Adoption Dynamics of Carbon Abatement Strategies in the Colombian Office Building Sector

Due to the increase in greenhouse gas emissions (GHG), several countries have developed programs to counteract climate change. Since 2011, the Colombian government has implemented a “Low Carbon Development Strategy” to reduce emissions production and promote sustainable economic growth. As a result, the government has incentivized the implementation of carbon mitigation measures in different economic sectors, including the office-building sector. This study aims to analyze dynamics between the implementation of carbon mitigation measures and the electric energy consumption in the office-building sector by identifying influential factors and examining how they are related. Through a system dynamics (SD) approach, a causal loop diagram (CLD) was built in order to understand key variables and feedback processes observed in the system. Results suggest that energy consumption is directly related to both the growth of the office-building sector and to external influences, such as government incentives. Conclusions point to the importance of analyzing the electric consumption problem with an integrated approach, in order to identify requirements to develop successful sustainable policies and foresee possible consequences. The proposed diagram can be used as a support tool in decision-making processes for public policy formulation.