COP Buildings Pavilion

As a global advocate and a catalyst to action, GlobalABC advocates for the buildings sector’s importance for global climate action through international high-level events such as the climate Conference of the Parties (COP). 

Since 2021, GlobalABC has been hosting a Buildings Pavilion each year at COP, in collaboration with sponsors, members, and partners. The Buildings Pavilion is:

• a space for businesses and policymakers to interact, 
• a meeting place for buildings and construction community, and 
• a space to showcase solutions through events, exhibitions, awards, etc. 

COP29 Buildings and Cooling Pavilion

At COP29 this year, the GlobalABC is collaborating with the UNEP Cool Coalition to host a joint Buildings and Cooling Pavilion. This Pavilion aims to bring together the entire built environment value chain and the cooling community, creating a unified voice to drive building decarbonisation and resilience, while addressing the challenges of extreme heat and sustainable cooling.

Tentative priorities for this year include:

• Strengthening Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs)
• Financing resilient buildings and cities
• Implementation of the Global Cooling Pledge
• Promoting high-impact decarbonisation technologies, innovations, and approaches
• Advancing the Buildings Breakthrough
• Implementing the Declaration de Chaillot
• Multilevel implementation of national actions, policies, and programs focused on buildings and cooling
• Integrating the construction sector through passive design, sustainable cooling, and heating
• Enhancing energy efficiency, cold chains, access to cooling, and passive nature-based solutions
• Engaging the Global South and expanding knowledge-sharing efforts to respond to extreme heat through the "triple strategy"
• Developing roadmaps to raise climate ambition in line with the SDGs, the Kigali Amendment, and the Paris Agreement

Stay tuned for the pavilion programme!

Discover previous Buildings Pavilions

COP28 Buildings Pavilion

In 2023, GlobalABC once again collaborated with the We Mean Business Coalition to host the Business + Buildings Pavilion at COP28. 11 entities provided sponsorship to GlobalABC for Buildings part of the pavilion which was hosted in collaboration with the BuildingToCOP Coalition, the Government of France, the International Code Council (ICC), the Programme for Energy Efficiency in Buildings (PEEB) and the MPGCA. 

From 2 to 10 December, a total of 15 events advocating for a zero-emission, efficient and resilient buildings and construction sector were organised in the pavilion, covering a wide range of topics, from finance to roadmaps, health, circularity, just transition and inclusivity, nature, etc. This year, our tagline is "Building our future". Each day of the pavilion’s Buildings programme featured a buildings topic linked to the COP28 presidency and MPGCA thematic days: 

• 2-3 December | Building a healthy future
• 4 December | Building the future by financing green
• 5 December | Building a circular future
• 6 December | Building our future together
• 8 December | Building an empowered future for all
• 9 December | Building a nature-positive future
• 10 December | Building a resilient future

The Buildings Pavilion served as a hub for various stakeholders within the buildings and construction community. Here, they united to showcase concrete solutions, initiatives and examples of action to accelerate the transformation of the buildings and construction sector. In attendance were representatives from diverse backgrounds, including civil society, CEOs, business leaders, NGOs, international organisations, cities, and national governments from across the globe. As in the two previous years, the presence of a Buildings Pavilion at COP28 underscored the buildings and construction sector’s pivotal role in shaping a zero-emission and resilient future, emphasising existing solutions that act as catalysts for this transformation.

Check out the COP28 Buildings Pavilion's programme and event recordings here.

COP27 Buildings Pavilion

While at COP26 the Buildings Pavilion was part of a shared space with We Mean Business, this year, and for the first time ever, the GlobalABC/UNEP hosted its own #BuildingsPavilion – co-hosted by We Mean Business Coalition and World Business Council for Sustainable Development, sponsored by 16 entities and in collaboration with the BuildingToCOP Coalition, UNFCCC Marrakech Partnership for Global Climate Action (MPGCA), Global Buildings Performance Network, and the Government of France. From 8 to 17 November, over 50 events were hosted at the Buildings Pavilion, covering a wide range of topics – from finance to resilience, building materials, energy, justice and social equity, to name but a few.

The tagline of the COP27 Buildings Pavilion was “Build4Tomorrow” (#Build4Tomorrow). Each day of the Buildings Pavilion programme featured a buildings topic linked to the COP27 presidency and MPGCA themes:

• Build4Tomorrow means aligning the transition with UNFCCC’s Marrakech Partnership for Global Climate Action (MPGCA) - Human Settlements Pathway.
• Build4Tomorrow means accelerating deep collaboration towards achieving a 2030 Buildings Breakthrough target.
• Build4Tomorrow means ensuring a just transition and enhancing building resilience.
• Build4Tomorrow means turning Africa’s housing challenges into building opportunities of sustainability and resilience.
• Build4Tomorrow means means decarbonising the building sector along its lifecycle by 2050.
• Build4Tomorrow means greater ambition and bolder policies for building decarbonisation.
• Build4Tomorrow means adopting a whole life cycle perspective, tackling materials as well.
• Build4Tomorrow means building with improved energy efficiency.
• Build4Tomorrow means all stakeholders work together towards a zero-emission, efficient and resilient buildings and construction sector.
• Build4Tomorrow means forging pathways through building decarbonization and resilience roadmaps.

The Buildings Pavilion was a hub for all stakeholders in the buildings and construction community to come together and highlight concrete solutions, initiatives and examples of action to accelerate the transformation of the buildings and construction sector.

The Buildings Pavilion welcomed representatives from civil society, CEOs and business leaders, NGOs, international organisations, cities and national governments from all around the world to demonstrate why it is important to make the transition to a net-zero, resilient and efficient built environment for everyone and everywhere, but also how we can do it.

Check out the COP28 Buildings Pavilion's programme and event recordings here.

COP26 Buildings Pavilion

The GlobalABC played a leading role in shaping buildings’ presence at COP26 with the #BuildingsPavilion and the Cities, Regions, and Built Environment Day at COP26. In a shared space with the Business pavilion, the GlobalABC hosted over 30 events in the #BuildingsPavilion Including daily live coffee talks with architects, city leaders, researchers, and civil society leaders; sponsored events with over 10 CEO’s from the buildings and construction sector; and multiple events with and through our members, including cities and countries from around the globe, featuring mayors, ministers, and research and civil society leaders.

The pavilion centred on the #BuildingToCOP26 coalition’s joint success framework and the MPGCA goals to halve buildings’ emissions by 2030 and to decarbonise buildings along their lifecycle by 2050. Each day featured a buildings topic linked to the COP26 theme of the day.

Check out the COP26 Buildings Pavilion's Daily Digests here.