Making Data Count in the Built Environment

Regulation is creating demand for whole life carbon (WLC) data at a new scale: the EU will phase in WLC disclosure for new buildings from 2028, Japan is preparing to mandate reporting for large non-residential buildings, and cities such as Vancouver, Tokyo or Shanghai already send strong signals. But more data does not automatically lead to better decisions. “Making Data Count in the Built Environment” looks at how businesses across the value chain use WLC data today, what makes it useful, and why it loses value as it moves between organizations and stakeholders. Developed with the support of Arup, and informed by workshops and interviews with industry leaders, it sets out practical recommendations for business leaders, industry, tool providers, and policymakers.

What is it?

This report examines how WLC data is used across the built environment value chain, from manufacturers, designers, and contractors to owners and investors, and what separates data that informs a decision from data that is merely reported.

It identifies four traits that make WLC data decision-useful: financial value, trustworthiness, actionability and transferability. It then maps the frictions that erode those traits as data changes hands, leaving organizations to spend time recreating and validating data rather than using it to reduce emissions, manage risk, or create value, and sets out the solutions emerging in the industry. Looking five years ahead, it argues that interoperability, more than access to data, will become the capability that matters most, and that the greatest impact will come where carbon connects to cost, value, and risk.

Who is it for?

• C-suite executives: Asset owners, investors, developers and other leaders looking to connect carbon to financial and commercial decision-making.
• Industry practitioners: Designers, contractors, carbon and cost consultants, manufacturers and suppliers who create, exchange and use whole life carbon data in their daily tasks.
• Tool providers and standard-setters: Organizations shaping the tools, standards and data structures that enable consistent, interoperable and decision-useful whole life carbon information.
• Policymakers: Policymakers and public-sector actors developing the regulations, incentives and reporting requirements that shape how carbon information is generated and used.

Why read it?

• Make sense of growing WLC data demands and what they mean for business decisions across the built environment.
• See where carbon information can create real business value, from reducing costly data handling to informing cost, risk, investment and procurement decisions.
• Learn from real-world industry experience, with examples of how companies are already using WLC data to inform decisions.
• Anticipate where the market is heading, and the capabilities businesses will increasingly need as carbon data volumes and disclosure requirements grow.
• Find practical implications for your role, whether you lead a business, work in design and construction, develop tools and standards, or shape policy.

The organizations that turn carbon information into better decisions will reduce cost and risk, and help shape the market.

This publication was developed by WBCSD with the support of Arup, and draws on the experience and insights of industry leaders who contributed through interviews and workshops.