The Green Star Communities is a rating system that is being developed by the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) in conjunction with the Government to encourage sustainable practice in Australian cities.

The draft national framework is the first stage of the process, and enshrines the five national best practice principles which will guide Green Star Communities rating system.

These principles include: • Liveability; • Economic prosperity; • Environmental quality, which includes environmental conservation as well as the reduction of carbon emissions; • Place making, which involves creating a distinct identity for a city, and; • Urban governance.

The environmental quality principle will involve the promotion of sustainable energy generation and distribution, and encouraging greater resource efficiency and the retrofitting of existing sites and buildings. GBCA Chief Executive Romilly Madew said that the decision to launch the framework at the Green Cities forum reflected the evolution of the Council’s focus from individual building, to entire communities.