Operating existing buildings is responsible for more than a quarter of global carbon emissions, and global emissions from buildings continue to rise by 2% per year. As the need for carbon reduction grows, companies are increasingly adopting climate action plans and goals and publicly reporting emissions data.   

While there are already green building certification programs for operational sustainability in the marketplace, most existing facilities are too far below the performance thresholds of the most popular programs to even begin. Southface identified the need for a steppingstone to bridge the gap.   

In 2013, a group of sustainability experts and real estate professionals began a conversation around the framework for a program that will help accelerate the adoption of existing green building operations and maintenance best practices across large real estate portfolios. 

In 2018, the soft launch of BIT Building began in partnership with WSP, a leading engineering professional services firm, providing a simple, low-cost solution that works for everyone. Companies like Google, Adobe, and The Chicago Housing Authority became early adopters of the program.  

In 2023, BIT Building is scaling the impact of this uniquely versatile program with a full launch of its online platform.