International. Green Building Councils from all over Europe have launched the largest collaborative project in the world for the energy rehabilitation of buildings, in a joint commitment to fight against one of the biggest climate challenges in the region: its existing building park.
After more than a year of preparation, and within the framework of the BUILD UPON project, more than 80 events are being held throughout Europe, throughout 2016, which will collect the work of more than 1,000 organizations, in a concerted effort to reduce emissions from European buildings.
Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the existing building stock account for 36% of the total in the European Union.
BUILD UPON seeks to overcome this challenge by supporting governments, industry and civil society to draft so-called "national rehabilitation strategies": long-term plans on how to rehabilitate each country's homes and commercial buildings, meeting the highest standards of energy efficiency. According to European legislation, these strategies must be submitted by 30 April 2017.
The project, funded by the European Union's Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme, has received €2.35 million in funding and is led by Green Building Councils from 13 countries: Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Finland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Turkey, with the support of the World Green Building Council's European Network. This project is coordinated by GBCe.
Several organizations will collaborate, working together to overcome this challenge, including governments and local authorities, construction companies, manufacturers, energy service providers, banks and other financial institutions, and NGOs.
Among its objectives will be to reach consensus and develop powerful national strategies with clear energy saving objectives, coordinated awareness initiatives that involve citizens, training programs to train workers in the construction sector, financial mechanisms such as mortgages and green loans, and policies such as strengthening energy efficiency certificates.
