Aspects impacting on the energy performance of Brazilian social housing: a literature review

Abstract In the last ten years, the social housing sector in Brazil has been driven by the Programme “Minha Casa, Minha Vida” (“My House, My Life”). Although the Programme allowed the construction of a great number of dwellings throughout the country, field assessments have highlighted failures such as lack of climate suitability. Such an inadequacy can result in low levels of energy efficiency and the dissatisfaction of residents. Thus, the aim of this study is to review the national literature from the last ten years (from 2009 up to 2019) in order to determine the most impacting parameters for the energy efficiency of social housing. A synthesis of this information is necessary to consolidate the knowledge produced so far and to facilitate progress in this area. This study is expected to help future decisions by different stakeholders: researchers can define future goals by considering what has already been done, designers can apply user-centric design and energy efficiency criteria in practice, and policy makers can link the approval of social housing designs to energy efficiency parameters.