Why the EU must renovate to recover

(EurActiv, 17 Jun 2020) The homes we live in are by far the world’s biggest asset class, representing worth €150 trillion, or 20 times the amount of gold ever mined. As such, they are too big to fail, writes Brook Riley.

This week the 27 European heads of state are discussing the Commission’s proposal for a €1.85 trillion COVID-19 recovery budget. It is a huge sum: €1.1 trillion from the member states themselves and €750 billion to be borrowed on the capital markets. But it is dwarfed by something which is all around us and which we take for granted: buildings.

The homes we live in are by far the world’s biggest asset class. Altogether they are worth €150 trillion, more than 20 times all the gold ever mined. They are fundamental for our wellbeing. With or without COVID-19, we spend most of our time indoors.

But the buildings where we live and work are also the largest contributor to climate change. In the EU, over a third of greenhouse gas emissions come from buildings, mostly from heating. Taken together, this makes buildings Europe’s most valuable financial asset and at the same time its biggest environmental liability.

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EurActiv, 17 Jun 2020: Why the EU must renovate to recover