As climate concerns intensify and the construction sector faces increasing scrutiny for its environmental impact, the need for scalable and commercially viable low-carbon solutions has never been greater. Cement production alone contributes nearly 7–8 percent of global carbon emissions, making the built environment one of the most critical sectors in the global decarbonisation journey.
GreenJams is working to challenge conventional construction practices through carbon-negative and ultra-low-carbon material innovation. By transforming agricultural residues and industrial waste into sustainable building materials such as Agrocrete®️ and cement-free platforms like Novastone™️, the company is redefining how infrastructure can be designed, manufactured, and scaled.
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In this conversation, Tarun Jami, Founder of GreenJams, shares insights into the company’s long-term mission to reduce emissions through material innovation, the challenges of introducing new technologies into a risk-averse industry, and why ecosystem-level collaboration will be essential in making climate-positive construction mainstream. He also discusses the role of policy, performance validation, ESG compliance, and partnerships in accelerating the transition toward a low-carbon built environment.
1. GreenJams aims to remove a significant share of global carbon emissions—what inspired this mission, and how close are we to achieving it?
The inspiration came from a simple realisation: construction is one of the largest yet most under-addressed contributors to climate change. Cement alone accounts for ~7–8% of global CO₂ emissions, and the broader built environment contributes a significant share of total emissions.
If we want meaningful climate impact, we have to address sectors at scale—and construction is one of the few where material innovation can shift entire emission profiles.
Our long-term vision is to remove 10% of global carbon emissions through construction materials. We are still early in that journey, but with every project deployed, we are proving that carbon-negative and ultra-low-carbon materials can work at a commercial scale.
2. How do you see carbon-negative construction evolving into a mainstream standard?
Carbon-negative construction will follow a similar trajectory to renewable energy.
It will start with early adopters developers and institutions focused on sustainability—but will rapidly scale once three conditions are met:
- Cost parity,
- Performance validation, and
- Regulatory alignment.
We are already seeing this shift begin. As carbon accounting becomes more stringent and ESG-linked capital grows, materials that reduce or remove carbon will move from being optional to economically and regulatory preferred choices.
3. Agrocrete®️ is positioned as a superior alternative—what challenges did you face in adoption?
The biggest challenge is not performance, it’s trust.
Construction is a risk-averse industry. Builders are not just evaluating cost; they are evaluating long-term structural reliability. Any new material is initially met with scepticism.
We addressed this by focusing on data and validation testing, certifications, real-world deployments, and consistent manufacturing quality.
Once developers see that Agrocrete®️ delivers on strength, durability, and thermal performance, the conversation shifts from “why should we try this?” to “how quickly can we adopt this?”
4. With such a large share of emissions linked to the built environment, what systemic changes are needed?
The biggest change required is a shift from design-led sustainability to material-led sustainability.
While design efficiency remains important, a large portion of emissions is locked in through materials before a building is operational. Addressing this requires:
- Adoption of low-carbon and carbon-negative materials,
- Integration of embodied carbon metrics into project decision-making,
- Updates to codes and standards to accommodate new material systems,
- And alignment of policy and incentives with climate outcomes.
Without addressing materials, we cannot meaningfully decarbonise construction.
5. How does GreenJams balance cost-efficiency with sustainability in India?
Eliminating the green premium has been a core design principle for us.
If sustainable materials cost significantly more, adoption will remain limited. Our approach has been to engineer materials such as Novastone and Agrocrete®️ to deliver strong performance while remaining cost-competitive with conventional alternatives.
This allows developers to adopt sustainable materials without compromising project economics, which is essential for scale in a price-sensitive market like India.
6. How are your solutions helping developers meet green building regulations?
Materials play a direct role in green building certifications and ESG compliance.
Our products contribute to credits under systems like LEED, IGBC, and GRIHA, particularly in areas such as:
- Low embodied carbon,
- Recycled content,
- Regional sourcing,
- Innovation in design.
In many cases, the use of these materials can contribute 4–8 points or more, which is significant for achieving higher certification levels.
Beyond certification, developers are increasingly required to disclose material-level carbon data, and our products provide that transparency.
7. What role do partnerships play in scaling your impact?
Partnerships are central to scale.
On the supply side, we work with precast manufacturers to enable decentralised production of low-carbon materials using our binder platform. This allows us to scale rapidly without building all the capacity ourselves.
On the demand side, partnerships with developers, institutions, and infrastructure players help drive adoption in real-world projects.
We also engage with policy bodies and global organisations to align material innovation with regulatory and market frameworks.
Decarbonising construction is not something one company can do alone it requires ecosystem-level collaboration.
