Saudi Green Building Forum (SGBF)

The Saudi Green Building Forum (SGBF) is a non-governmental, professional, civil society organization that provides consultancy services. It was established under a Supreme Order issued on September 13, 2010.

SGBF objectives

SGBF aims to highlight the efforts of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Middle East in development and change leadership to achieve sustainability by developing, promoting, and supporting the principles of green buildings concept through organizing conferences, seminars, international meetings, and workshops, in addition to fostering partnerships and reciprocal collaboration with national and international bodies, councils, and committees.

The forum also aims to unify efforts toward achieving self-sufficiency in natural resources, reducing consumption, attracting clean energy, promoting water recycling, using locally sourced building materials that comply with clean environmental standards to protect consumers, and preserving the national identity and the environmental heritage to mitigate the negative impacts of urban development. It also supports the capabilities of sustainable development and green economy to ensure safety, security, and health for people and the environment across generations by empowering members, including scientists, engineers, specialists, business leaders, and institutions, to develop solutions, enhance performance, and encourage creativity, innovation, and investment in green building technologies.

SGBF activities

Education is among SGBF's key activities that it seeks to achieve. It supports education and training by establishing agreements with universities, institutes, and specialized training centers, and by offering programs and workshops led by international trainers and specialists, either in-person or online, to increase awareness of global green practices, both for consulting offices and the broader engineering sector.

The forum is committed to developing emerging green markets that offer eco-friendly materials and support the construction industry and sustainable development projects through national and international logistics channels. It also encourages investors to implement their projects to achieve Saudi Vision 2030.

The forum provides services to support investors, enhance project quality, improve energy efficiency, and promote the circular economy in Saudi Arabia. In this regard, it offers consultancy and project evaluation studies and issues Saaf Green Quality Certificates, giving projects a competitive market value compared to traditional projects.

SGBF confrences

SGBF organizes international conferences to explore job and investment opportunities aligned with Saudi Arabia's initiatives to promote green building concepts in modern communities. These events engage the private sector at national, regional, and international levels.

The forum's conferences serve as a platform to explore developments in green building practices, showcasing the efforts of experts and officials participating in these conferences to address climate change and environmental pollution through green city projects and innovations.

By 2024, the forum had held fourteen conferences, addressing various topics such as Saudi Arabia's efforts to monitor the environmental impact of buildings and enhance efficiency, core concepts and strategies of the Green Buildings Initiative for urban development, optimal operation of cities aligned with green building standards, and current challenges related to climate change, increased temperatures, and urban pollution, alongside exploring opportunities to leverage the green building concept.

Saaf and SGBF

SGBF owns the green quality trademark "Saaf," an international trademark and the forum's exclusive property, registered with the Saudi Authority for Intellectual Property. Its name is inspired by the palm frond, symbolizing Saudi culture and identity.

The advantages of applying "Saaf" include providing competitive market value for products, enhancing energy efficiency in old, modern, and heritage buildings, offering consulting services and green studies, reducing carbon footprint and environmental impact, supporting global efforts to mitigate climate change, improving quality of life and well-being, and humanizing smart cities.

SGBF and international organizations

SGBF has a capacity of a "Special Consultative" with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) since 2017. It has also been recognized as an "Observer" by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) since 2020 and by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). It has earned cooperative trust from the United Nations Department of Global Communications (UNDGC) and participated as a climate observer at UNFCCC in partnership with the Twenty-Seventh Conference of the Parties (COP27) since 2020.