papers

RESEARCH PAPERS

Reflections on the Why, What and How of Cross-Border Build Projects - Lessons from the 1st Fall Symposium Building Beyond Borders

Griet Verbeeck, Elke Knapen, Peggy Winkels, Bart Janssens, Nicolas Coeckelberghs (2020)
Paper published in Building Beyond Borders FALL Symposium 2020, Proceedings of the 1st Fall Symposium, 9 - 10 November 2020, Hasselt, Belgium, p.10-17

paper I proceedings

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'Building Beyond Borders' Project-based learning from, with & for the world

Bart Janssens, Peggy Winkels, Nicolas Coeckelberghs, Griet Verbeeck, Elke Knapen (2020)
Paper published in PLEA 2020 Planning Post Carbon Cities , proceedings of 35th International Conference on Passive and Low Energy Architecture, 1 - 3 September 2020, A Coruña, Spain, Volume 3, p.1501-1506

abstract I paper

In accordance with and to strengthen the adopted Civic University model operationalized by a project-based learning approach, the Faculty of Architecture and arts of Hasselt University initiated the ‘Building Beyond Borders’ programme in the academic year 2018-2019. This postgraduate certificate invites students and professionals to enrich and strengthen skills in sustainable architecture. In a unique knowledge-driven, interdisciplinary and participatory set-up, the programme pushes innovation, contributes to the Sustainability Development Goals, and enhances competences in Global Citizenship. Learning from, with and for the world, is both motive and means to address 10 learning objectives for the participants. Each year, a Design/Build project is the leitmotif of the programme, which in 2018-2019 was a women’s house in Ouled-Merzoug in Morocco. This paper discusses the experiences of the pilot year in lessons learned and challenges, and outlines tentative perspectives for future editions of the programme. It is concluded that one of the main success factors of programmes set up as ‘Building Beyond Borders’ is the awareness of and anticipation on the dynamisms of intercultural collaboration in build projects.
Keywords: sustainable architecture, project-based learning, design/build project

full text in Volume 3 of proceedings

Sensitivity analysis of passive design strategies for residential buildings in cold semi-arid climates

Waqas Ahmed Mahar, Griet Verbeeck, Sigrid Reiter, Shady Attia (2020)
Paper published in Sustainability 2020, 12(3), 1091

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Buildings are significant drivers of greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption. Improving the thermal comfort of occupants in free-running buildings and avoiding active and fossil fuel-based systems is the main challenge in many cities worldwide. However, the impacts of passive design measures on thermal comfort in cold semi-arid regions are seldom studied. With the rapid urbanization and the widespread use of personalised heating and cooling systems, there is a need to inform building designers and city authorities about passive design measures that can achieve nearly optimal conditions. Therefore, in this study, a global sensitivity analysis of the impact of passive design parameters on adaptive comfort in cold semi-arid climates was conducted. A representative residential building was simulated and calibrated in Quetta, Pakistan, to identify key design parameters for optimal thermal comfort. The results list and rank a set of passive design recommendations that can be used widely in similar climates. The results show that among the investigated 21 design variables, the insulation type of roof is the most influential design variable. Overall, the sensitivity analysis yielded new quantitative and qualitative knowledge about the passive design of buildings with personalised heating systems, but the used sensitivity analysis has some limitations. Finally, this study provides evidence-based and informed design recommendations that can serve architects and homeowners to integrate passive design measures at the earliest conceptual design phases in cold semi-arid climates.
Keywords: decision support, building simulation, personalised systems, adaptive comfort

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Potential of contemporary earth architecture for low impact building in Belgium

Van der Linden Jasper, Janssens Bart, Knapen Elke (2019)
Paper published in IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science (Vol. 323, No. 1, p. 012018). IOP Publishing.

abstract I paper

Earth architecture during the 21st century has resurfaced worldwide as a sustainable, low environmental impact material with expressive aesthetics and textures. Contemporary projects attempt to modernize the traditional techniques of building with earth in order to adapt them to today’s projecting needs. Examples of such techniques are unfired earth bricks and rammed earth. In order to disclosure and highlight future possibilities of earth construction, advantages and limitations of earth construction in a contemporary Western-European context are reviewed, based on a literature study. Because it is hard to generalise due to the case-specific context and constraints, a case study analysis of earth utilization in two contemporary architectural projects is presented. To assess if these contemporary projects meet the environmental benefits associated with traditional earth construction, several environmental aspects are taken into account, such as material sourcing proximity, production process, reuse potential, etc. Based on the literature study, case study analysis and current evolutions in neighbouring countries, promising applications for future development of earth construction for low impact building in Belgium are highlighted.
Key words: research by design, sustainable tourism, social and cultural impact
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An investigation of thermal comfort of houses in dry and semi-arid climates of Quetta, Pakistan

Waqas Ahmed Mahar, Griet Verbeeck, Manoj Kumar Singh, Shady Attia (2019)
Paper published in Sustainability 11(19), Special Issue Green Building Technologies

abstract I paper

In Pakistan, reinforced concrete frame houses are the most widely used and common construction technology. In a country that experiences extreme hot and cold seasons throughout the year, buildings need to be adaptable to the climate to improve the thermal comfort of the inhabitants. Therefore, the aim of this study was to improve thermal comfort in reinforced concrete frame houses using passive design and energy efficiency measures in Quetta, Pakistan. Thermal comfort of a representative house was investigated using a building performance simulation. The building model created in EnergyPlus was validated by comparing it with on-site monitored data in both summer and winter seasons. The model was calibrated using statistical methods. Then, the calibrated model was used to perform a whole year simulation in which various orientations, ventilation, passive design, and energy efficiency strategies were applied to perform parametric analysis for the improvement of thermal comfort. The best fit-to-context thermal comfort model was selected, and the potential of bioclimatic design strategies was quantified. The results indicate that by adopting passive design strategies comfort hours can be increased from 43% to 59%. The results of the study revealed many findings which could be useful for architects and building engineers to set a future direction for improvement of indoor comfort in Quetta as well as in many other areas of Balochistan Province in Pakistan.
Keywords: adaptive thermal comfort, residential buildings, heating dominated passive measures, design recommendations
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Operationalization of Strategic Niche Management by Living Labs as Leverage for a Sustainable Transition: Illustration by Student Work on Tourism Infrastructure in the Tanzanian Context

Janssens Bart, Winkels Peggy, Hannes Els, Verbeeck Griet, Cuyvers Rob (2016)
Paper presented at the ICST-DS (International conference on sustainable tourism), Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, July 2016

abstract I paper

As there has been an increasing awareness of the severity and consequences of global warming over recent decades, there has also been increasing efforts to mitigate and adapt to climate change. Despite sustainable transition is collectively agreed upon, tangible actions in the Tanzanian context, and more in particular in the tourism infrastructure, are limited. Unsustainable daily practices in the built environment are usually embedded in wider socio-technological systems that are resistant to radical change and innovation.
Transition management approaches and instruments such as Living Labs provide a new orientation to societal change. It aims for the creation of sustainable innovative practices within socio-technical niches, which may have the potential to upscale to wider systemic transformations. In recent years, the architecture students of the Faculty of Architecture and Arts at the University of Hasselt (Belgium) have conducted designerly research targeting sustainable tourism infrastructure developments within the Tanzanian context, specifically in Dar es Salaam.
On the theoretical background of Strategic Niche Management, this paper interprets the concept of Living Labs for the building sector, within the built environment and within Higher Education Institutes for Architecture and Planning. For the latter, exemplary results of student work is discussed. The objective is: in general, to provide incentives to close the gap between ‘rhetoric’ and ‘reality’; and in specific, to increase the awareness of the potentials of the Tanzanian tourism sector for sustainability. The underlying objective is twofold: first, to highlight transition management and Living Labs in education and training as a ‘short cut’ towards a sustainable transition; and second, incentivize a discussion on adding a ‘build’ component to the student ‘design’ projects, aiming for real-life sustainable projects.
Key words: strategic niche management, living labs, sustainability transition, architecture and planning, education
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Architectural design led approach to sustainable tourism for the waterfront development of Kunduchi in Tanzania

Leus Maria, Winkels Peggy (2016)
Paper presented at the ICST-DS (International conference on sustainable tourism), Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, July 2016

abstract I paper

Several cities in developing countries face growing challenges in terms of sustainable tourism across the large-scale urban development strategies which seem to blur the identity of local communities and important issues for everyday life.
In Kunduchi, located in the Kinondoni district of the Dar es Salaam Region, it is of vital importance for the lives and livelihoods of the indigenous people to preserve the typical ecosystems and ensure the identity and economic resilience of these areas. This also goes for the remainder of Tanzania’s coastal communities.
The problem statement is as follows: In what way can sustainable tourism in Kunduchi serve as an engine for economic and social empowerment? How can Kunduchi be an inspiring example for the development of the coast of Dar Es Salaam in Tanzania that is threatened by large-scale tourist infrastructure? How to design sustainable solutions with respect for the local community and the local traditions?
In this paper, firstly, a theoretical framework that connects sustainable tourism with the sustainable development of coastal areas is defined. Assumptions made on the basis of the literature review provide parameters that play an important role in the architectural concepts. Secondly, a research by design is presented in order to analyze and evaluate different scenarios to outline the opportunities of sustainable tourism on site of Kunduchi.Sustainable waterfront development is an obvious subtitle since the subtle spatial integration of these projects in the urban and water related context of Dar es Salaam is of major importance.
Key words: research by design, sustainable tourism, social and cultural impact
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