Almost 40% of Denmark’s CO2 emissions come from buildings and homes. Of these, a large proportion of the emissions come from the energy we use to heat the buildings. Therefore, buildings play an important role as we attempt to reduce the overall CO2 emissions in the future.

In the long term, Denmark must be supplied by 100% renewable energy. However, the challenge of renewable energy is that production is irregular because a significant portion of the energy must be used when the wind blows or the sun shines. Yet that is not always in sync with our circadian rhythm or working life.

As part of the interdisciplinary research project InterHUB, researchers from BUILD, among others, are working towards buildings and households being regarded as part of the energy system. The project focuses on building design, everyday practices and energy supply, and addresses the technical, communicative, organisational and social challenges relating to the changing role of buildings in the energy system.

This requires interdisciplinary research involving the social sciences to understand everyday housekeeping practices and the complex changes in the energy supply, research in the humanities to understand the rationale and communication patterns of involved parties, as well as technical research and the development of building technologies. The purpose of InterHUB is to gain a deeper understanding of the challenges associated with integrating buildings and households into the flexible energy system of the future.