Yes / There is general agreement on the importance of green roofs as ways of reducing GHG emissions, reducing overall costs and improving sustainability in urban areas. This systematic literature review highlights life cycle sustainability assessment as an essential criterion to evaluate green roofs. A bibliometric analysis was used to quantitatively review relevant literature. The Scopus database was chosen as a bibliographic database of academic publications. Thes period of search started from 2003 and final search was conducted on February 15, 2023. Based on further in-depth reading, 88 publication records which met the selection criteria, including 74 papers and 14 conference papers. Researchers from the United States contributed almost 31 % of the documents. We evaluated leading studies in this field and discussed assessment method, system boundaries and research gaps through a critical literature review and a systematic search review. Finally, we propose a framework and identify a gap and future research. The environmental aspect of green roofs have received more attention than economic issues. We found that most economic evaluations of green roofs are limited to their construction stage. As yet there is no comprehensive social study on green roofs. We considered a unified study of the economic, environmental impact and social evaluation of green roofs to be warranted. Additionally, various measurement methods should be used to assess the economic profitability of green roofs over the long term. In summary, this study provides a deeper understanding of the environmental, social, and economic performance of green roofs and identifies research gaps as well as future research directions.

Yes / Process simulation of a single-step synthesis of DME based on CO2-enhanced gasification of rice straw was conducted using Aspen PlusTM. The process consists of gasification unit, heat recovery unit, gas purification unit, single-step DME synthesis, and DME separation unit. In the simulation, highly pure DME was produced by the control of CO2 concentration in syngas to a very low level prior to synthesis. A gasification system efficiency of 36.7% and CO2 emission of 1.31 kg/kg of DME were achieved. Bio-DME production based on CO2-enhanced gasification of biomass was found to be more cost-effective as it required 19.6% less biomass than that of DME production based on conventional biomass gasification. The performance and environmental benefits of the proposed process could be further improved by the utilization of unreacted gases and the handling of CO2 generated via incorporating poly-generation concept or carbon storage, which could also potentially improve process economics. / Ningbo Bureau of Science and Technology; Innovation Team Scheme; Major R&D Programme; Provincial Innovation Team on the Commercialisation of SOx and NOx Removal Technologies; University of Nottingham Ningbo China

Les éco-quartiers contribuent, depuis la fin du XXe siècle, à l'essor d'un modèle de ville durable à travers le monde. Cependant, si les grands principes théoriques du développement durable font relativement consensus à l'échelle internationale, les modalités de leur application au niveau local sont multiples et diverses. Suite à ce constat, de nombreux acteurs déploient dès la fin des années 2000 des référentiels de suivi et d'évaluation des éco-quartiers. Ces derniers permettent d'orienter la conception et la construction des quartiers durables tout en justifiant les choix retenus, et ce grâce à la mesure de leur performance selon plusieurs critères consensuels et mesurables dans le temps. Ces référentiels, conçus à l'échelle locale et souvent standardisés, sont en outre susceptibles d'être exportés à l'international, indépendamment du milieu naturel et culturel dans lequel ils s'appliquent. Ceci représente un paradoxe vis à vis du concept de développement durable qui promeut l'intégration des projets à un territoire spécifique. Aussi, le travail de thèse interroge l'impact des référentiels d'évaluation sur l'intégration territoriale des éco-quartiers au travers de l'analyse de trois études de cas en France, aux Etats-Unis et au Brésil: Clichy Batignolles localisé à Paris et labellisé EcoQuartier, Melrose Commons développé à New York et certifié LEED-ND, et llha Pura construit à Rio de Janeiro à la fois certifié LEED-ND et AQUA -HQE-A. Notre étude examine également succinctement un quatrième cas, le quartier de Vinhomes Riverside ayant reçu le prix de l'architecture ve1te du Vietnam et construit à Hanoï, dont l'étude n'a pu être complètement aboutie faute d'accès à des données essentielles à notre analyse. Nous énonçons le postulat qu'il existe des divergences entre les objectifs de performance fixés par le référentiel, ceux exigés par les acteurs du projet menant à une évaluation donnée, et enfin la réalité de l'éco-quartier une fois construit au sein d'un territoire plus large. Ces divergences sont particulièrement fortes en cas d'export du référentiel. Elles sont en outre mesurables et témoignent de différences de niveau d'intégration. Aussi, notre recherche s'appuie sur la comparaison des cas selon trois phases à savoir: 1) le choix du référentiel 2) l'évaluation du projet d'éco-quartier par le référentiel dont il estime la performance, et enfin 3) le résultat opérationnel, c'est à dire l'éco­quartier construit. La méthodologie de recherche est multidisciplinaire et déploie des outils associés aux statistiques, à l'ingénierie du territoire, à la géographie, mais aussi à l'analyse architecturale, urbaine et paysagère. Nous observons que les référentiels s'appuient sur diverses stratégies relatives à la sélection et à la mesure d'indicateurs permettant de planifier l'intégration du quartier au sein d'un territoire donné. Cette intégration est néanmoins extrêmement variable non seulement en fonction des critères et des échelles d'analyse choisis, mais aussi des jeux d'acteurs qui adaptent leur démarche aux spécificités d'un site. Les référentiels d'évaluation occultent alors la complexité, et sous-estiment la richesse de la diversité des éco-quartiers contemporains. / Since the end of the 20th century, eco-neighborhoods have contributed to the international development of a sustainable city paradigm. However, while the concept of sustainable development is today the result of an international consensus, its urban applications at the local level are multiple and diverse. Following this observation, many stakeholders have designed neighborhood sustainability assessment tools (NSAT) in the past ten years. The latter contribute to the design and construction of sustainable neighborhoods while justifying stakeholders choices. Those tools also measure the eco-neighborhood performance, using several consensual and measurable criteria over time. Moreover, NSA T which are locally designed and often standardized, are likely to be exported internationally. However, internationally exporting a NSAT designed locally is paradoxical, in relation to sustainable development principles. Our research examines the impact of NSAT on eco-neighborhoods' territorial integration. It analyses three case studies located in France, the United States and Brazil. Clichy Batignolles was developed in Paris and received the EcoQuartier label. Melrose Commons was built in New York and is LEED-ND certified. Ilha Pura is located in Rio de Janeiro, and is both LEED-ND and AQUA-HQE-A certified. Our study also briefly examines a fow1h case. Vinhomes Riverside was built in Hanoi, and received the Vietnam Green Architecture Award. However, our analysis could not be completed due to the Jack of access to essential data. From the data we do have, we extrapolate that there are discrepancies between the objectives set by the NSA T, those requested by the project's stakeholders leading to a given assessment, and finally the reality of the built eco­neighborhood. These discrepancies are more important when the NSA T has been exported. They are also measurable, and enlighten different levels of projects' territorial integration. Our research is based on the comparison of the cases. This comparison is following three steps: 1) analyzing the chosen NSA T 2) studying the eco-neighborhood performance score and 3) analyzing the built project. Our methodology is multidisciplinary and uses tools related to statistics, territorial engineering, geography, and architectural, urban and landscape analysis. We conclude that NSAT use various strategies related to the selection and measurement of indicators to integrate a neighborhood within a given territory. However, this integration is extremely variable. This is not only due to criteria and scale selection, but also to stakeholders who adapt their strategies to their territory. Finally, NSAT conceals urban complexities, and underestimates the diversity of contemporary eco-neighborhoods.

The sugarcane cultivation in Brazil is one of the leading economic pillars, as it is an ethanol precursor, a renewable fuel produced in industrial markets as a substitute for fossil fuels. Brazil produces about 27.44% and 43% of the world production of ethanol and sugar, respectively. São Paulo state has the environmental and logistic conditions for a sugarcane industry, both characteristics turn it the main Brazilian\'s sugarcane production pole, with 63.74% of sugar and 48.23% of ethanol production (RFA, 2017). In São Paulo, the Agro-Environmental Zoning establishes the areas to cultivate sugarcane. However, tools to check the sugarcane industry influences on municipalities\' socioeconomic aspects are superficial. Considering sugarcane industry importance to São Paulo state and Brazil, the Nucleus of Research and Extension on Sustainability and Sanitation initiated different investigations and efforts to study, analyze, and predict the sugarcane industry\'s impacts and sustainability. Within this research\'s general line, the focused was on environmental impacts with emphasis on their accumulation and synergy, climate change scenarios, sustainability concept management among its stakeholders, industry\'s governance, mill unit\'s sustainability evaluation, and so forth. In this context, it appears as a necessary and conclusive step the sustainability assessment tool\'s development, allowing sugarcane industry evaluation, while respecting the individual circumstances. Therefore, this project objective is to develop a sustainability assessment model to sugarcane sector decision-making implemented in an atlas format. The sustainability assessment model includes eighteen indicators about environmental, social, economic, and municipal policies issues. Those indicators describe seven of the eight Gibson\'s principles. It was the principles grouped according to their indicators\' nature in three domains (environmental, socioeconomic, and municipal policies) that finally compose the sustainability index. Some indicators are considered elimination factors to avoid the trade-off between principles and domains, because more than limiting the calculus\' next level, they cut the unsustainable situations by classifying them as such. In the end, the atlas present twelve maps that describe the distribution of principles, domains, and sustainability index across São Paulo state. The results show that the sugarcane ethanol sector still faces new environmental and social impacts, while the Agro-environmental Zoning presents a limited contribution to sustainability. According to the model, environmental issues (Domain A) there are new areas where sugarcane must be forbidden or, at least, increase its requirement for water quality improvement. Nevertheless, half of the state of São Paulo has the environmental condition for sugarcane cultivars. For socioeconomic issues (Domain B), most municipalities presented a moderate performance. In the Domain C few municipalities reached the very high-performance, while the high-performance stood out for being the main one. In both, the Domain B and the Domain C, moderate and high are the significant municipalities\' performances. The atlas format results in a useful instrument, because it is easy to understand, can deliver a full state context and regions contrast, as well it brings a specific outcome for each municipality, and in case of environmental issues it also presents more precise details according to natural limits. Finally, the sensitivity analysis showed that the social indicators explain the results in 19.2%, while the municipal policy indicators influence 15.7% and the economic indicators 5.7%. The environmental indicators correspond to 59.4%, with indicator A3 (water quality) accounting for 19.7%. / O cultivo da cana-de-açúcar no Brasil é um dos principais pilares da economia do país, pois é um precursor de etanol, combustível renovável produzido em quantidades industriais como substituto de combustíveis fósseis. O Brasil produz cerca de 27.44% e 43% da produção mundial de etanol e açúcar, respectivamente. O Estado de São Paulo tem as condições ambientais e logísticas para a indústria da cana-de-açúcar, e ambas as características o tornaram o principal polo de produção no Brasil com 63.74% de açúcar e 48.23% de produções de etanol (RFA, 2017). Em São Paulo, o Zoneamento Agro-Ambiental (AENZ) estabelece as áreas onde a cana-de-açúcar pode ser plantada, considerando critérios ambientais. No entanto, ferramentas para avaliar as influências sobre os aspectos socioeconômicos dos municípios onde as culturas e indústrias de cana-deaçúcar estão inseridas são ainda superficiais. Considerando a importância da indústria da cana-de-açúcar para o Estado de São Paulo e Brasil, o Núcleo de Pesquisa e Extensão de Sustentabilidade e Saneamento iniciou diferentes investigações e esforços para estudar, analisar e prever os impactos e a sustentabilidade da indústria da cana-de-açúcar. Dentro desta linha geral de pesquisa, o foco foi sobre os impactos ambientais com ênfase em sua acumulação e sinergia, cenários de mudança climática, gerenciamento de conceito de sustentabilidade entre os stakeholders, governança do setor, avaliação de sustentabilidade de usinas, etc. Neste contexto, parece ser um passo necessário e conclusivo o desenvolvimento de uma ferramenta de avaliação de sustentabilidade, que permita a avaliação da indústria da cana-de-açúcar, respeitando as circunstâncias particulares de cada região. Portanto, o objetivo deste projeto é desenvolver um modelo de avaliação de sustentabilidade para a tomada de decisão do setor de cana-de-açúcar operacionalizado em um atlas. O modelo de avaliação de sustentabilidade inclui dezoito indicadores sobre questões de políticas municipais, ambientais, sociais e econômicas. Esses indicadores descrevem sete dos oito princípios de Gibson. Foram os princípios agrupados de acordo com a natureza de seus indicadores em três domínios (políticas ambientais, socioeconômicas e municipais) que finalmente compõem um índice de sustentabilidade. Alguns indicadores são considerados fatores de eliminação para evitar o trade-off entre princípios e domínios, porque mais do que limitar o próximo nível do cálculo, eles eliminam as situações insustentáveis, classificando-as como tal. No final, o atlas apresenta doze mapas que descrevem a distribuição de princípios, domínios e índice de sustentabilidade em todo o estado de São Paulo. Os resultados mostram que o setor de etanol de cana ainda enfrenta novos impactos ambientais e sociais, enquanto o Zoneamento Agroambiental apresenta uma contribuição limitada para a sustentabilidade. De acordo com o modelo, em relação às características ambientais (Domínio A), existem novas áreas onde a cana-de-açúcar deve ser proibida ou, pelo menos, se deve aumentar as exigências para a melhoria da qualidade da água. No entanto, metade do estado de São Paulo tem a condição ambiental para as cultivares de cana-de-açúcar. Em questões socioeconômicas (Domínio B), a maioria dos municípios apresentou desempenho moderado. No domínio C, poucos municípios atingiram o muito alto desempenho, enquanto o alto desempenho se destacou por ser o principal. Em ambos, o Domínio B e o Domínio C, moderado e alto são os desempenhos significativos dos municípios. O formato do atlas resulta em um instrumento útil, porque é fácil de entender, pode oferecer um contexto de estado completo e o contraste de regiões, além disso traz um resultado específico para cada município e, em caso de problemas ambientais, também apresenta detalhes mais precisos de acordo com os limites naturais. Finalmente, a análise de sensibilidade mostrou que os indicadores sociais explicam os resultados em 19.2%, enquanto os indicadores da política municipal influenciam 15.7% e os indicadores econômicos 6.7%. Os indicadores ambientais correspondem a 59.4%, com o indicador A3 (qualidade da água) representando 19.7%.

An environmentally-based systems approach to sustainability analyses of organic fruit production systems in New Zealand. This research introduces an approach for the assessment of the sustainability of farming systems. It is based on the premises that sustainability has an environmental bottom line and that there is very limited substitutability between natural capital and other forms of capital. Sustainability assessment is undertaken through analyses of energy and material flows of the system and their impacts on the environment. The proposed sustainability assessment approach is based on two high level criteria for sustainability: efficient use of energy and non-degradation of the environment from energy and material use. Sustainability assessment of organic orchard systems in New Zealand was undertaken to demonstrate this approach. Five indicators which address the two criteria for the sustainability of the orchard systems are the energy ratio, the CO2 ratio, changes in the soil carbon level, nutrient balances, and the leaching of nitrogen. Organic kiwifruit and organic apple systems are modelled based on their key energy and material flows and their interactions with the natural environment. The energy and material flows are converted into appropriate energy and matter equivalents based on coefficients taken from the published literature. Sustainability indicators are estimated over one growing season using two computer modelling tools, Overseer® and Stella®, in a life cycle approach. Sustainability assessment of the organic orchard systems suggests that the approach is useful for evaluating energy use and key environmental impacts that occur in soil, water and atmosphere. The results indicate that the model organic orchard systems are sustainable in terms of energy use and are a net sink of CO2-equivalent emissions. The implication of this result is that organic orchard systems potentially could trade carbon credits under the Kyoto Protocol. The findings also suggest that the sustainability assessment approach is capable of identifying the trade-offs within the sustainability indicators associated with particular management practices. Further research to improve and validate the proposed approach is essential, before it can be practically used for decision making at the orchard level and for policy making at the national level.

Engineering research and development work is undergoing a reorientation from focusing on specific parts of different systems to a broader perspective of systems level, albeit at a slower pace. This reorientation should be further developed and enhanced with the aim of organizing and structuring our technical systems in meeting sustainability requirements in face of global ecological threats that have far-reaching social and economic implications, which can no longer be captured using conventional approach of research. Until a list of universally acceptable, clear, and measurable indicators of sustainable development is developed, the work with sustainability metrics should continue to evolve as a relative measure of ecological, economic, and social performance of human activities in general, and technical systems in particular. This work can be done by comparing the relative performance of alternative technologies of providing the same well-defined function or service; or by characterizing technologies that enjoy different levels of societal priorities using relevant performance indicators. In both cases, concepts and methods of industrial ecology play a vital role. This thesis is about the development and application of a systematic approach for the assessment of the performance of technical systems from the perspective of systems analysis, sustainability, sustainability assessment, and industrial ecology. The systematic approach developed and characterized in this thesis advocates for a simultaneous assessment of the ecological, economic, and social dimensions of performance of technologies in avoiding sub-optimization and problem shifting between dimensions. It gives a holistic picture by taking a life cycle perspective of all important aspects. The systematic assessment of technical systems provides an even-handed assessment resulting in a cumulative knowledge. A modular structure of the approach makes it flexible enough in terms of comparing a number of alternatives at the same time, and carrying out the assessment of the three dimensions independently. It should give way to transparent system where the level of quality of input data can be comprehended. The assessment approach should focus on a selected number of key input data, tested calculation procedures, and comprehensible result presentation. The challenge in developing and applying this approach is the complexity of method integration and information processing. The different parts to be included in the same platform come in with additional uncertainties hampering result interpretations. The hitherto tendency of promoting disciplinary lines will continue to challenge further developments of such interdisciplinary approaches. The thesis draws on the experience from ORWARE, a Swedish technology assessment tool applied in the assessment of waste management systems and energy systems; and from the EcoEffect tool used in the assessment of building properties; all assessed as components of a larger system. The thesis underlines the importance of sustainability considerations beginning from the research and development phase of technical systems. The core message of this thesis is that technical systems should be researched as indivisible parts of a complex whole that includes society and the natural environment. Results from such researches can then be transformed into design codes and specifications for use in the research and development, planning and structuring, and implementation and management of technical systems. / QC 20100505

Mining depletes, processes, and relocates mineral resources while profoundly changing landscapes and socio-economic patterns of affected regions and communities. For millennia these impacts have been “accepted” by society because of minerals’ many benefits, but the growing environmental crisis is pushing up demand for socially responsible and ecologically viable mining practices. In reaction to these pressures, large mining corporations have been increasingly trying to make the business case for a sustainable mining industry. To demonstrate progress towards this “case”, companies have started to publish sustainability reports based on a sustainability assessment and reporting tool called the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Framework. Many scholars have contested the effectiveness of that framework and argued that GRI-based reports can mislead decision-makers concerned with sustainability, or even camouflage unsustainable practices, particularly at the site level. Few scholars, however, have gone far beyond the realm of criticism to understand how to enhance that framework. This thesis addresses this gap. More specifically it sets out to answer the following questions: 1) what needs to be changed in mining corporations’ approaches to assessing and reporting sustainability for the purpose of promoting more meaningful and reliable disclosures? And 2) what are the key practical and conceptual barriers to implementing those changes? This research adopted a qualitative grounded theory approach underpinned by systems theories to answer the questions. Data were collected through extensive literature reviews, 41 semi-structured interviews and content analyses. The evaluation of data included software-aided techniques such as iterative coding, memo-writing, and diagramming. The four main contributions are as follows. First, the thesis presents an evaluation of the extent to which mining corporations’ approaches to sustainability reporting meet eight principles (the BellagioSTAMP) of sustainability assessment and communication. In light of the identified gaps, the thesis outlines a number of specific changes that should be promoted in mining corporations’ sustainability frameworks. Second, a critical evaluation is provided of the limitations of an industry initiative that is pushing for stronger GRI reporting. Proponents of that initiative are trying to standardize and enforce external verification of sustainability reports among large mining corporations, but, in doing so, they may reinforce a limited approach to sustainability reporting. Third, the thesis identifies and discusses the barriers that may emerge in the implementation of six additional guidance elements in the GRI framework that could promote sounder sustainability assessment and reporting processes. The many barriers are broadly categorized as motivational, structural and specific. Finally, the thesis specifies research implications for key stakeholder groups involved in sustainability reporting: standard-setters, industry associations, mining companies, external verifiers, investors, local communities, and scholars. Overall, this thesis corroborates the view that meaningful and reliable standardized disclosures of contributions to sustainability are unlikely to emerge any time soon. The geographical dispersion of mining corporations’ facilities imposes substantial barriers to the contextualization and systematization of sustainability evaluations and communications. These barriers can be overcome with additional indicator systems and partnerships, but standard-setters, industry associations, and governments do not seem motivated to take up this challenge soon. This situation opens opportunities for individual mining corporations to enhance their particular approaches. This thesis provides important information that should be considered in the development of a much needed long-term strategy for stronger sustainability reporting in the sector.

Mining depletes, processes, and relocates mineral resources while profoundly changing landscapes and socio-economic patterns of affected regions and communities. For millennia these impacts have been “accepted” by society because of minerals’ many benefits, but the growing environmental crisis is pushing up demand for socially responsible and ecologically viable mining practices. In reaction to these pressures, large mining corporations have been increasingly trying to make the business case for a sustainable mining industry. To demonstrate progress towards this “case”, companies have started to publish sustainability reports based on a sustainability assessment and reporting tool called the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Framework. Many scholars have contested the effectiveness of that framework and argued that GRI-based reports can mislead decision-makers concerned with sustainability, or even camouflage unsustainable practices, particularly at the site level. Few scholars, however, have gone far beyond the realm of criticism to understand how to enhance that framework. This thesis addresses this gap. More specifically it sets out to answer the following questions: 1) what needs to be changed in mining corporations’ approaches to assessing and reporting sustainability for the purpose of promoting more meaningful and reliable disclosures? And 2) what are the key practical and conceptual barriers to implementing those changes? This research adopted a qualitative grounded theory approach underpinned by systems theories to answer the questions. Data were collected through extensive literature reviews, 41 semi-structured interviews and content analyses. The evaluation of data included software-aided techniques such as iterative coding, memo-writing, and diagramming. The four main contributions are as follows. First, the thesis presents an evaluation of the extent to which mining corporations’ approaches to sustainability reporting meet eight principles (the BellagioSTAMP) of sustainability assessment and communication. In light of the identified gaps, the thesis outlines a number of specific changes that should be promoted in mining corporations’ sustainability frameworks. Second, a critical evaluation is provided of the limitations of an industry initiative that is pushing for stronger GRI reporting. Proponents of that initiative are trying to standardize and enforce external verification of sustainability reports among large mining corporations, but, in doing so, they may reinforce a limited approach to sustainability reporting. Third, the thesis identifies and discusses the barriers that may emerge in the implementation of six additional guidance elements in the GRI framework that could promote sounder sustainability assessment and reporting processes. The many barriers are broadly categorized as motivational, structural and specific. Finally, the thesis specifies research implications for key stakeholder groups involved in sustainability reporting: standard-setters, industry associations, mining companies, external verifiers, investors, local communities, and scholars. Overall, this thesis corroborates the view that meaningful and reliable standardized disclosures of contributions to sustainability are unlikely to emerge any time soon. The geographical dispersion of mining corporations’ facilities imposes substantial barriers to the contextualization and systematization of sustainability evaluations and communications. These barriers can be overcome with additional indicator systems and partnerships, but standard-setters, industry associations, and governments do not seem motivated to take up this challenge soon. This situation opens opportunities for individual mining corporations to enhance their particular approaches. This thesis provides important information that should be considered in the development of a much needed long-term strategy for stronger sustainability reporting in the sector.

O presente trabalho tem como objetivo geral propor um método monetário de avaliação da sustentabilidade empresarial que contemple as dimensões econômica, ambiental e social. Para tanto, se propõe a: (i) estudar de forma exploratória o tema avaliação da sustentabilidade a fim de proporcionar uma maior familiarização com o mesmo e identificar suas lacunas; (ii) identificar a estrutura de avaliação da sustentabilidade a ser utilizada como base; (iii) monetizar os itens de avaliação da sustentabilidade empresarial; (iv) avaliar e aprimorar o método desenvolvido através da análise de especialistas e da aplicação do mesmo na realidade de uma empresa. O método proposto permite a avaliação da sustentabilidade empresarial em uma unidade de medida comumente utilizada pelas empresas, simples e compreensível, a unidade monetária, que possibilita a comparação direta em bases homogêneas. Além disso, a unidade monetária é muito importante para as empresas, visto que seu objetivo é gerar retorno financeiro. A avaliação global do desempenho da empresa é dada pelo soma dos custos ambientais e sociais e dos benefícios econômicos gerados. Quando o resultado for negativo, significa que os custos causados pela empresa são maiores que os benefícios e, portanto, a operação da mesma não traz vantagens para a sociedade, sendo recomendado que reverta essa situação ou pare de operar. Por outro lado, quando os benefícios forem maiores que os custos, a operação da empresa agrega valor para a sociedade. Entretanto, ressalta-se que a empresa deve sempre focar em minimizar custos ambientais e sociais. Assim, o método proposto contribui para orientar as empresas na busca de formas de atuação socialmente e ambientalmente benéficas, uma vez que orienta a diminuição dos custos relacionados a essas dimensões. O método demonstra como monetizar os itens de avaliação, a partir de dados da empresa e estimativas. Entende-se que o desafio de desenvolver um método com esta finalidade é grande, devido à complexidade das dimensões social, ambiental e econômica. Consequentemente, este trabalho apresenta uma estrutura completa de avaliação monetária da sustentabilidade empresarial, mas que deve ser considerada preliminar, aberta a complementações e aprimoramentos. / This study's main objective is to propose a corporate sustainability assessment monetary model that addresses the economic, environmental and social dimensions. For this, the thesis intends: (i) to study the sustainability assessment and identify gaps, (ii) to identify a framework for sustainability assessment to be used as a basis, (iii) to monetize the assessment items, (iv) to evaluate and improve the method through expert analysis and field application. The proposed model allows the corporate sustainability assessment in a unit of measure commonly used by companies, simple and understandable, the monetary unit, which allows direct comparison on homogeneous bases. Moreover, the monetary unit is very important for companies, since their goal is to generate financial return. The overall company assessment performance is given by the sum of the environmental and social costs and economic benefits. When the result is negative, it means that the costs incurred by the company are greater than the benefits, so the operation does not bring benefits to society and is recommended to reverse this situation or stop trading. On the other hand, when the benefits outweigh the costs, the operation of the company adds value to society. However, it is emphasized that the company should always focus on minimizing environmental and social costs. Thus, the model helps to guide companies on ways of acting socially and environmentally beneficial, since it guides the cost decrease in these dimensions. The model demonstrates how to monetize the assessment items from the enterprise data and estimates. It is understood that the challenge of developing a model for this purpose is large due to the complexity of social, environmental and economic issues. Consequently, this paper presents a complete corporate sustainability monetary assessment that should be considered a preliminary attempt, open to additions and improvements.

Proposta: o setor da construção civil é responsável por grande parte do consumo de energia e recursos e da geração de resíduos, provocando impactos significativos sobre o meio ambiente. Algumas alternativas para se construir, reduzindo os impactos, envolvem o uso de materiais renováveis, como a palha, e de materiais minimamente processados, como a terra. Contudo, estes materiais pouco são referidos nos sistemas de classificação de edifícios ambientalmente amigáveis. Muitos edifícios, rotulados como sustentáveis, apenas refletem esforços para reduzir a energia incorporada e são, em muitos outros aspectos, convencionais. Objetivo: considerando a lacuna identificada, o objetivo deste trabalho é realizar uma avaliação de sustentabilidade de uma habitação de interesse social, construída no meio rural, com fardos de palha, terra e cobertura verde. Metodologia de pesquisa: a estratégia geral de pesquisa utilizada foi o levantamento de um caso. A definição dos critérios de avaliação foi embasada naqueles tradicionalmente incluídos em métodos existentes, porém as formas de caracterização foram adaptadas a dados e procedimentos acessíveis ao contexto nacional. Além de critérios ambientais, foram incluídos outros, econômicos e sociais, devido à importância de uma abordagem pluridimensional. A apresentação dos resultados dos critérios ambientais em três escalas (da edificação, dos subsistemas e dos materiais) permite identificar os subsistemas e materiais com maior potencial de impactos, explicitando os pontos fracos da habitação, além de facilitar a comparação, total ou parcial, com os resultados obtidos em pesquisas semelhantes. Resultados: verificou-se a incorporação de grande quantidade de materiais que produzem emissões tóxicas, além de apresentarem um alto consumo energético para transporte. Em contrapartida, devido à utilização, predominante, de recursos pouco processados, identificou-se um baixo dispêndio de energia para manufatura de materiais e um potencial de reaproveitamento satisfatório. Os custos iniciais da edificação são baixos, em relação a habitações de interesse social construídas com materiais convencionais, e medianos, em relação àquelas que empregam materiais não convencionais. Em termos sociais, verificou-se que as soluções adotadas são adequadas para a autoconstrução e para o resgate da capacidade de trabalho em mutirão, e que o projeto não atende requisitos mínimos de acessibilidade. / Proposal: the construction industry is responsible for a large consumption of energy and resources, and produces a large amount of wastes, determining considerable environmental impacts. Some alternatives to build in a way to reduce environmental impacts include the use of renewable materials and the use of materials which require minimum amount of processing, such as straw and earth. Nevertheless, these materials are hardly ever referred to in green building classification systems. Many buildings classified as environmentally friendly or green may simply reflect efforts to reduce the embodied energy and are, in most other aspects, conventional. Objective: considering the identified gap, this work’s aim is to evaluate a low-income rural house, built with straw bales, earth and a green roof. Methods: the assessment criteria definition was based on those traditionally included in existent methods, but adapted in accordance to national acessible data and proceedings. Besides environmental criteria, others like social and economics, were included. The results presentation in three analysis scales (of the construction, as a whole, of the subsystems and of the materials) allows the identification of the potencially most impacting materials and subsystems, expliciting the dwelling weak points, and facilitates total or partial comparision with other similar researchs results. Findings: a large number of materials that emit toxic gases, besides having a high energy consumption for materials transport, was identified. However, due to the predominant use of materials with a minimum processing, a low energy consumption for materials production and a sactisfatory reuse potential was identified. The dwelling’s initial costs are low, if compared to low-income houses built with conventional materials, becoming average, in regard to those built with non-convetional materials. In social terms, it was verified that the construction solutions are suitable to self-building and to rescue the ability of working cooperatively, and that the dwelling’s design does not supply the minimum requirement for spatial acessibility.