Italian green creativity
How italian entrepreneurs are driving the shift
to sustainable homes
Photo by Bruno Zanzottera
As the drastic effects of climate change unravel fast worldwide, humanity is forced to reconsider many facets of modern life – including how we build our homes. 40% of carbon dioxide emissions that contribute to global warming are a result of how we build or operate our homes. Over the past few years, the European Union has been pushing its member states to cut pollution, and that includes making European homes more sustainable. While this transition might be straightforward in some areas of the bloc, in Italy, it’s less so –many of the 12 million inhabited homes across the country’s 7,901 towns are either old or cheaply built. In 2020, as European Union governments launched initiatives to help citizens with this transition, Italy introduced the Superbonus, a tax break worth 110% of the investment for climate-friendly renovations.
Italians jumped on it, but the colossal initiative was riddled with corruption and clunky bureaucracy. However, the injection of capital and interest into the sector also allowed farsighted entrepreneurs to experiment with and fund exciting new projects to bring Italy into a more sustainable future.
This work is part of a project on the eco-efficiency of housing carried out in collaboration with the European Climate Foundation.
(2023)
