Green Retrofitting Simulation for Sustainable Commercial Buildings in China Using a Proposed Multi-Agent Evolutionary Game

Abstract

Green retrofit is regarded as an effective environmental measure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in high energy-consuming commercial buildings. However, the current retrofitting rate of complex structures is lower than the expected rate. This study proposed a method of stimulating the interaction of multiple agents (government, developers, and occupants) involved in the green renovation of China’s commercial buildings. To this end, the evolutionary game theory was applied to determine the multiple interaction mechanism of the behaviors of the agents, after which the key factors affecting the contrasting behavior of developers and occupants were demonstrated, and a sensitivity analysis was performed to distinguish detailed set parameters. The major results observed are as follows: (1) occupants are less sensitive to varied conditions owing to their vulnerable economic scale, meaning that a more friendly policy environment is essential to facilitate their support; (2) government financial support, such as subsidies or compensation costs, can strongly induce more positive behavior in developers to promote green retrofit; and (3) life-cycle awareness of developers should be improved as a reasonable energy-saving performance can act as a key motivating factor to support green renovation. This research provided a comparative perspective to that of a public–private partnership model.