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Extracted Content
REQUIREMENTS EXPLAINED
The credit requires teams to conduct an occupant experience survey during the 12-month reporting period. The survey must address occupant satisfaction related to the indoor environmental quality of the project but may include additional questions focused on sensory or emotional experience. Teams may use a survey of their own creation, the USGBC provided survey, or another standardized survey, such as Occupant Satisfaction Survey created by the Center for the Built Environment (CBE).
Survey Questions
To meet the credit requirements, regular building occupants must be surveyed using the following, or similar, question: “Indicate how satisfied you are with the indoor environment in this building . ” Phrasing the question differently, to gain the same outcome, is acceptable.
Though not required, projects are encouraged to include additional, more focused, survey questions to better understand occupants’ experiences, preferences, and emotions related to the space. Refer to the Center for the Built Environment ’s research and guidance on occupant surveys. [109] Additional, more focused, survey questions could center around specific elements of the indoor environment, including but not limited to acoustics, lighting, thermal comfort, connection with nature, accessibility, inclusion, and belonging, or sensory landscape. People have different thermal preferences, lighting needs, and sensory responses. Understanding this variability helps create more dynamic, adaptable, and satisfactory spaces.
Survey Response Scale
A seven-point scale must be used: very satisfied, satisfied, somewhat satisfied, neither, somewhat dissatisfied, dissatisfied, very dissatisfied. This number of options on a scale obtains more detailed responses leading to a better understanding of occupant satisfaction.
Survey Responses
Projects are responsible for determining the best approach for collecting survey responses from as many regular building occupants as possible to maximize understanding and impact. For hospitality projects, hotel or lodging guests may be excluded from the surveying. Visitors do not need to complete the survey. However, it may be beneficial for building managers to include visitors in the survey distribution for buildings aimed at the guest experience, like libraries or convention centers.
109 Lindsay T. Graham, Thomas Parkinson, and Stefano Schiavon, “Lessons Learned from 20 Years of CBE’s Occupant Surveys”. Buildings and Cities 2, no. 1 (2021): 166–184. doi.org/10.5334/bc.76.
U.S. Green Building Council LEED v5 Reference Guide for Operations and Maintenance, April 2025 Launch Edition 236