ZERO CARBON BUILDING ACCELERATOR

The Zero Carbon Building Accelerator aims to decarbonize the global building stock by 2050, addressing the fact that building construction and operations account for nearly 40% of global energy-related CO2 emissions. The initiative employs a four-part strategy—outreach, dialogue, planning, and enabling—to help governments map decarbonization pathways and implement action plans. WRI intends to scale impact by engaging at least two jurisdictions per country and supporting three additional subnational governments globally through technical assistance and peer learning. Zero carbon buildings are defined as having net zero annual operational emissions and reduced life-cycle emissions, achieved through energy efficiency, electrification, and renewable energy sources.

• Building construction and operations are a primary driver of climate change, contributing nearly 40% of global energy-related CO2 emissions. Projections indicate that population growth and urbanization will double the global building stock by 2060, which will increase the demand for cooling and drive further carbon emissions without significant energy efficiency and decarbonization improvements.
• There is a significant gap in the implementation of energy efficiency in buildings, with 80% of economically viable energy savings currently untapped. However, efficiency investments are highly cost-effective, with every $1 invested in efficiency saving $2 in costs related to new electricity generation and distribution.
• The Zero Carbon Building Accelerator utilizes four specific strategies to assist governments in eliminating CO2 emissions: outreach to map decarbonization pathways and adopt commitments; facilitated policy dialogues with stakeholders including utilities and the private sector; the development of short- and medium-term action plans and long-term national roadmaps linked to Nationally Determined Contributions; and the creation of policies to accelerate market transformation.
• WRI defines zero carbon buildings as those with net zero annual operational carbon emissions and reduced life-cycle emissions, including embodied carbon from materials. This is achieved via energy efficiency, passive and active cooling, electrification of heating, digitalization for energy optimization, and the use of zero-carbon renewable energy sources.
• To scale its impact, the Accelerator will engage at least two jurisdictions in each participating country to implement action plans aligned with national roadmaps. Additionally, WRI will support at least three further subnational governments in other countries and collaborate with financial institutions and regional development banks to create new business models for decarbonization.

APA

World Resources Institute (n.d.). ZERO CARBON BUILDING ACCELERATOR. https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2021-11/zero-carbon-building-accelertor-brochure.pdf?VersionId=F1ViwKxsriSZY8eZiHfSyrSympj_Du0s

Chicago

World Resources Institute. ZERO CARBON BUILDING ACCELERATOR. n.d. https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2021-11/zero-carbon-building-accelertor-brochure.pdf?VersionId=F1ViwKxsriSZY8eZiHfSyrSympj_Du0s.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=ZERO CARBON BUILDING ACCELERATOR |url=https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2021-11/zero-carbon-building-accelertor-brochure.pdf?VersionId=F1ViwKxsriSZY8eZiHfSyrSympj_Du0s |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitutendzero, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{ZERO CARBON BUILDING ACCELERATOR}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, url = {https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2021-11/zero-carbon-building-accelertor-brochure.pdf?VersionId=F1ViwKxsriSZY8eZiHfSyrSympj_Du0s}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }