Contracts for Sustainable Infrastructure: Ensuring the economic, social and environmental co-benefits of infrastructure investment projects

This report by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) defines sustainable infrastructure and provides guidance on integrating sustainability criteria into public–private partnerships (PPPs) and other infrastructure contracts to support the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.

• Sustainable infrastructure is essential for achieving the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, requiring specific designs that mitigate economic, social, and environmental risks while generating corresponding co-benefits. This applies to sectors including transportation, electricity, telecommunications, water, and sanitation.
• To ensure PPPs result in sustainable infrastructure, sustainability criteria must be embedded from the project's start and reflected in the PPP contract, which serves as the normative framework for allocating risks and responsibilities between governments and investors.
• The report identifies a gap in the 2017 World Bank Group’s Guidance on PPP Contractual Provisions, which Foley Hoag LLP notes often provides advice that limits government actions intended to achieve the SDGs and fails to address how infrastructure projects can contribute to sustainable development.

APA

Brauch,, M. D. (2017). Contracts for Sustainable Infrastructure: Ensuring the economic, social and environmental co-benefits of infrastructure investment projects. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/contracts-sustainable-infrastructure-ensuring-economic-social-and-environmental

Chicago

Brauch,, Martin Dietrich. Contracts for Sustainable Infrastructure: Ensuring the economic, social and environmental co-benefits of infrastructure investment projects. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2017. https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/contracts-sustainable-infrastructure-ensuring-economic-social-and-environmental.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Brauch, |first1=Martin Dietrich |title=Contracts for Sustainable Infrastructure: Ensuring the economic, social and environmental co-benefits of infrastructure investment projects |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=8 December 2017 |url=https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/contracts-sustainable-infrastructure-ensuring-economic-social-and-environmental |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{brauch2017contracts, author = {Brauch,, Martin Dietrich}, title = {{Contracts for Sustainable Infrastructure: Ensuring the economic, social and environmental co-benefits of infrastructure investment projects}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2017}, month = dec, url = {https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/contracts-sustainable-infrastructure-ensuring-economic-social-and-environmental}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }