<p>Geotechnical construction, being one of the first and driving steps for built infrastructure, has a vast potential for sustainable initiatives. The sustainability-oriented approach during foundation design and construction coupled with proper choice of materials can lead to substantial savings in carbon emissions. A significant contribution to carbon emissions comes from the choice of foundation solution. This paper presents case studies from India and Singapore where different hierarchies of carbon hierarchy tool, namely Eliminate, Reduce, Substitute and Compensation, were implemented. Elimination involves selection of a sustainable foundation solution in place of original foundation solution, which had high carbon emissions, for example, use of aggregate piers in place of reinforced concrete piles. Reduction is optimizing the design, resulting in reduced quantity of material and timeline. Substitution generally involves using alternate/low carbon material or fuel, which has similar efficiency but reduced carbon emissions. Lastly, compensate or carbon offsetting, involves using carbon credits to offset residual emissions. These are some of the primary drivers presented in this paper for reducing carbon emissions and to outline opportunities for innovations in this space.</p>