The Gulf Organisation for Research and Development (GORD) announced that the GCC Standardization Organization (GSO) has officially adopted GORD’s Global Sustainability Assessment System (GSAS) as the regional Gulf Standard GSO 3000:2025 for sustainable buildings. This standard applies to the construction and building sector across all GCC countries, aiming to enhance the environmental performance and efficiency of urban projects throughout the region.

The regional adoption of GSAS comes as part of GSO’s efforts to develop an integrated framework guiding building and construction practices across the Gulf region, ensuring a practical methodology for applying sustainability requirements within the wider Gulf Building Code. It also contributes to catalyzing the implementation of green practices across both public and private projects while supporting sustainable development goals throughout the region.

Dr. Yousef Alhorr, Founding Chairman of GORD, said, “The GCC Standardization Organization’s adoption of GSAS under Standard GSO 3000:2025 marks a pivotal milestone in establishing sustainability benchmarks for the building and construction sector across the GCC. That said, policies and standards are only effective when they are matched by skilled professionals who can put them into practice. This underscores the vital importance of capacity building through training programs, ensuring that goals and standards are transformed into measurable results on the ground.”

To support the effective regional implementation of the new standard, GORD, in collaboration with the GCC Standardization Organization (GSO), organized the first specialized training workshop on the GSAS framework at the GSO headquarters in Riyadh. The intensive three-day program focused on the GSAS Design & Build (GSAS-D&B) framework. It was attended by more than 75 participants from government agencies and relevant sectors across the GCC, as part of an effort to build the professional capacity required to ensure a comprehensive and effective rollout of the adopted Gulf standard.

The workshop was led by experts from GORD’s Center of Excellence, GSAS Trust, who utilized an integrated approach that combines academic theory with practical application, ensuring full alignment with the broader Gulf Building Code. Participants engaged in hands-on sessions covering GSAS methodologies for assessing environmental performance across eight key categories that include energy, water, indoor environment, cultural & economic value, site, urban connectivity, materials, and management & operations. Beyond theoretical frameworks, attendees gained practical proficiency in core system tools, including GSAS calculators and GSASgate – the online platform designed to manage sustainable building projects and track assessment and certification processes.

Beyond knowledge dissemination, the workshop serves as a critical bridge to the mandatory qualifying exam for becoming a GSAS Design & Build (D&B) Certified Green Professional (CGP). Professionals who successfully pass the exam are authorized to lead GSAS projects. Furthermore, having accredited CGPs on staff allows organizations to qualify as GSAS Service Providers, enhancing their competitiveness in major projects that require documented sustainability standards.

As the Middle East’s first performance-based green building rating system, GSAS is now the fastest-growing framework in the GCC, boasting nearly 2,700 certified projects and a footprint exceeding 3.1 billion square feet.  Against this backdrop of rapid growth, the recent GSAS training workshop served as a critical vehicle for building professional capacity in parallel with establishing regional standards – an essential alignment to ensure that the new GSO Standard delivers lasting impact across the region.