Introducing the first full draft of the 2026 Green Communities Criteria

Every five years, Green Communities, the one-and-only green building standard created with, and for, the affordable housing sector, gets a refresh. Over the last several months, we've worked diligently to develop this first draft of the 2026 version--our 20th anniversary edition of the program.

To get this draft ready, we convened experts across disciplines, hosting 15 hours of workshops and listening sessions with nearly 250 affordable housing thought leaders, policy experts, residents, developers, and building practitioners.

Priorities for the first 2026 draft

We started this update by highlighting three enduring and connected themes that remain foundational to Green Communities: 

• The health and well-being of residents and communities  

• The energy used and the substances emitted when we make materials, construct buildings, and operate homes  

• The resilience of the homes and communities we build — preparing for the worst and ensuring they can recover from climate events 

Together, these three themes have helped us clarify, reframe, and strengthen relationships between existing criteria and categories. In fact, we’ve embedded them into the standard as a wayfinding aid that can lead integrated teams through the process from early planning to operation and maintenance. We believe they will help you surface priorities, explore solutions, and engage with partners across disciplines, communities, and cultures. 

We’re thrilled with this first draft of the new criteria, and we want to take it across the finish line with feedback from you. Please share this opportunity to comment with your colleagues and networks as well. We can't wait to hear what you think.  

Public comment on the 2026 Enterprise Green Communities Criteria update will be open Tuesday, July 29th, through Wednesday, August 27th.

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