RMIT researchers are part of a new Horizon Europe project developing scalable design strategies tackling ever hotter urban environments.
When buildings are designed to provide relief from extreme heat, what happens to the courtyards, balconies and streets around them?
Critical energy decisions made inside buildings can affect outdoor comfort - and urban planning can influence how much energy buildings need.
However, despite being inextricably linked, these decisions are often made separately.
Over four years, researchers in the €4.9 million ($7.7 million) WEAVE project will smooth the disconnection between urban planning and building design, delivering an integrated, decision framework for more sustainable, human-centric building design.
Maximising in-between spaces to relieve urban heat and heatwaves
As cities get hotter, it is critical to optimise the environmental conditions in and around buildings.
One of WEAVE's goals is to unlock the cooling potential of so-called in-between spaces.
In-between spaces, such as courtyards, balconies and alleyways, can provide climate shelter, improve occupants' wellbeing and help buffer buildings from extreme conditions.
The project will design strategies for citizens to benefit from interaction between buildings and their surrounding urban environment, shaping more comfortable, climate-responsive microclimates around them.
Breaking down silos in building and urban design
WEAVE aims to enhance the connection between urban planners and building designers by developing a framework that considers environmental, social, economic, wellbeing, health, resilience and circularity aspects.
Scenarios will be assessed through technical modelling alongside feedback from residents, users and other stakeholders, helping to identify solutions that balance performance with community priorities.
Piloting design solutions through community engagement and sensory experiences
WEAVE's methodologies will be trialled in three European sites that share common challenges related to increasing urban heat: a brownfield regeneration project in Bologna, Italy; an industrial heritage site with public spaces in Viladecans, Spain; and a cluster of public buildings in Újbuda, Hungary.
RMIT will play a leading role in evaluating the social dimensions of the pilot designs, combining technical performance data with the preferences and experiences of residents, building users and other stakeholders.
This will help to ensure that the final design recommendations are not only environmentally and technically effective, but also socially acceptable and responsive to community needs.
Social scientist, urban planner and trained architect Dr Beatriz Pineda, Research Fellow at RMIT Europe, says that RMIT will deliver a social practice-based approach to climate responsive and resilient building design.
"We will apply co-creation through a change points methodology to identify where occupants' everyday practices such as ventilating, shading use and cooling habits can become open for transformation," said Pineda.
"This moves beyond behaviour-focused strategies by examining the social, material and institutional elements that shape those practices to inform the development of climate responsive and resilient cooling solutions."
Fostering Climate Responsive Built Environments by weaving Buildings, People-centric planning and In-between spaces (WEAVE) begins in January 2027.
Partners: Eurac (coordinator); TU Wien; Delft University of Technology; University of Trento; Ibercivis Foundation; RMIT Europe; pecanode; Apex Acoustics; Batlleiroig; ABUD Engineering Office; UNStudio; Open Project; Fondazione Villa Ghigi; Municipality of Újbuda (District XI of Budapest); ICLEI Europe.
