As member states prepare to ramp up the building renovation rate, there is an unprecedented opportunity to hardwire health aspects into the built environment. The brand-new edition of the Healthy Buildings Barometer maps why and how health, energy and climate …
Efficient buildings save energy, money and climate-wrecking emissions. As EU negotiators prepare to hammer out an agreement on the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), it is important to highlight that significant innovation is underway in the sector, writes Adrian Joyce.
Energy use and energy efficiency are inextricably linked, with energy efficiency being one of the main factors for explaining changes in energy consumption. Just look at the residential building stock, where changes in heating consumption may be explained by changes …
To quote a popular song from the early 2000s, ‘it’s getting hot in here’. But, unlike the people in the song, most of us don’t have the option of taking off all our clothes. Instead, we need to find other …
The challenge with any energy efficient renovation project is demonstrating performance. How do you know that the renovation delivers the promised energy savings? Barry Lynham is Managing Director and Quentin Galland is Public & Regulatory Affairs Director at Knauf Insulation. To answer …
How energy efficient building renovations can help the EU close the gap between energy supply and energy demand.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has brought the European Union’s energy dependency issue front and centre, yet energy efficiency is the place to start on the path to energy sovereignty, writes Dominique Bossan.
The war in Ukraine has brought the European Union’s energy dependency issue front and centre. Driven by a commitment to reduce imports from Russia, which currently makes up nearly 45% of the bloc’s total gas demand, the EU must look at alternative means for securing its energy supply.
Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has prompted the EU to start getting serious about its energy policy and cut its reliance on Russia. To do that, building renovation must be a priority in the EU's REPowerEU Action Plan, due in May, writes Adrian Joyce.
Since its adoption in 2013, the Construction Products Regulation (CPR) has proven to be a pillar of the European single market. By establishing uniform rules for the CE marking of construction products and materials, industry professionals, public authorities, and consumers alike can now easily compare the performance of different products.
Each EU country must ensure that at least 3% of the floor area of buildings owned by public bodies are renovated every year – including hospitals and schools, not just buildings owned and occupied by central government, write Jutta Paulus and Ciarán Cuffe.
Both tenants and homeowners need to be involved in renovation programmes to bring Europe's ageing building stock in line with its climate goals. Energy cooperatives could be one way to encourage citizens' support, writes Ciarán Cuffe.
Trillions is needed for the deep building renovations required to meet Europe's climate targets. To make this happen, EU institutions need to use the network of banks across Europe and incentivise loans for home renovation, argue finance campaigners.
Looking for provocative opinions and dynamic new approaches to energy efficiency in Central and Eastern Europe? Searching for an interactive way to share innovative ideas that could inspire real future change in the region? Ondrej Sramek is the Corporate Affairs Director, …
Effiecient, technological and smarter buildings should be the cornerstone of Europe's decarbonisation, but more effort needs to go towards renovating the bloc's current building stock, writes Seán Kelly.
I’ve been involved with the renovation of buildings for more than a decade. I’ve campaigned for policies to put renovation at the top of public agendas and I’ve worked on hundreds of retrofit sites across Europe. Barry Lynham is Managing Director …
Europe's new and revised climate legislation needs to enable cities to reach climate neutrality by mid-century, including by encouraging more building renovation and driving the transition to clean energy, European mayors write.
An EU-wide emissions trading system for the transport and building sectors would secure the financing of low carbon solutions and support lower-income households and member states through the redistribution of carbon pricing revenues, argue Matthias Buck and Andreas Graf.
A handful of leading manufacturers of heating systems are paving the way for clean heating, showing that ditching fossil fuel boilers is not only possible but also financially desirable, write Davide Sabbadin and Mélissa Zill.
The European Commission's commitment to create a "climate social fund" is very welcome but its design will be crucial if it is going to have an impact on building renovation, write Louise Sunderland and Samuel Thomas.
As buildings account for 36% of the European Union’s CO2 emissions, reducing the environmental impact of any new building is essential to contributing to the EU’s ambition to be the first climate neutral continent by 2050. Vincent Briard is Group Sustainability …
Across Europe, 50 million households struggle with energy poverty stemming from low incomes, high energy bills, poor energy efficiency, as well as inadequate housing. The EU’s Renovation Wave, a ‘flagship’ of the European Green Deal, provides a unique opportunity to tackle Europe’s inadequate housing while contributing to EU climate targets, writes Anna Kompatscher.
I want you to take a minute to visualise the ideal urban landscape of the future. How does it look? Full of flying cars and soaring glass skyscrapers? I doubt it. Jure Šumi is the Representative and Spokesperson of the European Business …
To realise its potential to help Europeans live "beautifully, sustainably, together," the Commission needs to prioritise beauty as a European public good supported by adequate investment, maximum societal participation and a comprehensive policy framework, argues Vadim Kononenko.
