This book makes clear at once what needs to be done for buildings to contribute positively to a better world and your role in it.

Is the world better off with your building? In 99.9% of cases the answer is 'No'. Almost every building pollutes the air, water, soil and damages biodiversity. What if we turned that around and focused on making a positive contribution? If buildings purify the air, water and soil, create biodiversity and generate more energy than we use? Then we will heal the world with our buildings.

What Unilever's Paul Polman describes for companies in the book Net Positive, Vincent van der Meulen describes in Building with a Positive Footprint for the construction industry. The book offers an accessible explanation on how you can build in a radically sustainable way and declares why this is not yet happening. It provides a new method with practical leads, tools and insights to get started yourself, and especially with your team and partners.

This book is a must-read for professionals involved in the creation of a building and unites all stakeholders around this sustainable ambition.


Vincent van der Meulen is an architect and partner at Kraaijvanger Architects. He wrote this book based on his own experiences, driven by his desire to radically accelerate the sustainability of the construction industry.

This book makes clear at once what needs to be done for buildings to contribute positively to a better world and your role in it.

Is the world better off with your building? In 99.9% of cases the answer is 'No'. Almost every building pollutes the air, water, soil and damages biodiversity. What if we turned that around and focused on making a positive contribution? If buildings purify the air, water and soil, create biodiversity and generate more energy than we use? Then we will heal the world with our buildings.

What Unilever's Paul Polman describes for companies in the book Net Positive, Vincent van der Meulen describes in Building with a Positive Footprint for the construction industry. The book offers an accessible explanation on how you can build in a radically sustainable way and declares why this is not yet happening. It provides a new method with practical leads, tools and insights to get started yourself, and especially with your team and partners.

This book is a must-read for professionals involved in the creation of a building and unites all stakeholders around this sustainable ambition.


Vincent van der Meulen is an architect and partner at Kraaijvanger Architects. He wrote this book based on his own experiences, driven by his desire to radically accelerate the sustainability of the construction industry.