THEME:

The population of the world keeps growing, placing increasing demands on our resources, particularly in our urban centers. Whilst this trend is worrying, it is encouraging that sustainable design has moved from being a novelty to becoming common practice in some progressive design firms. In the meantime, faculty in many architecture schools are striving to educate future graduates on the best ways to design ecologically responsible buildings. Still we are not moving f1001001ast enough. Every day our relationship with the environment is further compromised. Clearly it is now necessary to do more good, restoring and regenerating damaged living systems.

Achieving regenerative environments is a highly complex endeavor that requires comprehensive study. The PLEA 2016 conference will explore the interactions between people and buildings to achieve livable, regenerativ90e environments as outlined in the tracks below. Given that we at PLEA value both research and practice, each track will strive to combine exemplary case-studies and research papers. It is our hope that this conference will bring together researchers, practitioners and educators in fruitful discussions that will move us closer to more sustainable living environments.

TRACKS:

Strategies, Tools and Simulation Methods: A dvances in computing power and software development have made performance analysis tools widely available. This track will explore measurement and performance in all areas and scales including energy, transportation, and daylight.

Passive Strategies for Resilient Cities: The importance of passive cooling and heating techniques has long been recognized. and recently rediscovered now that cities and buildings have to be more resilient to the effects of climate change. This track will explore advances in passive heating and cooling systems and their contributions to the development of resilient buildings and cities.

Carbon Neutral Design: Synergies and opportunities to achieve net-zero energy and carbon-neutrality in buildings, neighborhoods, districts and cities. This track will explore new directions in city planning and urban design.

Sustainable Design Education: It is impossible to solve today’s environmental problems without the knowledge necessary to implement appropriate design strategies at multiple scales. This track will explore design education and best practices at all levels including innovative methods, experiences and teaching techniques.

Regenerative Design: This track will explore ideas and examples of processes that restore, renew or revitalize their own sources of energy and materials maximizing closed loop input–output systems. Special emphasis will be given to research that explores the connections between water, materials and energy at multiple scales, from systems to buildings to cities.