Global leaders stand in front of COP29 sign at the event.
The COP29, which is set to conclude on Nov. 22, was grounds for a new initiative announced by the Subnational Climate Action Leaders’ Exchange. The initiative, the Zero Emissions and Resilient Buildings Accelerator, aims to cut carbon emissions in the buildings sector, which typically maintains a high carbon footprint. Photo credit: @COP29_AZ on X.
Articles

COP29 Sets Stage for a New Climate-Focused Initiative

Green Building

By Fay Harvey 

BAKU, Azerbaijan — As this year’s Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) comes to a close, new developments regarding carbon emission reduction have come to the forefront.  

The Subnational Climate Action Leaders’ Exchange (SCALE) partnership — initially launched at COP27 as a platform for multi-level global governance to drive climate change action — announced a Zero Emissions and Resilient Buildings (ZERB) Accelerator during the conference’s Action Dialogue, a space where subnational leaders discussed opportunities for climate action. 

The ZERB Accelerator is a new initiative set to rapidly reduce operational and embodied greenhouse gas emissions and strengthen climate resilience in the buildings sector through enhanced multilevel collaboration with subnational governments around the world, according to a statement from the U.S. Department of State. The initiative will be critical to the buildings sector that plays a major part in the climate crisis, accounting for over a third of global carbon emissions.  

The initiative will add to collaborative elements within the climate action sphere by coordinating with efforts under the Buildings Breakthrough global initiative, a plan that aims to decarbonize the building sector by making green technologies accessible and affordable by 2030. In addition, the UN Environment Programme-hosted Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction (Global ABC) and its Subnational Stakeholders Action Group are also aligned with the ZERB Accelerator efforts. 

At COP28 in Dubai, SCALE launched the 2023 Lowering Organic Waste Methane (LOW-Methane) initiative. Since its announcement, the initiative has made great progress in cutting methane emissions from the waste sector, especially at the subnational level, according to a UNEP statement. SCALE aims to build on this success by continuing to bring cities, states and regions together in the name of reaching climate centered goals, this time in the buildings sector.  

Through strengthening collaboration between various regions and leaders, the ZERB Accelerator will also bring together organizations that will support the global implementation of the initiative by assisting with policy development, expert guidance, funding and systems for tracking, reviewing and verifying progress.  

According to the DOS statement, the first subnational jurisdictions to join the ZERB Accelerator include Maryland and Washington and the city of Bogotá, Colombia. Organizations set to provide their support include Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Building to COP Coalition, the Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction, the U.S. Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, the Under2 Coalition, the U.S. State Department, the World Green Building Counci and the World Resources Institute.