Improving the performance of buildings must be a central component of any response to the challenges of climate change. This is both an imperative and an opportunity. Responding to climate change by aggressively improving the performance of the built environment will produce buildings that are superior in virtually every capacity, and focus attention on an...

Net zero energy building (NZEB) standards have been gaining prominence lately as the next performance target for buildings. However, despite the demonstrated benefits of such building performance across triple bottom-line concepts, Australia is yet to formulate a policy toward adopting a net zero energy building standard. Evidence from various scholars suggests that Australia cannot delay...

As the largest energy consumer in the world, energy efficiency and conservation have been prioritized in China to meet its fast-growing appetite for energy as a result of industrialization and urbanization, as well as to alleviate environmental pressure and tackle climate change. Evidence from analytical and case studies shows that High Impact Opportunities (HIO) for...

Purpose / Context - The outdoor climate in Harbin is more severely colder than German. Therefore, it is important to study indoor thermal environment and human thermal comfort in Harbin passive buildings by applying Germany technology. However, few studies were reported on this topic. Methodology / Approach - A field measurement on thermal environment was...

To reach its goal of an 80% carbon reduction by 2050, New York City (NYC) must embrace a radical change to its buildings. The Passive House design’s performance-based standard ensures occupant comfort and very low energy use. It is a pathway for NYC to transform its building stock to reach a low-carbon future. New York...