Energy Saving Potential in University Buildings - "Low Hanging Fruit"
Abstract
University buildings are responsible for approximately 50% of the energy consumption and an even higher share of the CO2-emissions of the federal state’s properties in Germany. University buildings should be dealt with special attention due to their exemplary role in the implementation of national and international climate protection goals. Furthermore, steadily increasing energy consumption and energy prices lead to a continuously growing burden on university budgets. The energy costs of German universities altogether amount to about 1 billion Euro per year (Statistisches Bundesamt, 2010). However, because of their particular features and utilization as well as the existing organizational structures, there are hardly any approaches for universal solutions for reducing energy consumption and thus CO2-emissions in university buildings so far.