General

In order to mitigate climate change, countries around the globe signed the Paris Agreement back in 2015. To limit the global temperature increase to 1.5°C, max. 2°C, the European Union launched the Green Deal aiming to decarbonise its economy by 2050. With the Renovate2Recover and the REPowerEU initiatives Europe addresses a huge leverage to strengthen energy security by reducing the energy demand whilst easing the shift from fossil fuels to renewables. In parallel, the Renovation Wave will release huge investments into a greener future, helping to boost national economies and preserving domestic value chains and employment.

Buildings play a crucial role. Europe‘s building stock accounts for 36% CO2 emissions and 40% of energy demand. It offers a huge leverage to contribute not only to environmental protection, but also to good health, living comfort and economic growth. This requires that all new buildings comply already with the nZEB and the zero-emission standard as they will not undergo major renovation before 2050. Even more important: without significantly increasing renovation rates and renovation depths of our current building stock, Europe will fail to achieve its ambitions and miss opportunities.

The EAE Awards aim to demonstrate that energy-efficient buildings and superb architecture go hand in hand. Our aim is to reward and showcase innovative technical, sustainable, and aesthetical solutions. Awarded projects will be used to further promote the benefits of energy-efficient facades. Transforming theory into real buildings will help to accelerate the urgently needed market uptake and motivate building owners recognize the full benefits of thermally improved façades.