Current Actuality of Sustainable Architecture: Prospects, Obstacles and Practical Implementation Strategies

Abstract

Conventional architecture requires a lot of energy and emits a considerable amount of carbon dioxide, not only during its construction but also in the use process. According to the report released by the China Association of Energy Building Efficiency in 2020, the overall energy consumption of architecture takes up 46.5% of the final energy consumption in China. As environmental issues become one of the most important affairs worldwide, conventional architecture should explore a new path to address the long-existed excessive energy consumption and pollution problem. At the same time, the concept of sustainable architecture is put forward as a solution to the issue. In the past few years, innovations and breakthroughs have taken place in the construction industry and relevant strategies have been adopted by many projects. However, in order that the future of architecture will be rooted in nature and benefit the human well-being, the concept of sustainable architecture should be popularized extensively instead of serving as pioneer projects. This present article aims to assess the current actuality of sustainable architecture, including its prospects and obstacles. Also, it will propose several strategies with respect to developing eco-friendly building materials, adopting energy-efficient building design, and promoting vertical green facades along with one or two real-life cases.