Developed under the Asia Low Carbon Buildings Transition (ALCBT) Project, the Building Emission Assessment Tool (BEAT) supports practitioners, policymakers, and stakeholders in five ALCBT countries, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Thailand, and Viet Nam, in assessing and reducing embodied and operational carbon emissions in the building sector.

As Part I of the BEAT documentation series, this handbook provides a comprehensive introduction to the key terminology, definitions, and methodologies underpinning the tool, including its life cycle assessment (LCA) framework, building classifications, data requirements, and carbon calculation approaches.