Examining the role of ESG disclosure and firm characteristics in promoting global green building adoption: a panel probit approach

The purpose of this article is to examine the impact of environmental, social, and governance practices and firm characteristics on the adoption of green building (GB) practices. Environmental, social, and governance practices, also known as ESG disclosures, offer a comprehensive framework for assessing and reporting a company's sustainability performance. This article presents an analysis of the adoption of GB practices by 2510 companies from all over the world over a five-year period from 2018 to 2022. The study utilises data from Refinitiv Eikon and employs probit logistic regression for analysis. The research methodology involves examining the impact of firm characteristics and sustainability initiatives on the likelihood of companies adopting green practices. The findings reveal significant effects of specific firm characteristics and sustainability initiatives on the adoption of GB practices, highlighting a positive relationship between these variables. The findings also indicate that when it comes to their GB initiatives, the consumer staples and consumer discretionary sectors disclose highly on their GB. There are significant variations between countries. The countries in Oceania region are lagging behind in terms of GB practices, with only 65.49 per cent of businesses nationwide report on GB. In contrast, over three out of every four companies in Europe with 77.01 per cent report on GB. The study contributes to the understanding of the factors influencing companies' decisions to adopt GB practices and provides valuable insights for policymakers, investors, and other stakeholders.