The DGNB continues to grow and has welcomed four new members to board of directors
At its general meeting on June 25, 2025, in Stuttgart, the German Sustainable Building Council presented figures on its business development in 2024. Additionally, association members elected a new board of directors to serve the next two years. To reflect the nonprofit organization's strong growth, the highest honorary body was expanded from ten to thirteen members. Jens Böhnlein, Dr. Andreas Gruber, Markus Müller, and Nicole Wallner are four new members who bring a variety of expertise to the board of directors.
Despite the economic difficulties many companies in the construction and real estate industry have experienced for some time, the DGNB has grown enormously as a non-profit organization over the past four years. The number of member organizations in the association has more than doubled since 2020, reaching 2,820 full members by the end of 2024. At the DGNB Academy, the DGNB's continuing education and training platform, annual revenue in 2024 was six times higher than in 2020. Last year alone, around 3,000 people qualified through training courses leading to a licensed qualification, e.g., as a DGNB auditor or ESG manager.
Key figures for DGNB certification also rose again. Compared to the previous year, DGNB's turnover in this area increased by 73 percent in 2024. In addition to the nearly 13,000 projects that have already been certified, the number of projects registered for certification and currently being processed exceeded 7,700. With trained experts in over 60 countries, certified projects in over 30 nations, and partner organizations around the world, the DGNB is the largest international network for sustainable building in Europe by far.
The DGNB expanded its executive committee to 13 members.
“As much as we are delighted with the growth in all areas, we also see it as an incentive and a responsibility to continue consistently – especially in the current climate, where many things are being called into question again under the guise of reducing bureaucracy,” explains Dr. Christine Lemaitre, Managing Director of the DGNB. "We are constantly exploring new areas of the built environment and trying to bring about positive change in the direction of sustainability and climate protection."
In recent years, the DGNB has expanded its activities to include new topics and stakeholder groups in sustainable planning, construction, and operation. For this reason, the association decided to amend its bylaws and increase the number of board of directors members from ten to thirteen to better incorporate additional professional perspectives.
All members of the newly elected DGNB board of directors at a glance:
- Jens Böhnlein (Global Head of Real Estate, Siemens Healthineers AG)
- Dr. Andreas Gruber (Chief Sustainability Officer, Deutsche Kreditbank AG)
- Martin Haas (Owner, haascookzemmrich STUDIO2050)
- Hermann Horster (Head of Sustainability, BNP Paribas Real Estate Deutschland)
- Prof. Anett-Maud Joppien (Professor, Technische Universität Darmstadt – Architecture)
- Prof. Dr.-Ing. Anke Karmann-Woessner (Head of the City Planning Department, Karlsruhe)
- Thomas Kraubitz (Partner, Head of Sustainability and Climate, Buro Happold GmbH)
- Markus Müller (President, Chamber of Architects Baden-Württemberg)
- Prof. Matthias Rudolph (Professor, State Academy of Fine Arts, Stuttgart, and Project Manager, Transsolar Energietechnik GmbH)
- Prof. Alexander Rudolphi (Managing Director, Rudolphi + Rudolphi GmbH)
- Prof. Amandus Samsøe Sattler (Founder and owner, ensømble Studio Architektur Berlin)
- Prof. Josef Steretzeder (ppa., Head of Integrated Management Services/Green Building Lindner Group KG)
- Nicole Wallner (Director Sustainable Business Development, Ten Brinke Group, Global)