COP29 Buildings and Cooling Pavilion

High-Level Roundtable: Green Construction and Energy Efficiency in Buildings and Climate Resilience in Cities & Inaugural Ministerial Launch of the ICBC

Event description

This event is a High-Level Roundtable as part of the Ministerial Meeting on Urbanization and Climate Change at COP29.

The buildings and construction sector is a driver of prosperity and economic development of cities; at the same time, it is a major contributor to environmental degradation in cities, responsible for significant greenhouse gas emissions, loss of land, and waste generation. Climate change has heightened the need for resilient urban infrastructure capable of withstanding extreme weather events and natural disasters. Thus, the push towards green and resilient buildings has become more critical than ever.

The built environment is a “sleeping giant” for climate action with vast untapped potential for impactful action. Currently, the buildings and construction sector accounts for 21 percent of global annual greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (IPCC, 2022). In 2022 alone, the sector accounted for 37 per cent of global energy and process-related carbon dioxide (CO2), and an estimated 34 percent of global final energy demand (UNEP, 2024). These figures are projected to grow as incomes rise globally and populations rapidly urbanise. The Global Status Report on Buildings and Construction issued annually by Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction confirms a widening gap between the actual climate performance of the sector and the objective of decarbonization.

The world needs to act now to decarbonize buildings along their lifecycle and increase their resilience to changing climates. New construction presents a significant opportunity for climate change mitigation: about 60 percent of buildings expected by 2050 have yet to be built. Around 80 per cent of this growth in floor area will occur in low-income countries. Existing buildings also offer substantial mitigation potential. Achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 requires retrofitting at least 20% of current building stock to zero-carbon levels, necessitating an increase in renovation rates to 2% annually by 2030, up from 1 per cent in 2022.

Governments have a key role to play and the objectives of existing multilateral agreements, especially those of the Paris Climate Agreement, can be met without setting up long-term national policies and plans to support the decarbonization of the sector. Collaboration between subnational and national stakeholders and engagement of other stakeholders, including the private sector, is crucial. In July 2024, representatives of the built environment sector of Azerbaijan signed the Azerbaijan Sustainability Built Environment Pledge confirming their intent to contribute to decarbonization of the sector and achieving the Paris Agreement and by Azerbaijan’s Climate Action goals. The potential for transformative change in the building sector is within reach, with the necessary technologies and capabilities already at hand.

International, including intergovernmental, cooperation as well as multi-level collaboration of all actors along the building and construction value chain is key to accelerating the urban transformation we need. The Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction hosted by UNEP offers an important international platform for all governments and stakeholders to collaborate. The Chaillot Declaration, endorsed by over 60 countries in March 2024, serves as a critical milestone in strengthening international collaboration among national governments to reduce emissions and mitigate the impacts of climate change in the building sector. A key outcome of the Declaration is the establishment of an Intergovernmental Council for Buildings and Climate, facilitated by the GlobalABC. This initiative plays a pivotal role in reinforcing the implementation of climate actions at local, national, and international levels, directly supporting the achievement of the goals outlined in the Paris Agreement.

This High-Level Roundtable at COP29, organised as part of the third Ministerial Meeting on Urbanization and Climate Change on the COP29 Urbanization, Transport and Tourism Day, will focus on how to transform ambition into action in the buildings and construction sector in our cities. The event will convene ministers, mayors, and non-party stakeholders’ leaders to showcase the transformative potential of climate action in the buildings sector. The event will highlight solutions that can unlock economic growth, create jobs, reduce energy bills, improve health, and empower communities. It will emphasize the opportunity that Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) present to catalyze these solutions and attract investment. The event will also underscore the critical role public finance can play in leveraging private investment for the sector’s transition. Additionally, it will formally serve as the inaugural ministerial meeting of the new Intergovernmental Council of Buildings and Climate (ICBC).

Agenda

11:00-11:10 Opening remarks
The opening session will link the broader discussions at COP29 to global efforts focused on decarbonization of the buildings sector.
Anar Guliyev, Chairman of the State Committee on Urban Planning and Architecture (SCUPA), Azerbaijan
Inger Andersen, Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)

11:10-11:30 Part 1: Role of the NDCs as a lever for building and construction decarbonization and strengthening climate resilience
The session will start with a discussion of the NDC policy brief for the building sector developed by UNEP. Further, the session will include interventions by national and subnational governments who will explore how to create and implement ambitious, investable Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) that drive policy action and attract investments.
Moderator: Gulnara Roll, Head of Cities Unit, UNEP
Ruth Zugman do Coutto, Climate Change Deputy Director, UNEP
H.E. Parliamentary State Secretary Stefan Wenzel, Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action, Germany
Honourable Mayor Chitangala Mayor of Lusaka, Zambia

11:30-11:55 Part 2: Leveraging finance and engaging the private sector
The session will feature the launch of the Azerbaijan Sustainability Built Environment Pledge, aimed at driving decarbonization efforts among Azerbaijani businesses in the construction and building sector. This will be followed by a discussion on the opportunities and challenges faced by the private sector. A panel discussion on designing innovative financing tools to mobilize the green finance needed for the sustainable building sector.
Moderator: Roland Hunziker, GlobalABC Steering Committee Co-Chair; and Director, Built Environment, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development
Rama Dunayevich, Global Impact Partnership Lead, Autodesk
Diep Nguyen-van Houtte, Senior Manager, International Finance Corporation (IFC)
Thomas Eriksson, Director, Department of the Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and the Middle East Region, Green Climate Fund (GCF)
Lasitha Peirera, CEO, Green Guarantee Company (GGC)

11:55-12:20 Part 3: Strengthening intergovernmental cooperation for green and climate resilient buildings
This session will feature statements from national governments expressing their commitments to decarbonizing the building sector and improving climate resilience at the national level. Participants will further discuss ways to enhance intergovernmental cooperation in sharing best practices for sustainable buildings, facilitated by the Intergovernmental Council for Buildings and Climate (ICBC). The ICBC, an intergovernmental platform created by the Declaration de Chaillot, will be officially inaugurated.
Moderator: Gulnara Roll, Head of Cities Unit, UNEP
H.E. Ed Miliband, Secretary of State for the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero, United Kingdom
H.E. Yoko Alender, Minister of Climate, Estonia
H.E. Joel Arumonyang, Deputy Minister of Lands, Public Works, Housing, and Urban Development, Kenya
H.E. Simonas Gentvilas, Minister of Environment, Republic of Lithuania
H.E. Toesulusulu Cedric Schuster, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, Samoa
H.E. Shaikh Nasser Majid Al Qasimi, Assistant Undersecretary of Infrastructure Development and Transport, United Arab Emirates
Yves-Laurent Sapoval, ICBC Co-Chair; and Urban Envoy, Ministry of Ecological Transition, Energy, Climate and Risk Prevention, France

12:20-12:30 Conclusion and Family Photo
H.E. Jader Barbalho Filho, Minister of Cities, Brazil
Gulnara Roll, Head of Cities Unit, UNEP