Climate & emissions

Architects have been urged to reconsider their use of concrete after research found that cement – its key ingredient – was responsible for 8 % of global CO2 emissions Research by the think tank Chatham House, underlines the need for drastic changes in the production and use of concrete, the world’s most used man-made material, because […]

The pioneering Dutch approach to energy-efficient home renovation is being employed in UK social housing and dramatically cutting energy costs. The city of Nottingham has become the first city council to pioneer the “Energiesprong” (energy leap) initiative, which has radically upgraded the energy efficiency of thousands of homes in the Netherlands. More than 150 social housing […]

Brisbane, Australia’s most biodiverse capital city, is to change its City Plan and encourage developers to include green rooftop gardens and communal spaces on new residential buildings. The amended plan, which was announced by Brisbane Lord Mayor Graham Quirk, cements council support for more green spaces and communal areas, particularly in apartment projects. “Council will […]

The EU’s long-term climate strategy, published in November, says the EU should reach net-zero emissions by 2050 at the latest. For this to be possible, 3% of buildings in the EU need to be renovated every year, up from just 1% today. With such a large amount of construction and renovation taking place, there is […]

A former coal mine site in Washington State is in the process of repurposing 1,000 acres of the former mine site into a solar farm. It is part of Washington states plans to reduce carbon dioxide emissions to 1990 levels in less than 2 years from now. The Tono Solar project involves the construction of […]

The cost of large-scale solar generation is expected to fall below £40/MWh by 2030, according to the latest assessment by the Solar Trade Association (STA). The organisation said its previous assessment from 2014, which predicted the levelised cost of energy to hit £80/MWh by 2019, has turned out to be too conservative, with the figure […]

Major global investors have urged the United Nation’s COP24 summit in Poland to end all coal burning and introduce substantial taxes on emissions. The group of investors which manage more than $32tn in assets have called for urgent cuts in carbon emissions without which, it warns, the world faces a financial crash several times worse […]

Dramatic action will be needed by governments, cities and business if the global buildings and construction sector is to cut its carbon footprint in line with international agreements, according to a report released at COP24. The 2018 Global Status Report — “Towards a Zero-Emission, Efficient and Resilient Buildings and Construction Sector, from by the Global […]

The EU has set an objective of being a climate neutral economy by 2050. The strategy which it has taken to the COP24 climate talks in Poland shows how Europe can lead the way to climate neutrality by investing into realistic technological solutions, empowering citizens, and aligning action in key areas such as industrial policy, […]

As the COP24 climate summit convened in Katowice, Poland, the World Bank Group announced a doubling of its financial support for climate action to $200 billion. The funding is targeted at the 2021-2025 timeframe to enable countries to embark on more ambitious climate action programmes. The new finance will focus on: Cities: to help 100 cities […]

CEOs of 50 major global companies representing more than $1.5tr in revenue have urged world leaders to collaborate more closely with the private sector in order to rapidly speed up the transition towards a low carbon economy. Ahead of the UN Climate Summit in Poland, leading bosses are calling for more ambitious policy levers to […]

Nations must triple efforts to reach 2°C target, concludes the United Nation Environment Programme’s (UN Environment) annual review of global emissions, climate action. Indeed countries are failing to take the action needed to stave off the worst effects of climate change,  and the commitments made in the 2015 Paris agreement will not be met unless governments introduce additional […]