The City of Calgary, City of Edmonton and Alberta Ecotrust have partnered to create the Emissions-Neutral Buildings Information Exchange (ENBIX).
ENBIX is a collaborative initiative that brings industry together to share knowledge, build capacity and support building and renovation practices across Alberta. The goal of this industry-led initiative is to accelerate the transition to an emissions-neutral built environment for new and existing buildings.
The City of Edmonton and The City of Calgary are the main funders of ENBIX, with a contribution of $1.7 million and $1.4 million respectively. Alberta Ecotrust is providing a $600,000 contribution from the organizations’ Climate Innovation Fund.
“We are creating momentum for action with ENBIX that will build over the next several years and beyond,” says Calgary Mayor Gondek. “Building capacity for emissions neutral construction across the whole development ecosystem – from construction to manufacturing, supply, training, operating and more is critical in getting us to net-zero buildings by 2050.”
Commercial and residential buildings are a major source of greenhouse gas emissions across Canada. In Calgary and Edmonton, the building stock accounts for 40 to 60 per cent of emissions. With Canada and the two largest municipalities in Alberta aiming for net-zero emissions by 2050, there is an urgent need to ensure that all new buildings are built to be emissions-neutral, and that existing buildings are retrofitted to the same standards.
“Our association is committed to advancing sustainable practices within the construction industry and embracing environmentally responsible approaches to development. We firmly believe that collaborative efforts, knowledge sharing, and skill enhancement are fundamental pillars for achieving long-term sustainability objectives, and we fully champion this approach” said Bill Black, president and COO, Calgary Construction Association.
Over the next four years ENBIX will be developing a variety of platforms to enable the local building industry to share knowledge and build capacity for low-carbon building and renovation practices across Alberta.
In early 2024, the Calgary Community of Practice will launch, providing a forum for Calgary-specific collaboration, while still learning from experiences across Alberta. With funding now committed to the program, ENBIX will continue to expand the ways in which it shares market research, industry experience and training, including webinars, site visits, communities of practice, technology demonstrations, training sessions and more.
