Dear Colleagues,

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are universal and all-encompassing goals that pervade all areas of development. The SDGs were introduced in 2015 as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development from the United Nations. Actions and initiatives that promote a sustainable built environment could greatly help to achieve a number of SDGs, including SDG6 (Clean Water and Sanitation), SDG7 (Affordable and Clean Energy), SDG9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure), SDG11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), and SDG13 (Climate Action).

The role of the construction industry (and indeed, building and infrastructure development) in sustainable economic growth and development is well recognised in the literature. However, in the most advanced industrial economies, as well as emerging economies, it is also recognised that the construction industry is no longer focused on providing a single service, i.e., a building or physical infrastructure, but on a variety of services and improvement of human and natural environments. As building and other construction assets are major components of the physical capital of a country, the pursuit of sustainable development should accommodate a balance between physical capital, natural capital, and human capital, depending on the circumstances of the country.

Climate initiatives at the city level are crucial in achieving the world’s energy and climate goals, as illustrated, for example, in the creation of the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy (GCoM). The great majority of a country´s building and infrastructure stock is located in cities and other urban clusters. It has been recognised that reliable data on public buildings and infrastructure stock are necessary for the long-term management of these facilities. Therefore, this Special Issue of Sustainability welcomes research that shines a light on our comprehension of the true value of land, buildings, and other constructed facilities owned by municipalities and major private companies. In particular, it seeks the contribution of articles and research works that address sustainable development issues in the economics and management of construction investment projects, both new construction and R&M works. Research may include (but is not limited to) the following sustainability-focused topics:

• valuation of different types of properties (social housing, investment property, public facilities);
• economic evaluation and management of construction investment projects;
• innovative finance schemes for development projects promoted by public authorities;
• procurement practices;
• replacement policies of building components and equipment;
• methodologies for setting up economic useful lives of building and building components.

Dr. Jorge Lopes
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• built capital stock
• economic evaluation
• climate initiatives
• measurement
• management
• valuation
• procurement
• sustainable built environment
• SDGs