The Envision Certification is a system that evaluates infrastructure projects in terms of environmental, social, and economic dimensions. It ensures that projects meet high standards during planning, design, and construction phases, helping to promote long-term positive impacts on communities and the environment.
The Envision Certification is a system that evaluates infrastructure projects in terms of environmental, social, and economic dimensions. It ensures that projects meet high standards during planning, design, and construction phases, helping to promote long-term positive impacts on communities and the environment.
Envision Certification is a framework used to assess and rate the sustainability and resilience of infrastructure projects. It consists of 64 sustainability and resilience indicators, known as credits, categorized into five main sections:
These indicators cover various aspects of human well-being, community development, collaboration, planning, economics, materials, energy, water, site selection, conservation, ecology, emissions, and resilience.
Each credit represents different achievement levels, ranging from improvements beyond conventional practices to the protection and restoration of communities and environments. The certification process evaluates how well a project meets these sustainability indicators, encouraging high-performance goals beyond minimum requirements.
Envision Certification levels range from Bronze to Platinum, depending on the sustainability performance of the project.
The certification levels include:
These levels encourage projects to aim for higher performance targets, promoting continuous improvement and innovation in sustainable infrastructure development.
The primary goals of Envision Certification are to enhance the sustainability and resilience of infrastructure projects by providing a comprehensive framework for evaluating their social, economic, and environmental impacts.
Envision aims to:
By encouraging performance beyond minimum standards, Envision supports long-term sustainability, facilitates informed decision-making among stakeholders, and recognizes projects that implement exemplary sustainability practices. It also promotes a shared understanding and communication of sustainable infrastructure goals.
Envision differs from other sustainability certifications by focusing on infrastructure rather than buildings. It evaluates a project’s contributions to community sustainability through a broad range of social, economic, and environmental indicators.
Unlike building-focused systems, Envision assesses the long-term performance and adaptability of infrastructure. It emphasizes collaboration and offers a flexible, non-prescriptive approach to sustainability.
Envision’s five categories—Quality of Life, Leadership, Resource Allocation, Natural World, and Climate & Resilience—address all aspects of sustainability comprehensively. Additionally, it includes third-party verification and awards for exemplary projects, encouraging performance beyond conventional standards.
Envision Certification is awarded based on a project’s performance across various sustainability metrics defined by the Envision framework.
Projects are assessed based on criteria in five categories:
Projects earn points for meeting or exceeding these criteria. The total score determines the certification level: Bronze, Silver, Gold, or Platinum.
The certification process includes:
This ensures that projects meet Envision’s rigorous standards for sustainability and resilience.
Obtaining Envision Certification offers numerous benefits, including:
Ultimately, Envision Certification contributes to building more livable, resilient, and sustainable communities, positioning projects and organizations as leaders in sustainable infrastructure development.
Envision promotes sustainable infrastructure by providing a comprehensive framework for evaluating sustainability and resilience in infrastructure projects.
By focusing on five key areas—Quality of Life, Leadership, Resource Allocation, Natural World, and Climate & Resilience—Envision ensures that projects positively impact society and the environment.
The framework encourages:
Additionally, Envision prioritizes resilience, ensuring that infrastructure can withstand climate change and future challenges.
By rewarding innovative solutions and best practices, Envision fosters sustainable design and construction. The certification process provides recognition and accountability, motivating project teams to achieve higher sustainability performance goals.
Overall, Envision promotes a culture of sustainability in infrastructure development, benefiting communities and protecting natural ecosystems.
The Envision framework is divided into five main categories, each addressing different aspects of infrastructure sustainability:
Each category contains specific credits and criteria designed to comprehensively evaluate the sustainability of infrastructure projects.
The Envision framework was developed by the Zofnass Program at Harvard University and the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure (ISI).
The Envision Certification applies to a wide range of infrastructure projects, including logistics, energy, water, waste, landscape, and information systems.
An Envision Sustainability Professional (ENV SP) guides projects through the Envision framework, assisting in the development of sustainable, resilient, and socially responsible infrastructure projects.
Yes, existing projects can be certified with Envision, as sustainability and resilience are evaluated throughout the entire lifecycle of a project.
Examples of projects that have received Envision Certification include the Kansas City Streetcar, Dixon Wastewater Treatment Facility, and Metro Nashville Airport Improvements.
Envision Certification Services evaluate infrastructure projects across five categories: Quality of Life, Leadership, Resource Allocation, Natural World, and Climate & Resilience, ensuring compliance with sustainability standards. This process involves a structured assessment that verifies a project’s alignment with sustainability standards, promoting resilience, efficiency, and benefits to society.
Our consultancy ensures a seamless Envision Certification process for our clients by offering expertise in sustainable infrastructure planning, design optimization, stakeholder engagement strategies, and documentation support. We help projects comply with Envision’s rigorous standards while enhancing project sustainability and community impact, ensuring certification is achieved cost-effectively.
Our consultancy integrates sustainable practices from project initiation to completion, conducting comprehensive assessments aligned with Envision criteria. We provide expert guidance on sustainable design and construction methods and ensure that certification requirements are met accurately and efficiently through detailed documentation and reporting.
Our consultancy begins by understanding each project’s unique goals and challenges. We then provide personalized guidance by recommending sustainability strategies and assessments tailored to the project’s objectives. This approach helps optimize infrastructure design, construction, and operations, ensuring that the desired Envision certification level is achieved effectively.
