Sustainable construction in Mexican housing markets

This thesis examines recent developments in Mexico's housing markets as an example of how sustainable construction is being adapted and applied in developing countries. The recognition that the construction, operation, and demolition of buildings greatly impact the environment has spurred industry and government alike to examine ways to foster sustainability in the construction and property development industry. Mexico has made progress in addressing sustainability in low-cost housing through public sector-sponsored pilot programs, at a time when the developer-produced low-cost housing market is experiencing dramatic growth. I examine the state of the art of sustainable construction in Mexico and ask: What are the barriers to the wide-spread adoption of sustainable construction in housing? How have programs for energy and environmental sustainability engaged these challenges? What conditions suggest additional approaches to promote sustainable low-cost housing? Over four months in Mexico, I conducted semi-structured interviews of about thirty professionals in the development industry. The interviews suggest that consumers don't value environmental performance, but rather size and amenities; sustainable construction costs more to build, and this cost premium must be passed on to the consumer; and an inconsistent regulatory environment impedes efforts to provide a level playing field through building codes. The barriers on the side of the practitioners are that information sharing difficult both within firms and across firms, and the lack of training and experience in working with sustainable construction. Mexico's first efforts in sustainable construction show that consumer preferences can and do change as information and options become available.

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning.

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2007

Author dc:creator

• Jung, Bomee

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Tunny Lee.

• Urban Studies and Planning.

Statement dc:rights

• M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/42268

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/42268