How can South and Southeast Asia accelerate the adoption of low-carbon materials in the built environment?
That was the focus of the “Building Bolder: Aligning Innovation, Adoption, and Commitment” panel held on 22 May 2026 during Ecosperity Week 2026 and the Climate Group Asia Action Summit 2026.
Hosted at CDE, the session brought together voices from across academia, industry and sustainability advocacy across the region to examine how the built environment sector can move from isolated innovation to coordinated action on decarbonisation. The discussion centred on limestone calcined clay cement (LC3) and how low-carbon materials can gain stronger traction across South and Southeast Asia.
The panel featured representatives across the supply-to-demand value chain, including Climate Group, Technology and Action for Rural Advancement (TARA), Siam Cement Group (SCG), and CapitaLand. Together, they offered perspectives on technology readiness, manufacturing experience, policy and procurement, as well as the role of coalitions in scaling low-emissions materials in practice.
A key thread in the discussion was that the path to adoption looks different across markets. Speakers shared on-the-ground perspectives from countries such as India and Thailand, where manufacturing conditions, policy settings and levels of market readiness shape how low-carbon materials are introduced and scaled. These experiences added important context, showing that regional progress depends not on a single narrative, but on learning from diverse realities across South and Southeast Asia.
Panellists spoke candidly about the barriers that slow uptake, such as cost perceptions, durability misconceptions, inconsistent demand signals and fragmented regional action. At the same time, they highlighted the importance of stronger leadership from developers, investors and governments, clearer procurement and policy signals, as well as deeper collaboration across the value chain.
“The transition to a lower-carbon built environment depends not only on having viable material innovations, but also on creating the right conditions for adoption. By bringing together stakeholders across the value chain, we can better align innovation, demand and commitment to accelerate the use of low-carbon solutions in practice,” said Assoc Prof Pang Sze Dai (NUS Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering), who moderated the session.
Concluding the session, Andrew Forth, Head of Policy and Advocacy at Climate Group, stated, “I’m very excited to have spent time listening to experts’ views, and to see a group of people committed to collaboration. Hearing suppliers, professors, clients, and experts from across the built environment discussing how they want to use and promote LC3 gives me hope. I think hope is the most important thing as we consider how to build a greener, bolder future. We need to understand what is possible, and we need to keep pushing that forward.”
