. The gap between the actual climate performance of the sector and the necessary decarbonization pathway is widening. The lack of structural or systemic decarbonisation improvement in the building sector leaves its emissions reductions vulnerable to external factors.

To reach the goals of net-zero carbon emission buildings for new buildings by 2030 and existing buildings by 2050, stronger policies are needed to enhance energy efficiency and address carbon emissions from building materials and construction. National efforts are crucial, with countries forming coalitions to share best practices and promote low-carbon construction.

This year, the deep dive chapters are the following: Adaptation and resilient construction methods; Innovations in business cases (renovation and green building construction industry); and Nature-based solutions and biophilic design.

A welcome development in 2023 was the Buildings Breakthrough launched at COP28, to coordinate between countries to make clean technologies and sustainable solutions in the buildings and construction sector the most affordable, accessible, and attractive option in all regions by 2030.

Looking forward to 2024, the focus must be on tangible emission reductions, enhancing building performance, increasing renewable energy use and addressing housing and energy access disparities. Despite the complexities, strategic partnerships can facilitate the shift to an efficient, resilient and whole life net-zero carbon global building stock.

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The report highlights the urgent global crisis of climate change, emphasizing its wide-ranging consequences on the environment, biodiversity, human health, and poverty. It particularly focuses on the vulnerability of the built environment to climate change impacts and stresses the need for immediate adaptation measures. Despite the clear benefits and urgent need for adaptation, there's a notable delay in embracing and implementing adaptation strategies across stakeholders within the buildings and construction sector, though the report demonstrates that each stakeholder already has tools and levers to contribute to the resilience of the built environment. The text then addresses various challenges hindering adaptation efforts, including reluctance to bear initial costs, a predominant focus on mitigation rather than adaptation, and the need for local-level initiatives and financial resources. It calls for collective action, emphasizing the shared responsibility of all stakeholders in addressing climate change adaptation and ensuring a sustainable future.

Download the full report and its executive summary below.

This report applies network analysis to examine the interdependencies between 75 policy and finance instruments, as well as 22 barriers, to support the transition to net zero carbon buildings. Such a network analysis approach allows us to move beyond case studies to explore potential high-impact pathways for cities to support a low-carbon transition for the building sector effectively.

Developing a systemic representation of the building sector allows us to answer the following questions:

• Which barriers should we prioritize to ensure systemic transformation of the building sector?
• Which instruments should we roll out, and in what sequence?
• What pathways can cities follow to transition to a fully decarbonized building sector?

This report offers initial findings on the general challenges and mechanisms behind the transition towards a net zero carbon buildings sector, helping shed light on concrete pathways cities can implement to decarbonize the building sector.

Download the report now