Envision buildings everywhere helping us get closer to our planetary #NetZero goal and a more equitable society. For that to happen, we need big emissions cuts now—the cuts we make *this* decade must be the steepest!
Project Drawdown executive director @globalecoguy explains why “time is more important than tech” in Unit 2 of the Drawdown Roadmap: https://drawdown.org/drawdown-roadmap
#climate #ClimateSolutions #BuiltEnvironment
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The vast majority of buildings we’ll live and work in over the next decade are already built. So I'm looking at the existing buildings all around us—they are our biggest challenge and our biggest opportunity, where many of these cuts will happen.
Cutting emissions by upgrading our existing buildings can be tough. Here are three reasons why:
1) Big decisions have already been made that affect how energy flows to, from, and within the building.
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2) Accessing equipment becomes much more difficult after the building is constructed & occupied.
3) Successful retrofits and major system upgrades require an understanding of how the building’s systems are currently functioning AND how they will function after changes are made.
But architect and retrofit advocate Carl Elefante tells us “The greenest building is…one that is already built.”
Existing buildings are our biggest opportunity to #Decarb4Good in this sector.
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Amanda Smith