The World Green Building Council (WGBC), along with the World Resources Institute-led Building Efficiency Accelerator (BEA), has announced a new partnership to dramatically ramp up energy efficiency within buildings across the world, starting with the city of Tshwane, in Gauteng.
Speaking at South Africa’s ninth yearly Green Building Convention, in Sandton, last month, WGBC CEO Terri Willis said the Green Building Council of South Africa would work closely with the city of Tshwane to develop green policies and programmes.
“This will also be replicated in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates (UAE); Warsaw, in Poland; and Bogota, in Colombia, as part of the pilot project,” she added.
Green building councils (GBCs) in these countries will work with mayors and staff in the cities in a bid to double the rate of energy efficiency by 2030.
“They will help cities define the best action they can take to make efficiency improvements and receive market buy-in from those in the sector who will help to deliver energy savings,” she said.
This is being undertaken as part of the work of the BEA, a public–private partnership of cities, businesses and organisations, which aims to improve energy efficiency in buildings.
The BEA is one of six accelerators under the United Nations’ Sustainable Energy for All initiative and is funded by the Global Environment Facility.
Willis added that the WGBC hoped to eventually expand this programme to cities across the globe.
She pointed out that various GBCs would help identify and evaluate potential policies and programmes, facilitate stakeholder engagement and support cities in implementing green policies and track and report on the impact of their greening actions.
She highlighted that cities and buildings consumed around 75% of global energy, putting them at the forefront of the global fight against climate change.
“But, while they are a major consumer of energy, cities also have huge potential to dramatically reduce energy use, with buildings offering one of the most effective ways to do so. Through collaboration with cities, our GBCs will provide on-the-ground expertise to help realise this opportunity,” she said.