{"query_echo":{"q":"","filters":{"climate_tags":["house-building"]},"warnings":[{"code":"facet_value_not_in_vocabulary","message":"Value 'house-building' for facet 'climate_tags' is not in the controlled vocabulary."}]},"total":{"value":5,"relation":"eq"},"page":1,"page_size":20,"self":"https://climateinsightsdirectory.org/api/v1/search?climate_tags=house-building","stability":"beta","ai_marking":{"digital_source_type":{"uri":"http://cv.iptc.org/newscodes/digitalsourcetype/trainedAlgorithmicMedia","name":"Created using Generative AI"},"notice":"Summary and key insights are generated using artificial intelligence."},"results":[{"id":"rmi-000190","url":"https://climateinsightsdirectory.org/document/rmi-000190","title":"The Hidden Climate Impact of Residential Construction","publisher":{"name":"RMI","organization":"rmi"},"document_type":"report","language":"en","date_published":"2023-03-28","source_url":"https://rmi.org/resources/hidden-climate-impact-of-residential-construction/","generator":"Climate Insights Directory","generated_fields":["summary","key_insights","climate_tags","geography_discussed","analysis_type"],"summary":{"text":"New home construction in the US generates over 50 million tons of embodied carbon emissions annually. Analysis of 921 model homes across the US, Canada, and Europe indicates average cradle-to-gate emissions of 184 kg CO2e/m2. Reductions of 30% to 50% are achievable using existing, cost-parity materials by targeting concrete, insulation, cladding, and interior surfaces, which comprise over 70% of total emissions. Further reductions up to 140% are possible through low-emitting and carbon-storing materials.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-000190#summary","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},"key_insights":[{"text":"New residential construction in the United States produces more than 50 million tons of embodied carbon emissions every year, a volume comparable to the annual emissions of countries like Norway, Peru, and Sweden.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-000190#insight-1","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"Based on data from 921 model homes in the US, Canada, and Europe, the average cradle-to-gate (CtG) embodied carbon emissions for new low-rise residential homes are approximately 184 kg CO2e/m2. For the US, where annual new construction is roughly 167 million m2, emissions from structure, enclosure, and partitions are estimated between 26 and 39 million tons CO2e annually.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-000190#insight-2","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"Immediate emissions reductions of 30% to 50% can be achieved at cost parity using commercially available and code-compliant materials. These gains are primarily found by targeting concrete, insulation, cladding, and interior surfaces, which typically account for over 70% of total emissions in new home construction.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-000190#insight-3","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"The potential for emissions reductions can reach 140% through the adoption of a comprehensive range of low-emitting substitute materials and carbon-storing materials currently entering the market.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-000190#insight-4","date_modified":"2026-10-23"}],"climate_tags":["embedded emissions","house-building","building material","concrete","insulation"],"geography_discussed":["Canada","Europe","Norway","Peru","Sweden","Bahrain","Denmark","Ireland"],"frame_perspective":[],"analysis_type":["assessment","quantitative analysis"]},{"id":"cdkn-000006","url":"https://climateinsightsdirectory.org/document/cdkn-000006","title":"Sheltering From a Gathering Storm: Typhoon Resilience in Vietnam","publisher":{"name":"Climate and Development Knowledge Network","organization":"climate-and-development-knowledge-network"},"document_type":"case study","language":"en","date_published":"2014-07-18","source_url":"https://cdkn.org/resource/typhoon-resilience-vietnam","generator":"Climate Insights Directory","generated_fields":["summary","key_insights","climate_tags","geography_discussed","analysis_type"],"summary":{"text":"The report examines the cost-effectiveness of typhoon-resilient housing in Da Nang, Vietnam, testing the hypothesis that such construction provides positive economic returns for households despite rapid urban change and increasing climate risks.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"cdkn-000006#summary","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},"key_insights":[{"text":"Research in Da Nang city indicates that increased economic resources for construction have not resulted in the creation of safer houses, and housing remains vulnerable to climate impacts despite existing disaster risk reduction (DRR) measures.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"cdkn-000006#insight-1","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"The study suggests that investing in resilience measures for housing can be cost-effective and that policy interventions may be necessary to overcome resistance to the adoption of these measures.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"cdkn-000006#insight-2","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"Projections indicate that the intensity of typhoons and extreme rain events in the region is expected to increase.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"cdkn-000006#insight-3","date_modified":"2026-10-23"}],"climate_tags":["disaster risk reduction","flood","extreme heat","house-building","climate change adaptation"],"geography_discussed":["India","Pakistan","Gorakhpur"],"frame_perspective":[],"analysis_type":["economic analysis","case study"]},{"id":"rmi-001054","url":"https://climateinsightsdirectory.org/document/rmi-001054","title":"ENERGY-EFFICIENT BUILDINGS: INSTITUTIONAL BARRIERS AND OPPORTUNITIES","publisher":{"name":"RMI","organization":"rmi"},"document_type":"report","language":"en","date_published":"1992","source_url":"https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_Energy-Efficient-Buildings-Institutional-Barriers-and-Opportunities-E-Source-Official.pdf","generator":"Climate Insights Directory","generated_fields":["summary","key_insights","climate_tags","geography_discussed","analysis_type"],"summary":{"text":"The report argues that buildings are inefficient not due to a lack of technology, but because of a 'spherically senseless' institutional framework. It identifies key failures such as the decoupling of capital and operating costs for developers, the prevalence of 'catalog engineering' driven by low design fees, and the systemic oversizing of HVAC equipment to avoid liability. The author proposes restructuring professional fees to reward energy savings, integrating multidisciplinary design teams from the conceptual stage, and reforming leasing practices to align the incentives of landlords and tenants.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-001054#summary","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},"key_insights":[{"text":"Real-estate developers and investors typically prioritize fast, cheap construction to maximize net present value, often ignoring energy efficiency as a minor operating cost. In the U.S., tax rules exacerbate this by allowing operating costs to be fully deducted while capital costs are depreciated over more than 30 years.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-001054#insight-1","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"HVAC systems are systematically oversized due to a combination of 'rounding up' safety margins at multiple design stages and a professional culture where designers avoid liability by ensuring equipment is never too small.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-001054#insight-2","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"The building design process is fragmented, with approximately two dozen different actors (including architects, engineers, and lenders) using disparate technical languages and performance measures, leading to a lack of whole-system optimization.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-001054#insight-3","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"Traditional engineering fee structures, often based on a percentage of capital cost, create a perverse incentive to oversize equipment because higher capital costs lead to higher professional fees, while efficient designs that reduce costs penalize the designer.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-001054#insight-4","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"Mechanical designers are typically consulted too late in the design sequence, often after the building's form and envelope are already fixed, which eliminates the most cost-effective opportunities for energy savings.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-001054#insight-5","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"Poor operation and maintenance frequently negate the benefits of efficient design. Many commercial buildings lack regular HVAC maintenance, and operators are often incentivized to prioritize the immediate cessation of occupant complaints over energy efficiency.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-001054#insight-6","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"Commercial leasing structures often create 'split incentives' where neither the landlord nor the tenant has a financial reason to invest in energy efficiency, as the party paying for the investment is rarely the party paying the utility bill.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-001054#insight-7","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"The report suggests that 'design rebates'—where utilities pay designers based on verified lifecycle energy savings rather than effort—could provide high leverage for improving building efficiency.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-001054#insight-8","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"There is a significant gap in the research infrastructure for the building industry; R&D investments in construction (estimated below 0.4% of annual put-in-place) are far lower than in the automotive or oil industries.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-001054#insight-9","date_modified":"2026-10-23"}],"climate_tags":["energy efficiency","building design","heating, ventilation, and air conditioning","commercial property","house-building","demand-side management"],"geography_discussed":["Canada","United Kingdom","Germany","Netherlands","Australia","Singapore"],"frame_perspective":[],"analysis_type":["institutional analysis","economic analysis","policy recommendation"]},{"id":"rmi-000736","url":"https://climateinsightsdirectory.org/document/rmi-000736","title":"Clean Economy Graphics Data Sources and Documentation Overview","publisher":{"name":"RMI","organization":"rmi"},"document_type":"guide","language":"en","date_published":null,"source_url":"https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2023/10/clean_economy_graphics_documentation.pdf","generator":"Climate Insights Directory","generated_fields":["summary","key_insights","climate_tags","analysis_type"],"summary":{"text":"The document outlines the technical framework for RMI's State Clean Energy Eco graphics, which project the scale of energy transformation required for the US to reach net zero emissions by 2050. It details the use of the Princeton Net Zero America (NZA) project as the primary data source, supplemented by the Energy Policy Simulator (EPS), NREL Cambium scenarios, and population projections. The methodology covers specific metrics across electricity, industry, transportation, buildings, and human impact, including a detailed approach for downscaling potential federal investments from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) to the state level. To account for uncertainty in 2050 projections, metrics are generally rounded to one significant figure.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-000736#summary","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},"key_insights":[{"text":"RMI utilized several primary data sources to estimate 2050 metrics for a net zero US economy, with the Princeton Net Zero America (NZA) project serving as the main source using the \"E+RE+\" (higher electrification, higher renewable energy) scenario.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-000736#insight-1","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"To estimate potential federal investment from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) by state, RMI used a combination of downscaling national values from the NZA \"E+RE+\" scenario for tax credits, downscaling Congressional Budget Office scores for non-tax credit provisions, and using official formula funding allocations where available.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-000736#insight-2","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"The graphics include specific 2050 projections for infrastructure and technology deployment, such as the number of new wind turbines (assuming 3 megawatts per turbine), new solar panels (assuming 320 watts per panel), and the stock of electric light-duty vehicles.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-000736#insight-3","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"Human impact metrics include projections for avoided asthma attacks and premature deaths due to reduced air pollution, with the latter monetized using an assumed Value of Statistical Life of $10 million (converted to 2023$).","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-000736#insight-4","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"Current greenhouse gas emissions for the electricity, industry, transportation, and buildings sectors were retrieved from state EPS models for the year 2021.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-000736#insight-5","date_modified":"2026-10-23"}],"climate_tags":["carbon neutrality","energy transition","electrical grid","electric power transmission","solar energy","wind power","hydrogen","Industrial decarbonization","electric vehicle","electric vehicle charging network","public transport","heat pump","house-building","air pollution","Inflation Reduction Act of 2022","climate finance"],"geography_discussed":[],"frame_perspective":[],"analysis_type":["methodology","data documentation"]},{"id":"rmi-001023","url":"https://climateinsightsdirectory.org/document/rmi-001023","title":"Amory and Judy Lovins’ Response to Jeffrey Ball’s article in The Wall Street Journal, “The Homely Costs of Energy Conservation”","publisher":{"name":"RMI","organization":"rmi"},"document_type":"statement","language":"en","date_published":null,"source_url":"https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_2009-16_LovinsResponseToWSJ.pdf","generator":"Climate Insights Directory","generated_fields":["summary","key_insights","climate_tags","geography_discussed","analysis_type"],"summary":{"text":"The document is a response by Amory and Judy Lovins to a Wall Street Journal article regarding their home's energy efficiency. The authors argue that their original 1982–84 house achieved 90% electricity savings and 99% heating energy savings with a minimal cost premium of $6,000, which was recovered in ten months. They distinguish this from a later 2007–09 renovation that was more costly because it focused on 'bleeding-edge' technology and aesthetics rather than basic efficiency. The authors promote 'integrative design'—where high insulation levels eliminate the need for expensive heating systems—as a method to reduce energy use by over 80% at comparable or lower capital costs. They cite examples such as 'passive houses' in Europe and specific projects in Bangkok and California to demonstrate that these economics apply across different climates and scales.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-001023#summary","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},"key_insights":[{"text":"The original 1982–84 construction of the Lovins' home achieved approximately 90% savings in household electricity and 99% savings in space- and water-heating energy for an additional cost of $6,000, which was repaid through total energy savings within ten months.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-001023#insight-1","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"The authors argue that 'integrative design' can reduce energy use in all houses by over 80% at capital costs that are equal to or lower than standard construction, because the cost of superinsulation and better glazing is offset by the removal of expensive heating systems.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-001023#insight-2","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"The 2007–09 renovation of the house was expensive not due to efficiency goals, but because it incorporated handmade, 'bleeding-edge' technologies, upgraded aesthetics, and deferred maintenance to demonstrate technological advances and achieve a negative carbon footprint.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-001023#insight-3","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"The authors reject the claim that wide-scale adoption of superefficiency requires government mandates or subsidies, stating that the high returns on investment make such measures unnecessary.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-001023#insight-4","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"Integrative design principles have been successfully applied in various global contexts, including over 20,000 'passive houses' in Europe, a home in Bangkok that saved ~90% of air-conditioning energy at no extra cost, and the ACT2 experiment tract houses in California.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-001023#insight-5","date_modified":"2026-10-23"},{"text":"The home's current energy strategy involves using a photovoltaic array and purchasing windpower at night to displace coal-fired electricity on the grid, rather than using batteries for nighttime storage.","ai_generated":true,"unit":"rmi-001023#insight-6","date_modified":"2026-10-23"}],"climate_tags":["energy efficiency","passive houses","carbon footprint","photovoltaics","wind power","building insulation","house-building","Deep energy retrofit","climate finance"],"geography_discussed":["Europe","Germany","Bangkok","United States"],"frame_perspective":[],"analysis_type":["case study","rebuttal"]}]}