Low Energy Buildings and Climate-Neutral City Systems

Dear Colleagues,

Climate change and the recent energy crisis represent huge threats worldwide.  To implement the strategic vision of the European Green Deal, which aims to foster the transition to more sustainable and citizen-centred energy systems, the EU Parliament has made the targets of 55% emissions reduction by 2030 and climate neutrality by 2050 a legally obligation through the adoption of the EU Climate Law in 2021.

A further accelerated transition is pursued by the EU target of “100 climate-neutral by 2030 – by and for the citizens” and the related Climate City Contracts. To achieve these ambitious targets, sustainable and near-zero energy buildings (NZEB) need to be complemented by a scale step, in which not only are buildings energy performances considered but also the communities and the environment they live in.

Cities have emerged as major hubs for various forms of technical and social innovations, such as Energy Communities, also prompted by the rapidly growing use of ICT and digital technologies, both at the building and urban scale. The unprecedented availability of data not only allows the improvement of advanced knowledge and deeper understanding of building behaviours and urban dynamics but also data-evidence-based transformative processes and actions in the direction of more smart, sustainable, resilient, socially equitable cities. The twin green and digital transitions do not just involve technological and scientific challenges, they also require a better understanding of cross-cutting issues related to economic, socio-cultural, and political aspects and ask for engaging society in the co-design, co-development, and co-implementation of innovations also through social innovation.

This Special Issue aims to cover the above-mentioned topics, that represent a deliberately broad spectrum of research, including, but not limited to, the following:

• Energy efficiency in buildings;
• Near-zero energy buildings (NZEB);
• Digital building/urban twins;
• Positive energy districts (PEDs);
• Climate-neutral and smart cities;
• Net-zero cities;
• Energy citizenship and energy communities;
• Climate city contracts;
• Innovative solutions for energy systems.

Dr. Rossella Roversi
Prof. Dr. Danila Longo
Guest Editors

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