Energy use by buildings offers a tremendous opportunity for governments seeking to foster clean energy technologies. Sustainability-minded policymakers should focus on three interlinked policy approaches related to better buildings: 1) energy policy that favors energy efficiency and distributed renewable energy sources, 2) climate policy that recognizes and internalizes the cost of carbon pollution; and 3) standards and performance criteria for the building envelope and the building components.
New York City’s Greener, Greater Buildings Plan is designed to “promote cost-effective steps to create significant economic and environmental impacts”1 through efficiency improvements in buildings. By both guiding the market through increased information and enforcing action through code compliance and retrocommissioning, the legislation sets the tone for efficiency initiatives...
The National Resources Defense Council’s Lane Burt sees the United States falling behind China and India in building efficiency and greenhouse gas reduction. In this podcast, he tells how to overcome market barriers and drive progress through carbon emission regulations like cap-and-trade or a carbon tax, along with policies like building energy labeling, efficiency codes, renewable energy...
With China’s national energy use recently surpassing that of the United States and rising rapidly, energy efficiency in that country has become a high priority.1 Recent efforts by the Chinese government have sought to reduce energy consumption, with an emphasis on improving the efficiency of buildings. China’s National Development and Reform Committee (NDRC) has identified three...
Technology transfer programs are a key component of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). With new, clean technology, developing countries can grow their economies while slowing or stopping the growth of their greenhouse gas emissions over time. The challenge is in designing and establishing programs that will be environmentally and economically...
