23 Jul 2026
The Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) welcomes the ACT Climate Change Strategy 2026-36 released today, with its renewed commitments to climate resilience and emission reduction – mapping out eight target areas, including the built environment.
GBCA Chief Executive Officer Davina Rooney said the latest strategy and accompanying action plan retains the ambition and leadership we have come to expect from the ACT Government, with strong alignment to GBCA’s own priorities, in particular the ongoing commitment to electrification.
“The strategy and action plan’s strong focus on resilience and climate adaption, particularly evident in the commitment to support Canberrans to electrify, is heartening to see. It is clear this plan has been mapped out to ensure progress is fair and equitable – and, critically, doesn’t leave anyone behind,” Ms Rooney said.
GBCA applauds the ACT Government’s ongoing commitments to prevent new gas network connections, the electrification of all government assets, public housing and new buildings, with a continued emphasis on a fair transition to support households and businesses on the journey to electrification.
“These are the steps we called for and outlined in our report, Every Building Counts, in 2023,” Ms Rooney said.
“Buildings account for over 50% of electricity use in Australia and almost a quarter of its emissions, but we have the technology to decarbonise now at speed and scale. The built environment can move the needle on emission reduction now all while smoothing the way for hard-to-abate sectors to electrify,” explained Ms Rooney.
GBCA is especially pleased to note Minister Orr’s announcement of a new Sustainable Apartments Program which will provide support for apartment buildings to overcome any obstacles to electrification – a key response to denser cities as more Australians choose apartment living.
The goals of the strategy, which include reaching net zero by 2045, restoring and supporting nature, and adapting the city to face a changing climate, are held up with eight strong pillars of action.
Within the built environment pillar, the key action areas include:
o Mitigating the impacts of urban heat and delivering climate ready homes and communities
o Reducing embodied and operational emissions from infrastructure.
- This includes a new action to pilot measuring and valuing emission impacts in major government transport planning and infrastructure projects
- And an ongoing commitment to require independent sustainability ratings on major government projects. Recent Green Star examples include the Canberra Hospital expansion project and the new Canberra lyric theatre currently underway.
Ms Rooney said the strategy and plan reflects the practical role the built environment plays in preparing communities for more frequent and severe climate impacts.
“We need to be focusing more on climate adaption, and that’s what the ACT’s action plan succeeds at. Delivering climate-ready homes and communities, protecting nature, and increasing our pool of resilient infrastructure will set Canberrans up for better, healthier, and more sustainable future.
“We look forward to continuing to work with ACT Government on certifying major social infrastructure projects, creating more opportunities to build with nature and improve circularity, and supporting the ACT’s transition to a more resilient, climate positive built environment.” said Ms Rooney.
Find the ACT Climate Change Strategy and Action plan below