Sustainable and Smart Living Versus Unworthy Conditions in Portugal

Abstract

This research focuses on the legal concept of unworthy conditions for the citizen (PCM, Decreto-Lei n.° 37/2018. Diário da República n.° 106/2018, Série I de 04 de junho de 2018. Lisboa, 2018). Undeniably, it starts with the article 65° of the Constitution of the Portuguese Assembleia da República, Diário da República, I série, 10 april, 1976 that defines “everyone has the right for himself and his family to have an adequately sized dwelling that provides hygienic and comfortable conditions and preserves personal and family privacy.” The World Health Organization guidelines provide regulations for buildings and indoor air quality to support higher comfort levels and well-being for their occupants to improve health (WHO, World Health Organization. WHO Housing and health guidelines. Geneva, 2018). In this sense, the European Parliament and Council of the European Union, JOUE, L328: 210–230, 2018 approved the Energy Performance of Buildings directive with the intention of accelerating building renovation, delivering more energy-efficient systems, and strengthening the energy performance of new buildings, making them sustainable and smarter. Methodologically, this research relies on two analyses. The first is theoretical based on the literature review of the energy performance of building and the legal regime of the unworthy conditions of the sustainable living of the citizen. The second is an exploratory analysis, supported on statistics of the Agency of Energy. The results show that the European Union encourages the Member States to use European funds and to ensure transition between unworthy conditions and social inclusion, to improve the situation of housing for each citizen. It not only reduces the carbon emissions that impact on climate change, but improves the energy efficiency of buildings that generates sustainable and smart living based on the EU Directives. Furthermore, the energy performance certificate demonstrates that more than one-third of citizens live in unworthy conditions. So, the challenge of this research is demanding the awareness of better housing and promoting the participation mechanisms, specifically emphasis on the (isolated) elderly, which need to be strengthened on rural and mountain areas.