The signing of the Paris Agreement in December 2015 was rightly hailed as a truly historic moment in the fight against climate change.
It marked the start of the most important race in our existence – the race to curb global greenhouse gas emissions so that temperature rise remains below 2 degrees Celsius and, ideally, below 1.5 degrees Celsius – and it set a clear timeline for how quickly the world must change its course so that by 2050, all major business sectors are operating in a state of zero carbon emissions.
Since the building and construction sector is responsible for around 30% of global energy consumption and the associated emissions, this sector will play a significant role in finding the solutions.
In From Thousands to Billions – Coordinated Action towards 100% Net Zero Carbon Buildings By 2050, WorldGBC calls for a dramatic and ambitious transformation towards a completely zero carbon built environment, through the dual goals of:
The report outlines how the above goals can be achieved through concerted action of three core groups of actors; Business, Government and Non-Governmental Organisations.
Achieving these targets would help to ensure that the worst impacts of climate change are avoided, and bring about a number of other political and economic benefits.