Energy

The C40 Building Energy 2020 (BE2020) Programme will help more than 50 global cities take action to address a significant source of urban emissions and pollution. Read more in this article from Mark Watts, Executive Director of C40; Sonia Medina, Executive Director of Climate Change, Children’s Investment Fund Foundation; and Dan Hamza-Goodacre, Director Buildings and Industry, ClimateWorks Foundation.  

Through C40’s Private Building Efficiency Network, cities work together to improve the energy efficiency of existing commercial and residential buildings. In 2014 several cities, led by Tokyo, developed the report Urban Efficiency: a global survey of building energy efficiency policies in cities. The report incorporated best practices from around the world, including financial incentives, sectoral benchmarking, and building optimisation programmes into city energy plans and roadmaps. Other cities used it as an evidence base to push for the introduction of new, ambitious building energy policies or expand already successful schemes. We hope the next instalment of this report will prove just as valuable.

The potential threat which climate change presents to the economy, public health, and structural integrity of cities worldwide has recently become hard to ignore. Mitigating climate change requires a significant reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, and adapting to its effects will require cities to prepare buildings and people for changes like sea-level rise and extreme weather events.

Many things can be said about the West African country of Nigeria, and indeed, the country has been the focus of a number of global news stories in recent times.  However, one thing that cannot be overlooked, or indeed understated, is the fact that the country is a rising global power. 

As lead city of the C40 District Energy Network, Vancouver will play a critical role as a thought leader and communicator, helping to accelerate the uptake of district energy in cities around the world. Vancouver’s district energy leadership has been recognized globally; the city’s Neighbourhood Energy Utility was one of the finalists in the Green Energy category at the C40 & Siemens 2014 Climate Leadership Awards.