MIT centers, laboratories, departments and programs provide a multi-faceted approach to solving the world's energy challenge.
Buildings and urban design
There are substantial opportunities for reducing energy consumption in both new and existing buildings. Policies that affect the entire built environment are needed if such technologies are to enter the market rapidly. This is an important consideration, given that buildings designed and constructed today will last for much of the 21st century.
In addition to retrofitting existing buildings, we need to plan for the future. It is critical that urban form, from the buildings to the supporting networks of water, sewage, energy and transportation, be designed in an integrated manner that will minimize consumption of scarce resources, reduce impacts on the environment, optimize investments and meet consumer needs. Such design research must also take into consideration many non-technological aspects, including the economic and labor landscapes of the area, regional issues such as zoning and the preservation of green space and local factors such as impacts on crime, corruption and social equity.
