France: Where energy efficiency tops the polls


France: Where energy efficiency tops the polls 20th April 2017, by Adrian Joyce, Renovate Europe Campaign Director Whoever is elected in the French elections, it seems that the building renovations industry will win. Energy renovation programmes have been a substantial feature in the manifestos of all leading presidential candidates - and in the presidential TV debates. That means French voters can choose from a range of often detailed energy efficiency programmes, in the first round of polling on April 23. But how did it happen? “The subject emerged in this campaign because we built a…

Op-ed: Energy poverty: A blight on the EU (Euractiv)


Published by Euractiv on: 6 April 2017 | For something that blights the lives of between 50 and 125 million European citizens it is strange to discover that there is no EU-wide definition of ‘energy poverty’, writes Adrian Joyce.

Making it Real – Site to Renovated House with Energy Attachés


The Renovate Europe office organised a site visit for Energy Attachés to the Renovactive house in Anderlecht on Wednesday 29th March. The RenovActive house is a demonstration project of VELUX, a partner of the Renovate Europe Campaign. A typical 1920s house in the Brussels suburb was fully renovated with the double aim of significantly reducing energy consumption but also of improving the daylight and fresh air for future inhabitants. The fact that the house is part of a social housing estate meant that costs had to be kept within a restricted budget, in cooperation with the local social…

Interview about the Dutch National Elections 2017


Interview about the Dutch National Elections 2017 Interview with the Renovate Europe Dutch National Partner - the National Renovation Platform How did energy renovation feature in the Dutch national elections? Strangely enough there was all but no attention towards energy-efficiency and climate in the weeks and days before the elections. Could it be, that the political leaders thought, that that was of no interest to the Dutch voters? Or could it be that they wanted to avoid the subject, due to the huge financial impact it's going to have in the coming years? The latter seems to be more…

Briefing 1/2017 on Energy Poverty – Nobody should have to choose between heating and eating


Briefing 1/2017: Energy Poverty - Nobody should have to choose between heating and eating Energy poverty is as widespread as it is devastating for those who suffer it.  Countries with the poorest building stock have the highest rates of excess winter mortality.  EU legislation requires all countries to define vulnerable customers in their energy market so they can be helped, but two thirds of the Member States have not yet done so.  The public health consequences are as grievous as they are unnecessary. Definition: What's in a name? For a blight on the lives of between 50m and 125m European…

2017 Legislative Reviews: How to make Renovate Europe’s NZEB vision a reality by 2050?


What is the Renovate Europe vision and what changes in the EPBD and EED will help us achieve an NZEB building stock by 2050? Download the Renovate Europe 2-pager.