Transitioning heating systems in public non-residential buildings

The project “Heat turnaround in public non-residential buildings” deals with the refurbishment of school buildings and their effects as part of the city of Berlin’s school construction offensive.

The study examines which of the refurbishment measures that have been carried out or are planned at Berlin schools are relevant to energy efficiency and whether the school stakeholders were involved in the planning and practical implementation of the measures. As buildings and energy supply are responsible for 75 percent of Berlin’s_{CO2 emissions}, saving energy in public non-residential buildings is of great importance and also serves as a role model. The school construction offensive would also have the opportunity to be a strong driver for Berlin’s heating transition. Whether it can fulfill this function will be one of the results of the project.

Once the planning documents have been evaluated, visits are made to selected schools where further, more detailed investigations are carried out. Based on this information, recommendations for action for the Berlin administrative authorities and accompanying materials for schools will be drawn up. The aim is to make the topic of “saving energy” tangible for pupils in their own learning environment.

The project is part of the research network Wissen.Wandel.Berlin in the social climate change cluster. Five Berlin institutes of transdisciplinary sustainability research have joined forces here, which are also part of the Ecological Research Network (Ecornet). Six research projects will be carried out jointly (initially until December 2021) in three clusters (Social Climate Change, Sustainable Economy, Digitalization), creating public spaces for knowledge exchange and joint learning. UfU is also involved in the project Data Governance and Regulation for a Sustainable Berlin. Further information on Ecornet and the research network can be found on their website.

The “Heat transition in public non-residential buildings” project is being carried out by the Öko-Institut and UfU within the Project “Knowledge. Change. Berlin. – Transdisciplinary research for a social and ecological metropolis” of the Ecornet Berlin research network. It is carried out with the financial support of the Governing Mayor, Senate Chancellery – Science and Research Berlin.