Digital Home Energy Labels
Alberta Ecotrust is supporting innovation in digital home energy labels to accelerate the home energy revolution.
About Home Energy Labelling
Residential buildings are a major source of greenhouse gas emissions across Canada. Approximately 30% of emissions in Calgary, and 20% in Edmonton, come from residential homes.
Home energy labelling is the practice of providing homeowners with a simple indication of the energy efficiency of their home. The most well-known program in Canada is the federally-supported EnerGuide.
By helping homeowners to better understand the energy efficiency of their current or potential homes, energy labels can create a better-informed residential housing market that values energy efficiency as it does home renovations or other important factors.
Digital energy labels are the next innovation in this field. Investment in and testing of new technologies is essential to the development of effective, accessible tools that will accelerate the home energy revolution and ultimately reduce community emissions.
About Lightspark Engage
Alberta Ecotrust Foundation and the Alberta Real Estate Foundation are currently supporting a digital home energy labels pilot project for Edmonton and Calgary. This project, titled Lightspark Engage, uses technology from Vancouver-based cleantech software company Lightspark. The beta platform uses publicly-available data to predict how much energy a home uses.
Digital home energy label platforms such as Lightspark Engage help homeowners to easily compare the energy performance of different homes and understand the potential upgrades and retrofits that can be done to improve their home’s performance.
Lightspark Engage pilot project is the first automatic digital home energy labeling program in Canada. The platform is free and accessible to homeowners in Calgary and Edmonton.
What’s Next?
Alberta Ecotrust Foundation is working closely with Lightspark through the iterative process of fine-tuning this beta platform. AEF and Lightspark will seek feedback from users and maintain open dialogue with stakeholders throughout the first pilot year. At the end of the year (March 2024), AEF will publish a public report on the lessons learned from this innovative project, including best practices, challenges, and policy recommendations to inform future implementation of digital energy labels in Alberta.
Thank you to our pilot project partners
This pilot project aims to
- 1
Display Digital Home Energy Labels
Display Digital Home Energy Labels on an interactive map so homebuyers and REALTORS® can easily compare the energy performance of different homes, understand the potential upgrades, and feel confident in their home purchase.
- 2
Enable REALTORS® to educate homeowners
Enable REALTORS® to educate homeowners on the energy efficiency of a home using the map.
- 3
Make the map easy for homeowners
Make the map easy for homeowners to view and compare homes, as well as update their home’s label with recent energy-efficient upgrades.
- 4
Encourage homeowners to upgrade their homes
Encourage homeowners to upgrade their homes so that they can reduce emissions, save on energy bills, improve their health and comfort, and enable jobs for local contractors such as windows, insulation, HVAC installers, and electricians.
About the Climate Innovation Fund
This project is possible with funding from Alberta Ecotrust's Climate Innovation Fund. The Climate Innovation Fund targets the major urban greenhouse gas emissions sources in Calgary and Edmonton.
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