Sustainability Certifications in Building Projects: Adoption Insights from the Greek Construction Sector in the European Context

Sustainability certification schemes (SCSs) such as LEED, BREEAM, etc., are widely accepted as an effective tool for the promotion of sustainable design principles and lifecycle carbon reduction in building projects. Greece, despite having a relatively small real estate market, presents solid activity in this field, but the related research remains extremely limited. Following a comprehensive quantitative data analysis regarding the use of SCSs in Greece and Europe, this paper examines adoption determinants, challenges, and prospects in the Greek construction sector, drawing on semi-structured interviews. The findings show that LEED dominates the Greek market, and although the SCS benefits are well documented in the literature, the overall market demand is largely confined to office and commercial developments and constrained by affordability concerns, low market awareness, supply chain constraints, administrative complexity, and project coordination challenges. Nevertheless, as future prospects are positive overall, the research provides recommendations towards targeted actions for policy-makers, industry professionals, and other stakeholders. This can encourage supply chain development and accelerate certification uptake, thereby supporting national sustainability objectives and the implementation of European climate and energy policies.