Empowering Sustainability: Unveiling Green Building Awareness and Solutions in Kathmandu Valley
https://doi.org/10.46610/JoRAIS.2025.v010i01.001
Keywords:
Challenges, Green concept, Residential building, RII, SolutionsAbstract
The study aims to assess the awareness among local engineers and design consultants regarding green building concepts in the planning and designing of residential buildings in Kathmandu Valley. It seeks to identify their level of knowledge on green concepts and the challenges they face, particularly in relation to policy and regulatory support. Green building technologies are recognized as effective ways to reduce energy and water usage and are often considered the quickest and most cost-effective methods to achieve these goals. Despite their benefits, the high upfront construction costs of green buildings remain a concern. This study targeted local building permit engineers and nominated design consultants in Kathmandu Valley, utilizing convenient and purposive sampling methods. A total of 84 participants (42 local engineers/architects and 42 design consultants) were included. The reliability of the study was established with a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.987, as calculated using SPSS. Findings indicate that local engineers and design consultants have moderate awareness of green concepts, with all 28 basic awareness elements achieving a mean value greater than 2.5. Knowledge regarding the importance of green concepts in residential building design scored the highest with a mean value of 3.69. Awareness was lowest for factors related to government support and incentives, with an average mean score of 2.7. Challenges highlighted include the lack of policy and regulatory documents, with Relative Importance Index (RII) scores of 0.938 for engineers and 0.948 for consultants. The moderate level of awareness and significant challenges related to policy and regulation suggests the need for enhanced informational outreach, technical training, and the development of green building codes and standards. Promoting local, eco-friendly building materials and expertise is also crucial. Addressing these challenges will support the broader adoption of green building practices in residential development.
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