Building construction and operations account for 17% of total GHG emissions in Canada. Inefficient energy and heating systems, especially in older buildings, contribute significantly to greenhouse gas emissions.

A focus on energy efficiency is needed to lower operating costs, protect resident wellbeing, and increase climate resilience. We seek to understand the performance of community housing buildings and explore pathways for their transition to sustainable energy futures.

Work Highlights

• Building benchmarking and energy performance. Benchmarking provides a starting point for assessing the status and energy performance of buildings and to what retrofits may be needed. This research assessed the energy performance of community housing buildings in BC. We found that high-rise buildings performed worse across community housing building types and compared to market housing buildings.
• Residential vulnerability. Community housing is involved in the transition away from fossil fuels to low-carbon energy. With a focus on justice and equity, we explored how policy lock-ins expose residents to volatile energy markets, energy poverty, and climate
• Just energy transition pathways. In this project, we identified how community housing systems interact to create challenges and opportunities for energy transition pathways.
• Quantifying the prevalence of energy poverty in Canada. Energy poverty is a global phenomenon, but is poorly understood in Canada. We examined population data to better understand energy Poverty in Canada. We found that 7-9% of Canadian households are spending more than 10% on their energy bills, which can be traced to poor building quality and high energy costs.

Research Team

Lead Community Partner