Low Energy Architecture and Low Carbon Cities: Exploring Links, Scales, and Environmental Impacts

Pomponi, Francesco; D�Amico, Bernardino

Abstract

Projected population growth and urbanization rates will create a huge demand for new buildings and put an unprecedented pressure on the natural environment and its limited resources. Architectural design has often focused on passive or low-energy approaches to reduce the energy consumption of buildings but it is evident that a more holistic, whole-life based mindset is imperative. On another scale, the movement for, and global initiatives around, low carbon cities promise to deliver the built environment of tomorrow, in harmony with the natural boundary of our planet, the societal needs of its human habitants, and the required growth for economic prosperity. However, cities are made up of individual buildings and this intimate relationship is often poorly understood and under-researched. This multi-scale problem (materials, buildings, and cities) requires plural, trans-disciplinary, and creative ways to develop a range of viable solutions. The unknown about our built environment is vast: the articles in this special issue aim to contribute to the ongoing global efforts to ensure our built environments will be fit for the challenges of our time.

Citation

Pomponi, F., & D’Amico, B. (2020). Low Energy Architecture and Low Carbon Cities: Exploring Links, Scales, and Environmental Impacts. Sustainability, 12(21), Article 9189. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12219189

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Nov 4, 2020
• Online Publication Date: Nov 5, 2020
• Publication Date: Nov 5, 2020
• Deposit Date: Nov 9, 2020
• Publicly Available Date: Nov 9, 2020
• Journal: Sustainability
• Electronic ISSN: 2071-1050
• Publisher: MDPI
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 12
• Issue: 21
• Article Number: 9189
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/su12219189
• Keywords: low carbon cities; low energy buildings; sustainability transitions; shelter; building stock; building lifetime; carbon flux
• Public URL: http://researchrepository.napier.ac.uk/Output/2699457