Accelerating Building Decarbonization: Eight Attainable Policy Pathways to Net Zero Carbon Buildings For All

The document argues that zero carbon buildings (ZCBs) are attainable globally through various policy pathways focused on operational carbon emissions. It emphasizes the leadership role of cities and suggests that ZCB goals are more achievable when definitions expand beyond individual building boundaries to include off-site clean energy or portfolio-wide considerations. The research utilizes policy reviews and stakeholder consultations from India, China, Mexico, and Kenya to demonstrate that feasible ZCB pathways exist across diverse national and subnational policy contexts.

• Cities are positioned as the primary drivers in the transition to net zero carbon buildings, which is essential for a decarbonized world.
• The feasibility of zero carbon buildings increases when the definition is broadened to include off-site clean energy or the collective performance of a portfolio of municipal or district buildings, rather than focusing solely on a single building's boundary.
• The proposed pathways to achieve zero carbon buildings focus on operational carbon emissions and combine up to five specific components: basic energy efficiency, advanced energy efficiency, on-site carbon-free renewable energy, off-site carbon-free renewable energy, and carbon offsets (used only as a last resort).

APA

World Resources Institute (n.d.). Accelerating Building Decarbonization: Eight Attainable Policy Pathways to Net Zero Carbon Buildings For All. https://www.wri.org/research/accelerating-building-decarbonization-eight-attainable-policy-pathways-net-zero-carbon

Chicago

World Resources Institute. Accelerating Building Decarbonization: Eight Attainable Policy Pathways to Net Zero Carbon Buildings For All. n.d. https://www.wri.org/research/accelerating-building-decarbonization-eight-attainable-policy-pathways-net-zero-carbon.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=Accelerating Building Decarbonization: Eight Attainable Policy Pathways to Net Zero Carbon Buildings For All |url=https://www.wri.org/research/accelerating-building-decarbonization-eight-attainable-policy-pathways-net-zero-carbon |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitutendaccelerating, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{Accelerating Building Decarbonization: Eight Attainable Policy Pathways to Net Zero Carbon Buildings For All}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, url = {https://www.wri.org/research/accelerating-building-decarbonization-eight-attainable-policy-pathways-net-zero-carbon}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }