The one-day summit organised by Zero Carbon Hub brought together experts from both government and the house building industry, who are facing the challenge of delivering new housing built to zero carbon standards in the West Midlands from 2016.
“With three years to go, the challenge ahead on the face of it might seem huge but my research demonstrates that we can already now achieve zero carbon buildings which are technically and economically viable and very comfortable for people,” said Dr Jankovic.
“My message to these leaders is that we have an opportunity to achieve zero carbon living on a large scale and this region has the expertise and critical mass to pioneer in this area.”
Hosts of the event, Birmingham City Council, highlighted its work on the Birmingham Energy Savers programme, in which they are planning to retro-fit up to 60,000 households across the city with energy efficiency measure such as insulation and new boilers by 2020.
Beck Collins, a PhD student at Birmingham City University’s School of the Built Environment, has been working on the Birmingham Energy Savers programme since 2010 with an interest in looking at inventions to change people’s energy behaviour.
She said: “What the Birmingham Energy Savers programme is trying to achieve is nothing less than a revolution in Birmingham’s economy, quality of life and environment. I’ve been delighted to have played a part in that.”