My Fault or Default—Household Behaviors Living in a Climate-Smart Building

Abstract

Decreasing climate impact of households is a concern for many actors. One way to address this challenge is to focus on household behaviors related to energy use and consumption. Another is to construct climate-smart houses that encourage households to utilize smart functions that reduce emissions. This article examines the link between these two strategies and investigates how living in a climate-smart house affects household behaviors, by conducting interviews with households before and after they moved into a climate-neutral house. Results indicate that overall, emissions decrease after the move, mostly due to the features of the building itself rather than changes in behavior. Unintended effects were also observed, calling into question which strategy is most effective in reducing a household’s climate footprint.