This paper describes the work being carried out on an international research project which is examining the energy related environmental impact of buildings. The project is being conducted under the auspices of the Energy Conservation in Buildings and Community Systems Program (BCS) of the International Energy Agency (IEA). Australia's participation is coordinated and supported by the Energy Development Corporation (ERDC). While the system boundaries for this project are far wider than embodied energy, many of the research projects are of interest for embodied energy researchers. It is important to note that much of the international research is concerned with Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) since this technique provides methods for assessing the environmental aspects and impacts along the continuum of a building or products life from raw material acquisition, construction, operation, demolition and recycling. Also most of the reported works are concerned with entire buildings or materials. It is common to consider the production or construction phase however the demolition phase is rarely considered. Comparatively little research deals with energy sources and infrastructure. A list of current projects from the thirteen participating countries is included in this paper, and they represent the range and themes of current research in this area.

• embodied energy