USGBC Partners with Tata Housing to bring 20 Million Square Feet of LEED and WELL Certified Green Homes to India

New strategic partnership focuses on jumpstarting the availability of green, healthy homes across the country

9 June 2016 (Mumbai, India) – The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and its certification body Green Business Certification Inc. (GBCI), announced a strategic partnership agreement with Tata Housing, one of India’s fastest growing real estate development companies. The partnership is designed to jumpstart the availability of LEED and WELL certified homes throughout the country and commits to certifying 20 million square feet of residential space to the LEED green building program and the WELL building standard.

The concept of housing will be unveiled at Tata Housing’s project Serein in Thane, Maharashtra.

LEED is the most widely used green building program in the world. It is a certification program for homes and buildings of all types that focuses on reducing energy, water and resource use. LEED buildings are healthier for occupants, save money through reduced utility bills and reduce CO2 emissions.

The building sector accounts for at least a third of all energy related CO2 emissions worldwide and nearly 60% of the world's electricity is consumed in residential and commercial building. India is the world’s largest carbon emitter among nations, after China & the U.S.

“The residential sector in India has a major role to play in enhancing resource efficiency in the coming years,” said Mahesh Ramanujam, COO, USGBC and President, GBCI. “The USGBC-GBCI-Tata partnership will directly impact this sector by focusing on implementing LEED in houses slated for construction. Performance management platforms, such as the LEED Dynamic Plaque, are also part of the agreement and will enable USGBC and GBCI to leverage Tata Housing project performance data to inform benchmarks for global green construction best practices.”

“Tata Housing is aiming to implement LEED and the WELL Building Standard,” added Ramanujam. “WELL builds upon LEED certification and focuses attention on the health and wellness of building occupants.”

The WELL Building Standard builds on LEED and allows for a greater focus on occupant health and wellbeing. WELL addresses aspects such as nourishment, fitness, light and air quality.

The agreement was announced at a press event today, which was held at Tata Housing Headquarters in Mumbai. Speaking earlier at the event, Mr. Brotin Banerjee, MD & CEO – Tata Housing Development Company, said, “We are excited to introduce the WELL Building Standard to Indian real estate, a landmark concept and an imperative in the present scenario. We have always kept sustainable practices at the core of all our offerings and have been pioneers in adopting latest eco-friendly technologies in construction and implementing energy efficient amenities at all of its projects.”

With the profound changes in the lifestyle and income levels of people, the wellness industry in India has become a sunrise sector, and is set to grow by 20-30 per cent year on year. In a survey conducted by Tata Housing across metros in 2014, the company indicated that consumers, especially millennials, prefer wellness featured homes which assure only the highest standards of quality, pure air & water, and a healthy atmosphere in which they can thrive. In a world where climate change is deteriorating quality of human lifestyle, residential projects with a low carbon footprint and wellness features are attractive to buyers. Features that a globally aware buyer wants, are rarely provided in residential projects, however results from the survey implied a latent demand for these features.