The University of New South Wales has appointed its first Anita Lawrence Chair of High Performance Architecture, built environment expert and energy physics professor Mattheos Santamouris.
High performance architecture is an emerging area of research that focuses on minimizing the environmental footprint of buildings through architectural design and performance evaluation. Factors such as ventilation, acoustics, energy, lighting and water are all examined in an effort to improve building efficiency.
Professor Santamouris is currently the director of the Laboratory of Building Energy Research at the University of Athens, and is the former president of Greece’s National Centre for Renewable and Energy Savings.
“Professor Santamouris’ contribution to the advancement of the design sciences is of global significance and truly exceptional,” UNSW Built Environment dean and professor Alec Tzannes said.
“His research interests in sustainability, technology and the invention of low energy materials complement existing strengths in the faculty and within UNSW more generally.”
The Chair of High Performance Architecture was established through a bequest from the university’s first female architect and former associate professor Anita Lawrence.
Lawrence graduated in 1955, and went on to have a 32-year teaching career with the university where she specialized in acoustics and design and was a founding member of the Australian Acoustical Society.
“A person’s experience of a building can be drastically altered by bad acoustics – it’s imperative that architects, builders and landscape architects understand the importance of achieving optimal sound in a room or building,” Lawrence said.
The Anita Lawrence Chair in High Performance Architecture is the first of its kind in Australia.
