Faisal Al-Fadl is founder of the Saudi Green Building Forum, which was launched in 2010 as a nongovernmental organization specialized in promoting a global agenda for health, safety and the environment.
Al-Fadl serves as secretary-general of the King Saud Foundation, which aims to eradicate poverty, ignorance and disease. His over 20 years of experience in architecture, engineering and construction have allowed him to supervise billion-dollar-building projects.
He is an architect, active volunteer and community builder whose work is paving the way for a sustainable future. As a community builder, he has been involved in the education of thousands in sustainability and has helped hundreds of delegates to achieve professional positions in the field.
Al-Fadl strongly believes in “protecting the planet and building resilience.” Speaking of climate change, he stated that it would be “nearly impossible — and substantially more expensive — to keep global warming in check without bolstering local action” through the mobilization of volunteers to this end.
“City planning ‘defaults’ must be changed from ‘linear’ to ‘circular,’ community-centric plans, monitored by city master strategic planning,” he said.
“We must pursue policies and make investments to address disaster risk-reduction and protect the planet from degradation. Countries must regulate businesses and pressure multi-industries to commit to net-zero emissions by 2050 in an effort to lower temperatures by 1.5°C in cities,” he added.
In 1990, he obtained a Master of Architecture from the Savannah College of Art and Design in the US. In 1995, he earned a postgraduate degree in urban and regional planning from Virginia and Hawaii. He is a registered engineer with the Saudi Council of Engineers.
Faisal Al-Fadl, Saudi Green Building Forum founder
https://arab.news/mcxba
Faisal Al-Fadl, Saudi Green Building Forum founder
Saudi Arabia led green building performance regionally in 2025: Report
- Saudi Arabia achieved the highest regional score of 76.31 points and certified more than 1.03 million sq. meters of sustainable building space
- Results reflect measurable efficiency gains across 6,662 projects completed since 2010, marking a new regional benchmark for measurable sustainability progress
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia led the region in sustainable building performance and environmental impact in 2025, according to the Saaf index developed by the Saudi Green Building Forum.
Saudi Arabia achieved the highest regional score of 76.31 points and certified more than 1.03 million sq. meters of sustainable building space, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Wednesday.
These results reflect measurable efficiency gains across 6,662 projects completed since 2010, marking a new regional benchmark for measurable sustainability progress and institutional excellence.
The achievement underscores Saudi Arabia’s growing influence in advancing sustainable construction across the Middle East and supports the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 objectives for cleaner growth, resource efficiency and climate resilience through data‑driven environmental performance.
Faisal Al‑Fadl, secretary‑general of SGBF, said that 2025 represented a major turning point toward a measurable, institutional sustainability strategy that united policy, technology and practice.
He added that the approach extended beyond renewable energy, clean water and eco‑friendly materials to embed sustainability in economic planning and public development programs, made possible through integrated efforts with regional governments and public institutions.
The Saaf index provides a specialized regional framework for measuring efficiency and resilience through the Sufficiency and Resilience Composite Index, or SCI, enabling precise performance assessments.
Findings show that the sector has evolved into a cohesive strategy integrating project delivery, professional capacity building, market innovation and climate action.
According to the SGBF review, Saudi Arabia’s achievements reflect its ability to combine quality implementation, institutional maturity and scale.
Environmentally, green building projects achieved an estimated 62,800 tonnes of carbon‑equivalent annual reduction and earned 29 professional recognitions, reinforcing growing international acknowledgment of Saudi leadership in sustainability.
The data also underscore SGBF’s role as a professional partner in advancing methodologies, applications and impact measurement within non‑governmental frameworks that link policy and practical execution.
More than 7,300 professionals across 22 Arab countries engaged with the Saaf platform in 2025, alongside numerous business‑driven initiatives expanding the region’s sustainable‑development footprint.
Al‑Fadl said that the period from 2025 to 2026 would act as a bridge toward Vision 2030, strengthening a model in which sustainable buildings were managed by impact, measured through indicators and implemented via lasting partnerships.
SGBF serves as the Kingdom’s leading platform for advancing sustainable construction and green design. It unites experts, innovators and practitioners dedicated to building environmentally responsible and high‑performance structures.
Through continuous education, certification and collaboration, SGBF drives the transformation of Saudi Arabia’s building sector — minimizing environmental impact, promoting resource efficiency and improving overall quality of life for communities nationwide.
