Frequently asked questions

What is a Living Lab?

A Living Lab, or “Living Laboratory” in the case of this project, refers to a public or private building, house or apartment that is in public or inhabited use, which has energy consumption with savings potential.

How were the buildings chosen for the experiential laboratories?

In addition, in order to represent the greatest number of buildings, three of the most common typologies in Galapagos were identified: housing, public buildings, and lodging establishments.

Other characteristics that were evaluated were the location, with visible spaces for the community; the social conditions of the beneficiaries due to the social contribution of the project; and the physical conditions of the buildings, in order to ensure that they are suitable for architectural and technological rehabilitations.

Why does the project not include new buildings?

Because the Galapagos building stock already has about 3,500 buildings with the potential to be more energy efficient and the application of the proposed standards will show a before and after, which will contribute to a paradigm shift.
In the future, a next phase of the project will be proposed for new buildings.

Why does the project involve only buildings in urban areas?

Buildings in the urban area represent about 85% of the building stock. They have common characteristics, including the challenge of minimizing heat gain and maximizing ventilation. In rural areas, buildings styles are different, there is less density, and the energy efficiency challenge is less than in the port area.