# Adaptation of the SBTool for Sustainability Assessment of High School Buildings in Portugal--SAHSBT
## 1 Introduction
Students and teachers spend several hours a day surrounded by the school's environment, and therefore, this specific environment has a major influence on their quality of life. Along with the maintenance of the high school buildings, the sustainable refurbishment of high school buildings, in terms of the quality of life of teachers and students, energy efficiency, reduction of emission of greenhouse gases, optimization of water consumption, better indoor air quality, improvement of health and learning conditions, and minimization of costs, is crucial [8]. The Program for the Modernization of Schools for Secondary Education (Programa de Modernizacao de Escolas de Educacao Secundaria, PMEES) aimed to place Portuguese education in a position of international reference. The PMEES included interventions in 332 of the 447 Portuguese high schools, equivalent to 74% of all high schools in Portugal. Empresa Parque Escolar (EPE), created in 2007 for this purpose, is carrying out the construction and renovation works of the high schools [9]. No sustainability assessment exists for school buildings that is adequate to the Portuguese reality and benefits the requalification of schools. This article aims to analyze the importance of the use of sustainability indicators to reach and develop strategies for the regeneration of school buildings, taking into account the sustainability assessment methodology of SBToolPT, which is based on the international SBTool methodology developed by iiSBE (International Initiative for a Sustainable Built Environment). Adapting this methodology creates a rubric that is specifically applicable to the evaluation of the sustainability of high school buildings in Portugal, which is important, because there is currently no such specific tool elaborated in this country for this purpose. Thus, this work adapts the SBTool methodology for the Sustainability Assessment of High School Buildings in Portugal, creating a tool tailored for Portugal--the SAHSBPT methodology. SAHSBPT will assist architects and designers with the improvement of sustainability in high school buildings in the project design phase or the rehabilitation of existing buildings. All building types have different characteristics; thus, it is necessary to develop specific sustainability methodologies to address those distinct traits and functions. In other words, a school building has certain particularities that must be considered with respect to implementing principles of sustainability; for instance, as it is an institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students, children, and adolescents, it requires a more dedicated and rigorous level of comfort geared towards a younger population. Furthermore, it is important to plan construction in order to reduce environmental impacts by using the appropriate equipment and technology. Several environmental assessment tools have been created in order to assist with the development of more sustainable building projects. Among these methodologies, there are some tailored to schools, such as LEED BD + C: Schools, BREEAM Education 2008, and the SBTool for K-12 schools, which promote greater sustainability in the built environment, such as in the project design phase or rehabilitation projects. The methodology proposed in this work is similar to SBToolPT-STP for Office Buildings and SBToolPT-H. Some SBToolPT-STP for Office Buildings indicators have been modified, removed, or added here to better adapt it to school buildings in SAHSBPT. Indicators related to environmental comfort and security have been modified, because SAHSBPT must consider the needs of children and thus the values for reference practices must be stricter. Energy indicators have been modified to adapt to new legislation. Indicators concerning \"sustainability awareness\" and \"ergonomic comfort\" have been included to meet the specific requirements of students. Indicators relating to the choice of land and the construction phase have been removed.