2026 Symposium: Designing Sustainable Solutions for a Better Built Environment
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With mounting evidence of the impact of human activity on the global climate, the built environment is increasingly understood as a critical site for applied and conceptual research in questions of energy and ecology. As the urgency to mitigate and adapt to climate change intensifies—and as new pathways for research and investigation become essential—Harvard’s Center for Green Buildings and Cities (CGBC) and the Harvard Graduate School of Design are pleased to present, for the fourth year, “Designing Sustainable Solutions for a Better Built Environment.” The event will take place on Thursday, April 2 from 6:30 PM – 9:00 PM in Piper Auditorium, Gund Hall and virtually. This event is open to Harvard affiliates only.
This event features a keynote address by Harvard’s Vice Provost for Climate and Sustainability, James Stock, followed by short presentations by CGBC affiliated faculty from the GSD, whose research ranges from carbon-negative building insulation to place-based scenario planning. A five-minute Q&A session will follow each presentation.
EVENT PROGRAM
Welcome & Opening Remarks
Ali Malkawi, Founding Director of the Harvard Center for Green Buildings and Cities
Sarah Whiting, Dean of the Harvard Graduate School of Design
Keynote Address
James H. Stock, Vice Provost for Climate and Sustainability, Harvard University; Director of the Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability
Faculty Presentations (click to learn more)
Climate Futures on the Gulf of Maine: Scenario Planning for Infrastructure Systems
Charles Waldheim, John E. Irving Professor of Landscape Architecture
Kira Clingen, Landscape Architect, Researcher, and PhD candidate at the University of Cambridge
Algae Foam: Science, Technology, and Impact on Buildings
Martin Bechthold, Kumagai Professor of Architectural Technology
Daniel Tish, Design Critic in Architecture
Urban Natures, Technology and Politics
Antoine Picon, G. Ware Travelstead Professor of the History of Architecture and Technology
Outfitting Architecture: Expanded Comfort in Athens
Jenny French, Assistant Professor in Practice of Architecture
Approximating Cradle-to-Cradle Metabolic Depictions of Urban Settlement Material Stock Flows
Peter Rowe, Raymond Garbe Professor of Architecture and Urban Design
Saharan Ergscapes: Documenting Agroecological Practices in the Great Sea of Sand
Pablo Perez-Ramos, Associate Professor of Landscape Architecture
Big Increases in Housing Supply through Many Small Developments
Carole Voulgaris, Associate Professor of Urban Planning