Sustainability in Construction Projects During Budgetary Restrictions: A Case from Norwegian Higher Education

This paper supports practitioners in achieving their sustainability ambitions when budgets are constrained. Sustainability is high on the agenda in research, practice, and governments, and a necessary requirement for us to turn around the climate change challenges we currently are facing. A successful change requires solid evaluation of the contributions to society, economy, and the environment. Growing evidence supports the idea that sustainability enables economic growth. Advancements in technological solutions ensure that organizations can transform their impact on climate-harming actions in positive ways, reducing their CO2 emissions. In this paper, we analyze a construction project in a higher education institution with high ambitions for sustainability and the effect budget cuts have had on these ambitions. To gain a deeper understanding of the situation, we interviewed nine key practitioners. Through a case study, we identify key effects, barriers, and success criteria for sustainability during budget restrictions, and learn the consequences budget cuts can have on sustainability. For this university’s case, the main campus’ ambition for net zero emission was extended by 15 years. Findings show that political influence and prioritizations between investments and operational costs are critical and represent a great barrier that causes budget cuts. The findings also show that flexibility, passive house measures and political regulation are among the key success factors for sustainability.