The Sustainable Lifestyles Accelerator (SLA) on local TV

During one year we worked with 7 pilot families of Sant Cugat in our Sustainable Lifestyle Accelerator project, applying the "transition cycle" methodology for helping them to reduce their lifestyle carbon and material footprints. (www.suslife.info ; www.suslifespain.blogspot.com) One of our SLA pilot families has now been interviewed by local television program CONNECTICAT regarding their experiences and achievements, and Torsten Masseck explained the SLA project and its objectives to the audience. 

Please find the full interview here: https://www.alacarta.cat/connecticat/tall/com-podem-reduir-la-nostre-petjada-de-carboni

MOOC "LOW3: Living Zero!" – Second in-person meeting

Our current MOOC course “LOW3: Living Zero!” held its second in-person meeting, evaluating the first two modules about Sustainable Lifestyle (Module 1) and Sustainable Housing (Module2) and the corresponding exercises and online discussions.

In a 2-step optimization process of their individual lifestyle impact, measured through the Ecological Footprint Calculator, our students learned about their current environmental impact, designed a reduced scenario based on behavioural changes, and then tried to achieve through further optimization a “1-planet lifestyle”.

From an average carbon footprint of 7.8 tonnes CO2 / person x year, they achieved a reduction to 4.9 tonnes through behavioural changes and 2.5 tonnes for their “1-planet lifestyle” scenario. Only around 70% of them achieved the final goal of living within the limits of our planet, 30% still needed more than one planet for compensating their lifestyle impact.

What does this mean for our daily lives and the societal changes needed within the next years? How might mobility systems and habits change, how will a sustainable food supply look like in the future, and how will housing look like under the principles of a sharing, circular economy with limited availability of resources? All these topics have been discussed among the participants within our Living Lab environment, which facilitates these value discussions and exchanges due to its character of a non-formal learning environment.

Finally results of students resource consumption at their individual homes have been presented and discussed, with students analysing critically their energy consumption for different kind of daily activities like heating and cooling, cooking, lighting and appliances, getting a good feeling about magnitudes, the relation between energy use and CO2 emissions, and possibilities of optimization and reduction. The presentation of results of the Sustainable Lifestyles Accelerator Project (www.suslife.info; www.suslifespain.blogspot.com) rounded up the meeting. 

After these more general modules on Sustainable Lifestyle and Housing, now specific Learning Modules will follow on Solar Photovoltaics and Solar Thermal installations in buildings as well as the impact of Building Materials and Water.

MOOC "LOW3: LIVING ZERO!" - NEW EDITION

A new edition of our MOOC course LOW3:ZERO LIVING! has started with 17 student which decided to train themselves through our mixed online and in-person format in the fields of sustainable architecture and lifestyles. A first meeting at the Living Lab and the immediate start of the first online Learning Module about “Sustainable Lifestyles” situated them into the thematic fields this course wants to cover: Sustainable Architecture and Renewable Energies within an increasingly circular economy as essential drivers for the development of more sustainable lifestyles in our society.

Furthermore, MOOC students got introduced into first results of the international Sustainable Lifestyles Accelerator (SLA) Project (www.suslife.info; www.suslifespain.blogspot.com), for discussion about their personal carbon footprint in the context of climate change and so-called 1.5 degree lifestyles. How can technology, housing, mobility and lifestyle changes in general contribute to societal transition towards a more sustainable way of living?

An exploration of the LOW3 solar house and its technological and constructive solutions on material and system level rounded up this first in-person meeting. With exchange students from Brasil, Portugal and Switzerland participating, this course will again contribute to a cross-cultural exchange of students about sustainability at all levels.

EDUCATIONAL VISIT OF FIRST YEAR STUDENTS

Once again first year ETSAV students of the subject “Basics of Technology” (Bases per la Tècnica, Prof. Enrique Corbat, Prof. Isabel Vega) got first time into contact with the prototype-based learning about building technologies and sustainability at ETSAV. 

After a general introduction about sustainability in architecture and technology by Torsten Masseck and a general explanation about the Solar Decathlon competitions and the related project-based learning approach at ETSAV, students visited the LOW3 prototype house at the campus, the first in a row of so far 4 Solar Decathlon projects of UPC. Students could see, explore and touch an example of sustainable architecture, discuss about its materials, its structural system, its energy management and its overall bioclimatic “house in a house” concept. 

Due to the high number of participants (over 90 first year students) students circulated in groups through the prototype discussing its basic concepts form outside as well as from inside.
It showed once again, that the visit to a Solar Decathlon prototype building, experiencing its spaces, materials and technologies is a powerful method to raise awareness of students about sustainable architecture and the related societal and professional challenges behind. Living Lab LOW3 intensifies currently its collaborations with different core subjects at ETSAV, spreading the generated knowledge about sustainable architecture and technologies.

TO Team ETSAV-UPC successful at SDE 2019

Our TO UPC ETSAV team delivers an outstanding conceptual pavilion on sustainable housing and lifestyle and receives a 3rd prize in Architecture and Circularity at the SDE19 - Solar Decathlon Europe 2019 competition at Szentendre, Hungary. 

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After LOW3 (SDE2010), eco (SDE2012) and RESSO (SDE2014), this 4th generation of UPC Solar Decathlon Students confirms once again UPC ETSAV’s role as a recognized think tank for innovative sustainable housing concepts in the context of our current societal challenges.

Congratulation to a great project and a great team!

UPC Press Room

INNOVATION AND CO-CREATION SEMINAR MSC RENEWABLE ENERGIES (RENE) 2019

[eng] Living Lab LOW3 and its director Torsten Masseck welcomed for the sixth year students of the InnoEnergy MSc Program "Renewable Energies" (RENE) from 8 different countries for a 2-day innovation seminar under the title “Holistic Sustainability Approach for Innovations”.

This year 21 students, divided into two groups worked on the ambitious goal to develop "Sustainable Lifestyle Scenarios 2030" including technological, environmental and socioeconomic forecasting as a result of the presented projects and generated discussions.

The first day was dedicated to Innovation through the presentation and analysis of research projects in the three main focus areas of Housing, Energy and Lifestyle.

HOUSING: Students got known to the innovative concepts of UPC's nearly zero energy buildings, exploring and analyzing the technological concepts of the LOW3 prototype house in the fields of solar thermal, solar photovoltaic, HVAC, bioclimatic building management and energy monitoring systems. A forecasting exercise, projecting the analyzed technologies to 2030 allowed to enter fully into the discussion about the relationships between housing, energy and sustainability.

ENERGY: Students got introduced into the results of the  R4E - Roadmaps for Energy project (www.roadmapsforenergy.eu), getting known to the developed energy roadmaps for European partner cities in the field of Smart Buildings and Smart Urban Spaces and Smart Mobility in order to discuss energy transition of society in the coming decades.

LIFESTYLE: Students got introduced to a holistic transition to sustainability through the international Sustainable Lifestyle Accelerator project 2018-2020 (www.suslifespain.blogspot.com, www.suslife.info), where UPC collaborates with international partners from 7 counties under the lead of the Wuppertal Institute in the reduction of the environmental impact of private households. 

The second day was dedicated to co-creation, applying the R4E methodology of complexity maps and roadmapping for the generation of innovative product or service concepts for a “more sustainable urban life in 2030”. 

Finally, students co-created in dynamic group sessions through a story telling approach concepts for “a more sustainable urban life in 2030”.  The holistic visioning and presentation through small performances of a more sustainable future urban life, generated ambitious discussions and allowed to foster the creative potential of these future “game changers” of InnoEnergy. 

Despite of hot weather, the domestic atmosphere of Living Lab LOW3 with its efficient cross ventilation contributed to the success of two days full of technology exploration, inspiring conversations and intense discussions about innovations in the field of renewable energies within a wider environmental and cultural context.

This sixth collaboration with the MSc Program RENE of KIC InnoEnergy confirms again that LOW3 offers a valuable contribution to engineer students’ education through its holistic approach to sustainability within a unique, real-world environment of a Living Lab bringing together in one place the important topics of Housing, Energy and Lifestyle.

SUMMER SCHOOL - SUSTAINABLE CITIES AT HAGUE UNIVERSITY

Torsten Masseck has been invited as guest lecturer to the Hague University of Applied Science, Netherlands. He held a Master Class on Integrated Energy Design to students and faculties of the university and gave lectures on Housing, Energy and Lifestyle to the international students of the Summer School.

In the Sustainable Cities Module students from different disciplines and cultural backgrounds got introduced into sustainability strategies for buildings and cities, based on resource efficiency, renewable energy transition and low carbon lifestyles. The presentation of UPC Solar Decathlon Solar House projects, and results of international research projects like Roadmaps for Energy or The Sustainable Lifestyles Accelerator fostered the holistic understanding of students of sustainability strategies for a future proof society.

Excursions to the TU Delft Campus and its Experimental building site as well as a low energy district heating and cooling project completed this collaboration between UPC and The Hague University of Applied Science.

SLA Pilot families reduce their Lifestyle Carbon Footprints in up to 18%!

7 pilot families of Sant Cugat del Vallès achieve reducing their lifestyle carbon footprint in 13% average through the international Sustainable Lifestyle Accelerator Project!

Between 6 and 18% of carbon emissions could be avoided by families through behavioural changes in their daily life in the areas of housing, nutrition, mobility, purchases and leisure activities.

Within the SLA project families first assessed their household carbon footprint, then created their personal transition roadmap and finally implemented changes during an experimental period of 2-3 months. 

The achieved changes have been assessed and quantified by the international Sustainable Lifestyle consortium, and now have been presented to the families by the principal researcher of the project in Spain, Dr. Torsten Masseck. No better place for it than the LOW3 Living Lab of ETSAV (UPC) in Sant Cugat del Vallès, a platform for teaching and research about sustainable architecture and lifestyles!

Families discussed results, shared their experiences and expressed to be very happy with the process and their individual reductions achieved, as they declared to be very motivated to reduce their environmental impact, but so far lacked detailed knowledge and tools how to do so!

SLA now starts in its second round with the creation of the SLA online platform (launch in October 2019) with the aim to reach out to 500 households during this year and engaging over 10.000 in each of the 7 partner countries during 2020. 

Prepare to form part of the SLA community soon! 

New MOOC course LOW3: ZERO LIVING! started

A new edition of our MOOC course LOW3:ZERO LIVING! has started with 10 student which decided to train themselves through our new mixed online and in-person format about sustainable architecture and lifestyles. A first meeting at the Living Lab and the immediate start of the first online Learning Module about “Sustainable Lifestyle” situated them into the thematic fields this course wants to cover: Sustainable Architecture and Renewable Energies as essential drivers for the development of more sustainable lifestyles in our society.

Furthermore, the collaboration of  MOOC students in the international Sustainable Lifestyles Accelerator (SLA) Project (www.suslife.info; www.suslifespain.blogspot.com) will allow them to get into contact with international research in the field. Collaboration with Prof. Dani Calatayud will allow this semester including a special focus on the urban metabolism and refurbishment projects under the RELS methodology.

First year ETSAV students get introduced into sustainability and LOW3 in their technology classes

First year ETSAV students of the subject “Basics of Technology” (Bases per la Tècnica, Prof. Enrique Corbat, Prof. Isabel Vega) got first time into contact with the prototype-based learning about building technologies and sustainability at ETSAV. 

After a general introduction about sustainability in architecture and technology by Torsten Masseck and a general explanation about the Solar Decathlon competitions and the related project-based learning approach at ETSAV, students visited the LOW3 prototype house at the campus, the first in a row of so far 4 Solar Decathlon projects of UPC. Students could see, explore and touch an example of sustainable architecture, discuss about its materials, its structural system, its energy management and its overall bioclimatic “house in a house” concept. 

It showed once again, that the visit to a Solar Decathlon prototype building, experiencing its spaces, materials and technologies is a powerful method to raise awareness of students about sustainable architecture and the related societal and professional challenges behind. Living Lab LOW3 intensifies currently its collaborations with different core subjects at ETSAV, spreading the generated knowledge about sustainable architecture and technologies.

TO- the new Solar Decathlon Europe Project of ETSAV (UPC)

TO – the new Solar Decathlon Europe Project of ETSAV (UPC) has been presented to the public as a 1:1 scale mock-up at the ETSAV central hall.

In the line of all earlier ETSAV Solar Decathlon Projects like LOW2, e(co) and Ressò, TO can be understood as a new, radical proposal for co-housing, a consequent approach to low-carbon architecture and a strong manifest for the sharing of resources and the respect for the environment. It rethinks the concepts of habitability, comfort and privacy and searches for holistic approaches to more sustainable lifestyles. 

TO starts now in its decisive stage of development: being build! 

Objective is the Solar Decathlon Europe Competition at Szendendre (Hungary) in the month of July 2019, and logistics for a successful participation will have to speed up in the next weeks, with the student team managing all essential developments of design, construction and operation as well as management, financing and marketing by themselves, with UPC faculties assisting only in the role as their advisors.

This radical project-based education of our students at ETSAV can be seen as a sign of identity of our school of Architecture and has trained and educated whole generations of young professionals which designed and build their first project before leaving university!

MOOC “LOW3: Living Zero!”- Students as SLA Energy Consultants

Students of our MOOC Course LOW3: Living zero! started their final exercise on energy efficiency and solar potential adopting the role of energy consultants to our SLA pilot families, analysing the specific energy parameters of a real private household.

In a first step students analysed existing data about energy consumption, type of energy used and other available information about the energy system and energy use of the households.

In a second step students did the energy certification of a specific household and describe possible improvements of the overall energy performance. This included the use of online tools and a visit to the family’s home for raising detailed data about the building envelope, façade and window qualities as well as existing active energy systems.

In a last step, students analysed the solar potential of the household for a roof-top PV installation, gathering data about the building’s roof and using an online simulation tool in order to calculate the possible annual PV electricity production.

All these exercises resulted in a report to the SLA pilot families, useful for them in order to optimize the energy performance of their home through behavioral change and building management, and for taking decisions about a possible investment into energy efficiency measures or a PV installation.

This approach to the real-world energy performance of existing buildings as part of our innovative educational offer at ETSAV is another example how our students are getting prepared for being active change agents of society, facing real problems of our buildings and cities within a holistic understanding of sustainability in its economic, social and environmental dimension.

More information about the SLA project: www.suslifespain.blogspot.com 

More information about our MOOC course LOW3: Living zero!: https://mooc.upc.edu