Engaging Stakeholders to Overcome the Common Constraints for Delivering Low Carbon Buildings in High-Rise High-Density Cities

Buildings in high-rise high-density cities are principal contributors to global anthropogenic carbon emissions. Notwithstanding the many commitments to delivering low-carbon buildings (LCBs), various constraints have hampered their delivery. Despite their significance, very few studies have identified these constraints from the perspective of high-rise high-density cities. Furthermore, there has been no specific identification of stakeholders' engagement needed to address the constraints. The reported study addresses this gap by exploring the stakeholder engagement required to overcome the constraints of delivering LCBs. First, a list of 21 common constraints for delivering LCBs in high-rise high-density cities was identified by building on a precursor research study. In addition, 19 stakeholders with the ability to help overcome these constraints were identified through a literature review, and their engagement in addressing the identified 21 constraints was analyzed by employing social network analysis (SNA) approaches. This analysis was based on a two-round Delphi survey conducted with the participation of 15 experienced practitioners. The findings provide a systematic mapping of the constraints and associated stakeholders. Accordingly, clients, policy makers and regulators, property and facility managers, educational training and research institutes, and accreditation and standardization bodies showed an ability to address more than 60% of the identified constraints, whereas financial institutions, end users, project managers, and suppliers showed an ability to address less than 30% of the constraints. This study contributes to the theory by providing useful insights into developing and utilizing suitable SNA structures to analyze stakeholder engagement. It contributes to practice by identifying common constraints in delivering LCBs, identifying the significant stakeholders involved, and alerting industry practitioners to the imperatives and suitable modalities for their engagement to strengthen the delivery of LCBs in high-rise high-density cities.