Emissions from the operation of buildings hit their highest-ever level in 2019, moving the sector further away from fulfilling its huge potential to slow climate change and contribute significantly to the goals of the Paris Agreement, according to a UN Report. This increase was due to a shift away from the direct use of coal, oil and traditional biomass towards electricity, which had a higher carbon content due to the high proportion of fossil fuels used in generation. To get on track to net-zero carbon building stock by 2050, the International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates that direct building CO₂ emissions need, by 2030, to fall by 50% and indirect building sector emissions by 60%. To achieve this, all actors across the buildings value chain need to increase decarbonization actions and their impact by a factor of five. Read more