DEVELOPING A STRATEGIC VISION AND RESEARCH AGENDA TO DECREASE THE CARBON FOOTPRINT OF THE CONSTRUCTION SECTOR, AND ACHIEVE A DECARBONISED BUILD ENVIRONMENT
The built environment contributes significantly to energy and resource consumption, accounting for 50% of all extracted materials, 30% of water usage, 40% of energy consumption, and 36% of CO2 emissions during use. Additionally, the embodied carbon in the built environment is estimated to be 10-12% of total carbon emissions in certain member states.
To decrease embodied emissions and improve the sustainability of the built environment, research and innovation must address the following challenges:
- Lack of reliable data
- Shortage of qualified professionals to implement solutions
- Incompatible business models and contracts for sustainable construction along life cycle
- Improve the consideration of the needs and preferences of stakeholders, particularly from building inhabitants and owners
- Inflexible and inadequate legal framework, including public procurement rules, and the time to adopt the innovation by policies and regulation
- Need for a shift towards a circular economy and innovation in “repair,” “reuse,” and “renovate” rather than new product manufacturing.
The Built Environment Decarbonisation (BED) Committee of ECTP aims to develop a strategic vision and research agenda to decrease the carbon footprint of the construction sector, and achieve a decarbonised built environment. The committee’s activities will focus on four macro-objectives:
- near zero and positive built environment,
- renewable and clean energy,
- circularity and resource efficiency,
- regenerative and nature-based built environment.
ECTP Built Environment Decarbonisation (BED) Committee Chair: Javier Bonilla (ACCIONA)
ECTP BED Committee Executive Board Members
| Name | Organisation |
| Javier BONILLA (Chair) | ACCIONA |
| Julen ASTUDILLO (Coordinator) | TECNALIA |
| Germain ADELL | BE COMMONS |
| Bruno LINÉATTE | BOUYGUES CONSTRUCTION |
| José SOLIS HERNANDEZ | CEMOSA |
| Piotr DYMARSKI | MOSTOSTAL WARSZAWA |
| Claudia HUNZIKER KELLER | NOBATEK |
| João MOUTINHO | PTPC |
| Donato ZANGANI | RINA Consulting |
| Beatriz PINEDA | RMIT Europe |
| Stefano CAROSIO | STAM |
| Carmine PASCALE | STRESS |
| Huub KEIZERS | TNO |
| Jürgen FRICK | UNIVERSITAT STUTTGART |
| Qian WANG | UPONOR |
| Tuija PAKKARINEN | VTT |
Publications
ECTP Built Environment Decarbonisation Committee Paper 2026-2030 (July 2026)
ECTP BED and M&S Committees joint Position paper on Biobased materials (October 2025)
ECTP BED Committee NBS Initiative Position Paper (March 2024)
EeB PPP Project Review 2021
EeB PPP Promising Technology Brochures 2018