The 2024 Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings is the 23rd biennial event. Summer Study will bring together professionals from around the globe to the Asilomar Conference Grounds to collaborate, debate and advance the technologies, practices and research necessary to equitably decarbonize the building sector in a manner that addresses the urgency of the climate crisis.
The 2024 theme is Equity and Climate Action: Time to Deliver. In August 2022, Congress passed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), an unprecedented investment to transform our built environment and electricity sector to be safer and healthier, reducing carbon emissions and prioritizing the needs of underserved communities. At the same time, climate crisis is now a reality and is becoming more urgent and critical by the day. The Rhodium Group estimates that greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the US increased by 1.3% in 2022. While emissions from the electric power sector decreased in 2022, outside of the power sector, emissions increased slightly. The most significant increase was seen in direct emissions from buildings, which rose by 6% and was the only sector to rebound to pre-pandemic levels. This is our opportunity to right the ship, take advantage of this critical moment in history and identify the innovations that will deliver climate justice through deep emissions reductions in our buildings.