Sustainable building practices in contemporary Chinese urbanism: A low-carbon construction management perspective

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Abstract
China’s transition toward a low-carbon economy has placed the building industry at the center of ecological modernization. This study examines sustainable building practices in contemporary Chinese urbanism through the lens of low-carbon construction management and ecological modernization theory (EMT). A dataset of 40 completed building projects across major Chinese provinces was analyzed to examine the interplay among technological innovation, managerial adaptation, and institutional incentives. The analyzed variables included operational energy performance, embodied carbon, renewable-energy integration, waste-reduction practices, certification level, managerial training, and policy support. The environmental and managerial determinants of the outcomes of the projects were assessed using descriptive and correlational analyses. The results indicate that the projects that combined prefabricated or hybrid construction systems, greater renewable-energy potential, and building information modeling had lower carbon intensity and greater reductions in carbon dioxide emissions. There was a positive correlation between managerial training and experience and the number of measures put in place to be sustainable, whereas policy incentives and green certifications were essential facilitators of modernization. On the other hand, cost sensitivity and skills shortages were still the main obstacles. From an EMT perspective, the findings suggest that China has followed a hybrid ecological modernization pathway characterized by the interaction of state guidance, technological diffusion, and managerial learning. By linking empirical evidence with EMT, the study demonstrates that innovation in construction management represents a key pathway for advancing the greening of China’s urban development paradigm. This study provides policy recommendations to enhance capacity building, institutional alignment, and technology transfer to promote a systemic low-carbon transition.