Ten questions concerning sustainable domestic thermal retrofit policy research

- We summarize key findings of our last decade of home retrofit policy research.
- There are deep interdependencies of social and technical issues in this field.
- Policy must attend to households' limited capacities to reach ambitious goals.
- It must also consider rebound effects, gender issues and income disparities.
- Social science can play a major role in identifying problems and solutions.

The ten questions posed in this paper stand out among others after six years of joint and collaborative research, by the authors, on sustainable domestic thermal retrofit policy. This is a very wide field, touching on many disciplines, and we approach it from an interdisciplinary perspective informed by our experience in architecture, engineering, social science, policy studies and economics. Our basic concerns are: what makes a sustainable thermal retrofit; and what kinds of policies can support such retrofitting. 'Sustainable' retrofitting, in our view, not only reduces energy consumption and climate-damaging emissions but is also affordable for all, enhances occupant health, and preserves architectural heritage. Often achieving all these is a delicate balancing act. Our questions cover issues such as the appropriate depth of retrofits; the roles and interplays of social theory and physical science in this research; the place of qualitative research; specific social issues such as gender and wealth inequalities; consumer behavior issues such as the rebound effect; and the interesting concept of social desire paths. We conclude by summarizing key issues that policymakers and researchers could consider in order to lift home heating energy savings from their current torpor while also addressing related aspects of sustainability.