UN environment at work. District energy: A tried-and-tested answer to modern urban energy problems

In homes and workplaces, schools and hospitals, technologies such as boilers and air-conditioners consume vast amounts of energy. Indeed, half the energy buildings use is for heating and cooling and most of this comes from fossil fuels, burned in buildings’ individual boilers and in power plants on the outskirts of our cities. Citizens, cities and countries are starting to take real action to move away from this status quo to more sustainable solutions, and this monumental shift is cutting greenhouse gas emissions, cleaning our air, saving money and reducing energy imports.