Buildings are central to creating more sustainable cities, and green ratings are often used to assess how well a building measures up against this goal. But the current system has serious flaws.
Retrofitting older homes to ‘green’ the nation’s housing stock involves much more than installing rooftop solar panels.
Tracey Nearmy/AAP
While new buildings may be the glamorous eco-home pinups, retrofitting existing homes is the main game when it comes to creating energy-efficient, comfortable housing stock for all Australians.
Ashok Sekar, The University of Texas at Austin dan Eric Williams, Rochester Institute of Technology
New research shows that computers, streaming video and other digital technologies are helping Americans spend more time at home and less out shopping and commuting, yielding measurable energy savings.
It pays to think very carefully about your new fridge.
DedMityay/Shutterstock.com
We use our fridges, washing machines and air conditioners every day. That means that we should consider much more than the up-front retail price when choosing to invest in a new one.
Trying to keep cool this summer while not blowing the power bill? A new mobile game aims to encourage energy efficiency - and research shows it can be more effective than simple advertising campaigns.
The extra energy used to mine and transfer Bitcoins may simply be a price the currency has to pay for being secure and anonymous.
The largest opportunity to reduce gas demand exists in industry, through improved energy efficiency as a result of reusing waste heat and upgrading boilers.
Joe Castro/AAP
The law says that newly built houses should have a six-star energy rating, to help residents afford their heating and cooling bills. But some builders seem to be findings ways around this requirement.
Living in a single-storey unit can lead to much higher air conditioning costs.
Aged-care units can be a lottery of comfortable versus uncomfortable temperatures, depending on the building’s construction and where you live within it. That needs to improve.
Could the new invention spell the end of rooftop fans?
Christophe Finot/Wikimedia Commons
The invention of silver and plastic-clad roof panels that can cool themselves down even under the Sun’s full glare promise to make air conditioning much more energy-efficient.
Drax and Eggborough power stations in England.
Pete Richman
Smart appliances, which let you control lights and power outlets via your phone, promise to cut energy bills. But research suggests these gadgets are confusing, and can just as easily raise power use.
The City of Sydney is aiming to get 50% of its electricity from renewables by 2030.
HjalmarGerbig/Wikimedia Commons
A new report from the Climate Council details the climate policy ambitions of Australian cities and local governments, and launches a new project to link their efforts together.
Eco-houses at Scotland’s Housing Expo, Inverness. What is it like to live in a house like this?
via Wikipedia
There’s an international push towards low-emissions housing. New research investigates what it’s like to actually live in low-energy houses.
Checking the power output of a photovoltaic concentrator array built by Martin Marietta, Inc., at Sandia National Laboratory in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
USDOE/Flickr
President Trump’s budget reportedly will slash funding for clean energy research and development. An energy expert explains the importance of government support and spotlights some key opportunities.