ADPTalks: Designing for Comfort at the Extremes
In her talk, "Designing for Comfort at the Extremes," Prof. Roaf will explore the challenges of creating resilient, adaptive spaces in extreme climates—from the scorching deserts of Yazd to the icy landscapes of Antarctica. With a career spanning groundbreaking work in solar energy, eco-design, and climate-responsive architecture, her insights are invaluable for anyone interested in the future of sustainable and resilient buildings.
Prof. Roaf has authored 22 influential books, chaired numerous international conferences, and is a leading voice on climate-responsive architecture. Her expertise in adaptive thermal comfort, ventilation, and net-zero design has shaped the field globally.
Don't miss this opportunity to gain expert insights and engage in a thought-provoking discussion on the future of extreme climate design.
Â
About the speaker
Prof. Sue Roaf (B.A.Hons, A.A. Dipl., PhD, ARB, FRIAS) is UQ ADP's Honorary Professor, Emeritus Professor of Architectural Engineering at Heriot Watt University and is an award-winning architect, author and teacher. Her PhD was on the Windcatchers of Yazd, and she is known best known for her pioneering work on domestic solar energy and eco-design. She was an Oxford City Councillor for 7 years and sat on the Architects Registration Board.
Venue
A COMFORT AT THE EXTREMES: CLIMATE SAFE DESIGN
Every day weather records around the world are being broken and as the world heats more people are dying from heat or cold, in floods and storms. Future climate trends are difficult, if not impossible to predict so how do we prepare to survive and thrive in the different decades ahead. During extreme weather events energy grids commonly fail exposing even the richest to the challenges of staying comfortable in ever more extreme conditions. Innovation is needed in designing better buildings in better micro-climates, not more efficient machines. Funding needs to refocus onto adaptive and resilient design thinking.
The Comfort at the Extremes movement began with a group of experts from over 40 countries working on the physics, physiology and psychology of comfort. We have met for over thirty years to explore what actually constitutes thermally acceptable and comfortable temperatures and look at new ways of adapting to more extreme temperatures. The Adaptive Thermal Comfort Principal is simply this:
People adapt to those conditions they normally occupy, and if they suffer discomfort
they act, when they can, to make themselves comfortable again
Providing people with the Adaptive Opportunities to act is central to new design thinking and innovation. Much of 20th century drive to have international narrow comfort standards did not really apply to buildings that are not mechanically conditioned and today they are only relevant for highly mechanised large buildings that already can fail during power outages in more extreme weather events. We believe that if we study how people at the fringes of acceptable temperatures build and behave we might learn valuable lessons on how less climatically challenged populations may adapt with good climatic design.
We learnt during COVID that no one is safe until everyone is safe. To build social resilience we must urgently take measures to protect and support people both on the fringes of habitable climates to stay thermally safe as well as those who are being, and increasingly will be challenged by extreme weather in their everyday lives in a heating world. Our designers are responsible for learning rapidly how to ensure everyone has access to Climate Safe Spaces year-round.
JOIN SUE ROAF FOR A TALK AND DISCUSSION ON THE SUBJECT AT THE UNIVERSITY OF QUEENSLAND ON THE 20th MARCH 2024