Faculty present on seven projects related to climate change and the built environment

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., [May 10, 2024] – What does it mean to have meaningful, dignified shelter? How can we reduce energy spent on removing moisture in hot and humid climates? How does residential setting contribute to the risks to health that older adults face from climate change?

These are just a few of the deeply provocative, timely questions and related issues addressed at the recent symposium, “Designing Sustainable Solutions for a Better Built Environment,” hosted by the Harvard Center for Green Buildings and Cities (CGBC) and the Harvard Graduate School of Design (GSD). A hybrid audience, in-person from the steps of Piper Auditorium, and virtually, were updated on a sampling of Center-funded research from seven CGBC core and affiliated faculty members.

“Each year, the Harvard Center for Green Buildings and Cities strives toward groundbreaking, data-driven research related to the built environment. This year was no exception,” said Ali Malkawi, Founding Director of the Harvard CGBC. “As we embark on the tenth-year anniversary of the Center, our faculty continue to focus their efforts towards our core research areas and innovative, interdisciplinary work. This was showcased through our symposium event.”

The third annual symposium was keynoted by Jim Stock, Harvard University Vice Provost for Climate and Sustainability, and Director of the University’s Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability. He framed the event with a sense of urgency towards lowering carbon emissions and mitigating the effects of climate change; his highly engaging presentation highlighted the importance of energy conservation to achieve carbon neutrality.

The program featured presentations from principal investigators Elizabeth Christoforetti, Jennifer Molinsky, Pablo Pérez-Ramos, Jonathan Grinham, Peter Rowe, Craig Douglas, and Holly Samuelson. Areas of focus ranged from affordable, sustainable accessory dwelling units, to oases, and window designs.

“Our faculty initiatives bring together incredible expertise from the fields of architecture, urban planning, landscape architecture, and related disciplines, and they extend our collective thinking far beyond Cambridge, Massachusetts,” said Malkawi. “We are so grateful to Jim Stock, GSD Dean Sarah Whiting, our faculty, and their research teams for their participation and their crucial efforts towards facing the environmental challenges ahead. We leave this event feeling not just grateful, but inspired.”

Learn more about the CGBC’s faculty research, and read the full event program.