Evaluating LEED commercial interior (LEED-CI) projects under the LEED transition from v3 to v4: the differences between China and the US

This study aims to assess the difference between projects from versions 3 (v3) and 4 (v4) of the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Commercial Interiors (LEED-CI) rating system in China and the US at the Silver and Gold certificate levels. Non-parametric statistics are used to estimate these differences. We analyze the Sustainable Sites (SS), Location and Transportation (LT), Water Efficiency (WE), Energy and Atmosphere (EA), Materials and Resources (MR), and Indoor Environmental Quality (EQ) categories for the LEED-CI Silver and Gold projects. The results show that the WE and EA categories in v3 and the WE, EA, LT, and MR categories in v4 are implemented differently in China and the US. For the LEED-CI Silver and Gold projects, the MR and EQ categories in v3 and the EQ category in v4 show similar implementation in China and the US. The LEED-CIv3 SS category shows a different result at the Gold level but the same at the Silver level when comparing China and the US. Thus, at the Silver and Gold levels of the LEED-CI projects, v4, rather than v3, provides more opportunities to highlight the environmental priorities of China and the US.