Dear 2030 community,
Welcome to 2023! We are now 17 years from Architecture2030 and the AIA outlining a progressive path to zero carbon buildings, 8 years since signatory firms started reporting progress in the Design Data Exchange (DDx), and 7 short years from now it will be the year 2030, when we are to have achieved a carbon neutral built environment. We recognize the importance of reaching this goal with greater equity, diversity, and inclusion.
Since inception, we have seen steady growth in the program, with signatory firms now numbering roughly 1,200, and these firms employing over 55,000 architects. The AIA has 96,000 members and 17,500 firms; broader outreach is necessary to ensure we meet the goals of the 2030 Commitment. Our working group is dedicated to inspiring more medium and small firms and sole practitioners to sign the commitment—and while signatory growth is important, the two-fold part of being a signatory is reporting.
In 2021, only 411 of the 1000+ signatories at that point reported projects into the DDx; our working group is also dedicated to increasing reporting. To this end, we’re ensuring reporting in the DDx is as simple and straightforward as it can be, without sacrificing the quality of the data, and to better align with the CommonApp for Design Excellence. Fortunately, more and more tools integrate these same data points, and several offer auto-uploads.
The AIA 2030 Commitment Working Group hit the ground running in 2023 by clarifying what forms of renewable energy may be included in reporting a project’s net pEUI. In short, dedicated off-site renewables count equally to on-site renewables and should be included in your net pEUI calculation. Dedicated off-site renewables include Direct Ownership, Green Retail Tariffs, Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs), Community Renewables, and Utility Renewable Contracts. Unbundled RECs do not count towards offsite renewable contributions and should not be included in your net pEUI calculation. Please read on for a deeper discussion and links to understanding these.
While this clarification provides a path for many building types that can’t achieve at least an 80% reduction with design and on-site renewables alone, architects must continue to prioritize passive design with highly efficient envelopes and systems, maximum integration of on-site renewable energy generation, and deliver these with the lowest embodied carbon structural, envelope, MEP and finish resources possible. Off-site renewables can bridge the gap, but for many building types there should be no gap. Zero net carbon buildings are achievable, especially lower density, low-rise projects—the majority of our built environment.
This year, the Working Group aims to further align the DDx’s Embodied Carbon reporting with the tools available, with increased accuracy. Building Transparency is one of our primary partners towards this effort, and we note the US Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) has been targeting Carbon Negative Buildings for a year and a half now. We encourage firms to aim at reporting the embodied carbon for at least one project in 2022, to help us shape the program and further your own understanding of these impacts.
As we continue to refine reporting to reflect the built environment's total carbon (operational and embodied), we anticipate introducing mandatory embodied carbon reporting as we enter the final five years of the 2030 Commitment. We appreciate your commitment to the AIA’s goals of Climate Action and Design Excellence,, furthering our profession’s relevance and ensuring the world’s prosperity, health and future.
Sincerely,
Vanessa Hostick, AIA and David Arkin, AIA
2030 Commitment Working Group - 2023 Co-Chairs