Building for Climate Change
Waterloo Region is one of the fastest growing regions in Canada so building for climate change is as complex as the weather. The complexities of climate change are beyond our scope, but foremost for our work is to see what can be done to minimize our carbon footprint. Our growth should be aligned in two broad areas:
Intelligent urban form
Smart building design
Our region has a good deal of sprawl which has been recognized for many years in policies that limit expansion through the Countryside Line and policies that promote densely along transit corridors. Emissions in compact, mixed-use cities are typically two to three times lower than national averages.
Are we achieving that when we build for a reduction in emissions?
Research has shown that countries with similar development levels can have vastly different emissions profiles. For example, emissions in North America are more than double those of most European countries. Do they have a different urban form? Are we building with climate change in mind?
Key Factors
The key driver of this difference between Europe and North America is urban form: Low-emissions countries typically have more compact, mixed, multi-modal cities and neighbourhoods or climate-aligned urbanism.
KCLD is suggesting that when the City of Kitchener is planning for the next 25 years, that a reduction in greenhouse gas production must include policies that would promote:
Net zero emissions in new builds
Promotion of retrofitting older buildings
Changing the urban form to reduces emissions
Our goals
We are suggesting that we can live comfortably and also meet reductions in greenhouse gasses for a healthy planet. We hope that you can work with us to achieve these goals and promote municipal policy that will build with climate change in mind.
Climate is a Worldwide Issue
Before we examine our city’s policies, let’s look at some broader conclusions on how to build for climate change. At the World Economic Forum’s Centre for Urban Transformation in 2025 the conclusions were:
The buildings and construction sector currently falls short of its goal to hit net zero by 2050.
Operating carbon as a sole indicator of carbon emissions sector is not enough: while measuring embodied carbon is more complex, it is needed to limit global warming to below 1.5°C.
The G20 Global Smart Cities Alliance has released a whole life carbon assessment mandate model policy that serves as a guide for cities and businesses for achieving decarbonization goals.
Cities are where most people on the planet live and they are also where most of the carbon footprint is located, from production of goods and consumption of products to the need for transportation and shelter. Cities account for 70% of global CO2 emissions mostly from fossil fuels. The continued maintenance of cities is only part of the equation.
A building also has embodied carbon or the greenhouse gas in its life cycle, namely the manufacturing and its decommissioning. When we build multiple large towers with concrete and steel, we have to remember how those materials were produced, transported and built, i.e., a building’s Whole Life Carbon Assessment.
The World Economic Forum summarized the impact of building as follows:
The building and construction sector is the largest source of greenhouse gases, accounting for 37% of global emissions. The majority of these are operational emissions, from the heating, cooling, and lighting of buildings. The architectural design of buildings, as well the materials used to build them - like steel, aluminium, and cement - are also significant sources.
Achieving positive tipping points to decarbonize will require the widespread adoption of heat pumps powered by electricity from renewable sources, and increasing the energy efficiency of buildings through insulation, smart metres and digitalization, innovation in building design and materials, and altered behaviour (Source: How cities can achieve net zero by targeting building emissions from design to demolition).
Actions on Climate
In 2019 Kitchener and over 400 other cities in Canada declared a Climate Emergency. At the time, Mayor Berry Vrbanovic said:
Kitchener prides itself on being a forward-thinking and innovative city…it was encouraging to see that reflected in the continued advocacy by council and community groups on this critical issue. All of our progress in building a better city for our children is at risk of being undone if we fail to appropriately react to this challenge (City of Kitchener declares Climate Emergency June 26, 2019).
For the City of Kitchener, there is recognition that our climate is already changing and that our local weather will have more extreme summer heat, more frequent and more intense storms and warmer winters. Since 2019, the City established working in partnership with Climate Action Waterloo Region in conducting a technical inventory of the greenhouse gas emissions for the entire community. This inventory will be used to develop a Community Climate Action Plan. Details of that planning can be found in the City of Kitchener’s Corporate Sustainability Office.
A regional approach to climate action is being undertaken by way of High-Performance Development Standards for new development applications in the Cities of Cambridge, Kitchener, and Waterloo, and the Townships of North Dumfries, Wellesley, Wilmot, and Woolwich.
The purpose is to ensure that energy transition and climate resilience are incorporated into the planning process. By getting feedback from local community, industry partners, and municipal staff, the aim is to create an collaborative approach to energy efficiency of future buildings and so reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 80% by 2050. (see Engage Waterloo Region: High Performance Development Standards, The performance standards apply to more than just buildings. WR Community Energy has a number of resources and roles aimed at implementing the region’s Community Energy Investment Strategy.
KCLD has participated at workshops on the High Performance Development Standards and staff presented at one of our meetings.
Resources
The first ever Buildings and Climate Global Forum in March 2024 adopted the Declaration de Chaillot, which outlines the principal ways to build in ways that reduce greenhouse gasses, responsible to over a fifth of global emissions. The Forum brought together over 1,400 participants dedicated to the decarbonization and climate resilience of buildings.
Climate change will have serious impacts on urban life and cities must build resilience. The examples here provide a number of examples of how cities can build healthier, more attractive places to live and do business.
World Economic Forum: Why it’s time to put urban form on the global climate agenda November 26, 2024
Cities drive over half of greenhouse gas emissions and so urban form is a key driver. Per capita emissions are up to three times lower in compact, walkable cities. Despite the pace and pattern of city-building and urban development, urban form remains a deeply neglected topic in global climate discourse. This site has various studies and resources on how to transform the urban areas, which account for a small percentage of the earth’s surface.
C40 Cities provides many resources for understanding how cities can change for climate action. Our buildings help define our cities – from our iconic skylines to our historic architecture and we need urgent action to cut emissions from buildings and reduce their embedded carbon before they are even occupied. Net zero carbon buildings use energy efficiently and are built and managed with renewables. They are healthy and carbon neutral homes and workplaces. “Action is needed today, because most buildings will be standing for generations to come.”
Provides information on GHC and other green energy results and tools for measuring and ideas for reducing emissions. Our alliance emphasizes the importance of climate change mitigation and adaptation, as well as increased access to clean and affordable energy.
An article that shows that when stakeholders in residential development consider natural features and climate change in their decisions that natural features do receive attention in residential development decisions but that climate change is rarely considered in making those decisions.
A recent report that shows how adding large numbers of midrise buildings to major streets in existing built-up areas can sustainably generate homes to end a housing shortage and use low-carbon materials and utilize existing infrastructure while maintaining the use of public transportation and decrease reliance on automobiles.