TOWARD SUSTAINABLE DESIGN -THE EXCLUDED ISSUES: LEED Rating System in India
Open Access
- Author:
- Gupta, Kaustav
- Graduate Program:
- Architecture
- Degree:
- Master of Architecture
- Document Type:
- Master Thesis
- Date of Defense:
- November 30, 2009
- Committee Members:
- Jawaid Haider, Thesis Advisor/Co-Advisor
Jawaid Haider, Thesis Advisor/Co-Advisor
Ute Poerschke, Thesis Advisor/Co-Advisor
Lisa Domenica Iulo, Thesis Advisor/Co-Advisor - Keywords:
- Sustainable Architecture
LEED
Architecture in India
Green buildings - Abstract:
- Due to the recent emphasis on ‘Green’ buildings around the world, LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), a voluntary certification program, has emerged as one of the major internationally recognized standards to quantify sustainability in building design and performance. The LEED rating system, which is primarily based on the American context, is also considered as a Green design guideline. It is now accepted in many countries, including India, and is being promoted as a universally applicable model for Green building certification. With its wide array of climatic, social, and economic variations, India poses a stark contrast to the American context and consequently presents different challenges for its Green buildings. The present version of LEED India for New Construction (NC), however, fails to take these contextual variations into account, resulting in a superfluous recognition of generic and readymade design solutions that disregard the traditional sustainable building practices in the country. This thesis proposes additions and/or modifications to the LEED India NC rating system to address certain critical issues in the current LEED format as they apply to the Warm-Humid climate zone. The broader intent of this research is to ensure that a Green building certification system provides appropriate guidance to the designer who wishes to employ a design approach that is compatible with indigenous context. These proposals can be considered as suggestions toward a new version of LEED India NC in future.