Good news for environmental activists – the UK’s residential construction industry is getting steadily greener. Sustainable building initiative NextGeneration has released their 2012 benchmark, naming the country’s top 25 most sustainable home builders. The top three results for 2012 were as follows:

• First position – The Berkeley Group
• Second – Crest Nicholson
• Third – Miller Homes

It’s been reported that the participating companies have shown higher levels of sustainability – could we be looking at an era where everything involved in the construction process, from methods to materials down to the last pair of work gloves, is eco-friendly?

The technology park Smart City Malta was recently awarded for its first eco building by the US Green Building Council, a first for the island nation. The building SCM01 received LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Silver accreditation and as a result, other buildings in Smart City Malta are making plans to follow suit. The SCM02 and SCMO3 building have already been pre-certified to the Silver rating. Foreign businesses that benefit from income tax in Malta should give back to the nation by reducing their carbon footprint.

During its annual green building convention and exhibition, the Green Building Council of South Africa (GBCSA) will award Aurecon Engineering and Rabie Property Group for developing the first 5 star certified green building in South Africa. A leader in global engineering, management and specialist technical services, Aurecon’s new regional office in Century City exemplifies their loyalty and expertise to the green building movement. Energy-saving features go beyond the regular solar heating systems and include the implementation of a ‘green lease’ which ensures that the landlord and tenant follow the outlined green principles.