From Policy to Practice: A Systems Approach to Green Building Advancement for Regional Sustainability

Green buildings play a pivotal role in advancing urban sustainability and fostering a green economy. This study constructs an integrated model to examine the key drivers of green building development and their influence on urban greening. Data were gathered from 403 stakeholders across Shandong Province, China, and analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling through SPSS and AMOS. The results demonstrate that policy, market demand, technological advancement, and long-term economic benefits are critical drivers, among which policy exerts the most significant influence, while economic viability serves as a fundamental incentive for market adoption. Quantitatively, the SEM path coefficients indicate that policy (β ≈ 0.56) and market forces (β ≈ 0.55) exert the strongest effects, followed by technology (β ≈ 0.49) and economic factors (β ≈ 0.38). The study further identifies eight specific sub-factors—including streamlined approval processes and enhanced regulatory measures—and proposes nine targeted strategies to foster sustainable and economically viable building practices. These findings align with several Sustainable Development Goals, such as affordable and clean energy, sustainable cities and communities, and climate action, offering a strategic framework to guide policymakers and industry stakeholders toward synergistic achievement of environmental and economic objectives.