From Transparency to Traction: The Connected Future of Sustainability

What It Takes to Turn Sustainability Data Into Real-World Decisions

Sustainability goals are not the problem.

Across the built environment, manufacturers, designers, and owners have spent the last decade setting increasingly ambitious targets—for carbon, for health, for social impact. The hard part has always been what comes next: turning those goals into everyday decisions that hold up under real project pressures.

That challenge, and the shift now underway to finally address it, was the focus of Parallel’s recent Conversations with Friends webinar, featuring Jack Dinning (Brightworks Sustainability), Brent Trenga (Kingspan Insulated Panels), and Nadav Malin (Green Commons), moderated by Parallel CEO, Annie Bevan.

What emerged wasn’t a theory of better sustainability, but a clear picture of why connected, digitized data is becoming the backbone of real-world progress.

We Didn’t Lack Data. We Lacked Connection.

As Bevan opened the conversation, the industry’s push for product transparency began in earnest more than a decade ago. With the launch of LEED v4, Architects and designers asked manufacturers for Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), Health Product Declarations (HPDs), and other disclosures so they could make better choices.

Manufacturers responded.

The result was an explosion of sustainability data, but also a new problem: information overload without decision support.

“We did the work. We invested in transparency,” Bevan said. “But when leadership asked, ‘What’s the ROI?’ we didn’t have a clear answer.”

Malin traced this pattern back even further to the mid 90’s. Early sustainability efforts relied on proxy metrics—recycled content, rapidly renewable materials—because better data simply didn’t exist. As more dimensions of impact became visible (carbon, chemistry, ecosystems, social equity), the industry gained depth but lost coherence.

Each new dataset answered one question, while leaving others unanswered.

Why Frameworks Matter (But Aren’t Enough on Their Own)

This is where shared frameworks entered the picture. Dinning and Bevan reflected on the beginnings of shaping the Common Materials Framework, which created a common language for understanding sustainability impacts of building products across five key areas: climate, human health, ecosystem health, social equity, and circularity.

But as Dinning explained, language alone doesn’t make decisions easier.

“The CMF started with thousands of data points,” he said. “That level of rigor is essential, but it’s not something designers can work with day to day.”

To move from knowledge to action, the industry needed a way to translate complexity into clarity—without losing nuance.

That’s the role of tools like Brightworks’ Basic / Better / Best (BBB) system, which layers actionable benchmarks on top of robust datasets. Instead of asking teams to interpret dozens of metrics at once, BBB helps them understand where a product stands—relative to what’s available in the market and what matters most for a given project.

Not perfect answers. Better decisions. Faster.

When Data Changes the Outcome

For manufacturers, connected data isn’t just about compliance—it’s about influence.

Trenga shared a moment that brought this into sharp focus. On a major automotive battery plant project, Kingspan faced a last-minute risk of being value-engineered out. Instead of arguing on price or performance, Trenga presented a simple comparison: the embodied carbon difference between two product options.

That single data point—clearly documented, project-specific, and credible—stopped the decision in its tracks.

“The purchase order was paused,” Trenga said. “Two weeks later, they stuck with the lower-carbon option. That data changed the outcome.”

What made the difference wasn’t just the existence of an EPD. It was the ability to access, compare, and communicate that information at the exact moment it mattered.

The Hidden Work Behind “Easy”

One of the most revealing parts of the conversation focused on what it actually takes to make sustainability data usable.

Defining a “product” sounds simple, until you account for thousands of SKUs, configurations, finishes, and performance variations. Sustainability impacts can change based on details that don’t appear until late in design or construction.

Without connected systems, that complexity overwhelms teams.

This is why manufacturers like Kingspan are investing in Product Information Management (PIM) systems—creating a single source of truth that feeds websites, specifications, certifications, and design tools simultaneously.

Update the data once. Let it flow everywhere.

“We’re finally getting away from spreadsheets—and toward systems built for scale,” said Trenga.

What Changes When Data Is Truly Connected

When sustainability data moves into interoperable systems, the impact extends beyond product selection:

• Design teams spend less time chasing documentation and more time evaluating options.

• Contractors and subs receive clearer, more consistent requests.

• Manufacturers gain visibility into how sustainability performance affects specification and sales.

• Owners and investors get defensible, reportable outcomes tied to real assets—not assumptions.

“The goal isn’t perfection. It’s informed decision-making at every stage,” said Dinning.

Looking Ahead to 2030

If the industry continues on its current path, the panelists agreed on one thing: materials decisions will look very different by the end of the decade.

Not because teams suddenly care more, but because the friction will finally be gone.

By 2030, sustainability decisions won’t rely on heroic effort or specialist knowledge. They’ll be embedded in everyday workflows, supported by shared frameworks, interoperable tools, and data that travels with the product—from manufacturer to project to reporting.

As Malin noted, the final step is cultural as much as technical: helping more people understand what the data means—and why it matters.

“The warmer the water,” Bevan said, “the easier it is for more people to jump in. It's becoming time for all to join us”

Watch the Full Conversation

Missed the live session—or want to revisit it? Watch the full webinar recording.

Access Recording

Panelists:

• Jack Dinning, Technical Lead, Brightworks Sustainability

• Brent Trenga, Director of Sustainability, North America, Kingspan

• Nadav Malin, President, Green Commons

Moderator:

• Annie Bevan, CEO, Parallel Sustainability