Dr Ibrahim Yahaya WUNI (Ghana)

Ibrahim believes that transitioning the construction industry to circular economy is the best way to decouple this industry from the consumption of finite resources. He develops strategies to guide construction practitioners, project teams, and organisations to implement circular practices, processes, and mindsets in the design, construction, operation, and deconstruction of buildings.

PhD in Construction Engineering and Management

Current position: Assistant Professor at the Department of Construction Engineering & Management, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Saudi Arabia

Research focus: circular building, circular construction, green building, and modular construction

The construction industry depletes a vast proportion of the earth’s non-renewable resources, consumes a significant amount of energy, and emits unprecedented quantities of greenhouse gases. That is why Ibrahim is convinced that achieving several of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is almost impossible without a sustainable construction industry.

Over the past three years, Ibrahim has focused on developing integrated frameworks for the implementation of green buildings, modular construction, and circular construction projects. He is currently working on a project to develop a framework for implementing circular construction projects in major cities such as Hong Kong. His project has three goals: to develop best practices for implementing circular building projects; to develop performance measurement models to quantify the benefits of circular building projects; and to establish a clear policy roadmap for implementing circular building projects in Hong Kong.

A new perspective of Ibrahim’s research is the development of a circular economy scale for buildings and construction projects. It aims to resolve long-standing concerns about the extent of waste reduction, material flows, and pollution reduction to be classified as circular economy in construction projects.

His research also aims to develop strategies for the circular retrofit of existing buildings in urban areas. Thus, it provides a more holistic perspective of achieving circular buildings in the construction industry. The research findings would greatly complement efforts to achieve the SDGs.

Ibrahim is working to establish circular construction, a crucial innovative topic as the construction industry is a major contributor to global warming. In addition, his numerous awards and grants caught the jury’s attention, as did the fact that his research will contribute to achievement of several SDGs.

The research of Ibrahim mainly contributes to the Sustainable Development Goals 6, 9, 11, 12, 13:



Take a look at this video that briefly introduces Ibrahim and his research: