Editorial Newsletters
Europe’s Future Competitiveness Hinges On A New Relationship Between Water and Energy
Water and energy, together, underpin Europe’s economic future. Energy powers water treatment, distribution, and reuse. Water is essential for energy production and power plant cooling. Energy efficiency and water security go hand in hand. Progress in one strengthens the other. Why Water Resilience Is Strategic As Europe accelerates digitalization...
Climate Resilient Cities Require Efficient and Future-Proof Buildings
As the number of people living in urban areas continues to increase, so too does the world’s average temperature and the more frequent and extreme weather events that come with it. In fact, thanks in part to the urban heat island phenomena, cities and urban populations are particularly vulnerable to increasingly extreme weather events and impacts...
Energy efficient buildings: a game-changer for energy system efficiency
The 2019-2024 European climate and energy package sets a roadmap for various sectors to achieve decarbonization and meet climate goals. To ensure its success, it must be implemented effectively. Dan Jørgensen, the new European Commissioner for Housing and Energy, highlights that housing and energy are interlinked themes that must be addressed...
Towards EU Water Resilience Strategy: key priorities to be addressed
The critical importance of water is gaining recognition at the EU level. The EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen included this vital topic in her Political Guidelines for 2024-2029 and water was also featured in the Mission Letter of the Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience and Competitive Circular Economy. As the EU...
Mission efficiency : Games are opening, let’s perform, now !
Writing this note on my way back from the first European Parliament plenary session, I can’t help but draw a parallel with the 2024 Olympics game opening soon in Paris. I always thought of our Energy Efficiency game as a marathon, including trainings and a solid “never-give-up” mindset, whatever the political winds. We first succeeded in the...
Action on energy efficiency requires both technological and social change
Although sometimes overlooked in the race to devise innovative solutions to the climate crisis, energy efficiency remains crucially important. Energy efficiency has contributed to greater savings in primary energy and faster reductions in emissions compared to the transition to renewable energy resources. While the growth in global energy...
System efficiency in 2024: Three priorities for the next EU Commission
System efficiency is a key metric to evaluate how far the European Green Deal has taken us in the energy transition. Why system efficiency and what is it? System efficiency is the measure of how well a system utilizes resources to achieve its desired output with minimal waste. In this context, it refers to the systematic application of the...
Repetition Is Key: The Latin Maxim “Repetita Iuvant” Holds True.
Since the European Commission unveiled the Clean Energy for All Europeans package on 30 November 2016, including the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) revision, the alliance has consistently played a central role in shaping its contents. Through collective efforts we have actively contributed position papers, organized events, and...
Digital Twin of buildings: a way to enhance energy efficiency and net zero commitments
Buildings in the EU are responsible for 40% of energy consumption and 36% of greenhouse gas emissions that includes construction, usage, renovation and demolition phases (1). Legislation such as the European Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) is progressively addressing these challenges by establishing concepts of zero emission and...
It’s time to unlock the demand side potential in accelerating the energy transition.
In recent months the term “polycrisis” has found its way into our vocabulary. This term captures the multiple crises (climate; energy; inflation; war in Ukraine; …) that are impacting society at large. A sobering reality is that all these crises were created by mankind, as we use the wrong energy and waste too much of it, thus paying far too much...