The building and construction industry accounts for over 40% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Most of these emissions come from the materials used in building, from concrete and steel to wood and mineral fiber. The carbon associated with the extraction and production of these materials is known as embodied carbon and will account for almost half of total new construction emissions between now and 2050.
Armstrong World Industries recognizes that we have a role to play in reducing embodied carbon in materials and enabling greater transparency so that industry professionals can make informed decisions. We are a Platinum Sponsor of the Carbon Leadership Forum, a collective of architects, engineers, contractors and other industry professionals working to eliminate embodied carbon from buildings and infrastructure. We are also a Founding Member of materialsCAN (Carbon Action Network), which includes members of the global building industry that are ready to act on the smart prioritization of embodied carbon in building materials.
In addition, all the products in our SUSTAIN line are available on the Embodied Carbon in Construction Calculator (EC3), a free tool that allows building professionals and policymakers to better understand embodied carbon of materials. The tool is managed by Building Transparency, a nonprofit whose mission is to provide open access data and tools that enable broad and swift action addressing embodied carbon across the building industry.