•Shallow geothermal energy can significantly reduce the building HVAC loads.•Renewable energy integration with geothermal systems can minimize HVAC demands.•A hybrid combination of active and passive technologies realizes NZEB. Shallow geothermal systems use the thermal inertia of the earth to provide a temperature gradient between the ambient conditions and the underground soil. This thermal inertia can be used by the heat exchangers to provide space heating and cooling during the winters and summers. This paper provides a brief but broad overview of the different active and passive technologies involved in the use of heat exchangers for HVAC in order to achieve a near net zero energy building. Firstly the different types of ground heat exchangers and heat pumps are introduced along with the relevant studies of significance in this field. It has been demonstrated that the different types of heat exchangers can be integrated with thermally active building envelopes and renewable energy resources to significantly minimize the building energy use. Finally a pathway has been devised for use of ground heat exchangers to realize a net zero energy building.