Action the latest science and engineering technologies to design and construct sustainable net zero homes
Overview
8-week program, starts 15 April 2024
blended learning
facilitated by Wave Consulting’s Director, Rob Catchlove, for UNSW’s Australian Graduate School of Engineering
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The Net Zero Homes Course has been designed to really bring together a whole lot of principles and take a very practical approach to how we go about designing net zero homes. What we know is that 37% of global emissions relate to buildings. So what we do in terms of the way we build in our new homes is really critical to achieve net zero. In Australia, we have 200,000 new homes built every year and thousands more renovations.
There's a huge opportunity with each of these homes that can't be revisited for some 50 plus more years. So this is a great opportunity to bring together all sorts of different elements that contribute to creating net zero homes. What we'll do in this course is really bring together in a very practical sense some of the key ideas around How do we define what net zero is?
What are the different rating schemes? What are the different design principles? What's the modeling software that's required to be used? How are we going to monitor these sort of homes, and what's the materials and the construction element of all this as well. But what we'll be doing is taking a very practical approach to this, what we want is for you to bring your project to this course.
And really redesign essentially what you're working on in collaboration with everyone else around the table. So this course is designed for anyone in the engineering, architecture, town planning, the developers, the designers sustainability experts, and even the homeowners as well. This is a seven week course and it includes a mix of online learning and face to face again with a very sort of practical focus of bringing your project into the course and hopefully coming out of that course with a new net zero home. So I really look forward to seeing you there.
Climate change is happening now, and requires immediate action. Seven of the last ten years have been the hottest on record across the globe. Australia is experiencing more extreme weather more often: floods, droughts, bushfires and more floods. The need for this course is reinforced with every extreme event in Australia and the world.
The design of our homes is one way we can act now that will reduce the acceleration of climate change, and adapt to a future climate. Homes are built to last 50 years or more in most cases, so the need to create a net zero home is very important.
This program focuses on the practical application of effective sustainable design, with a focus on building science and energy and water solutions; an action you can adopt now to reduce your reliance on the grid, reduce your emissions, and increase your contribution to a net zero economy.
Participants will bring a working project to this program (or can use one of our case studies) to apply the knowledge learnt in this course to a local and real example.
Investment in this course is equivalent to less than 0.5% of a new home, and adopting the design principles and sustainability solutions outlined in this course is an opportunity for individuals to save thousands in bills over the lifetime of the dwelling, in addition to saving the planet!
What you will learn
Participants will gain skills and understanding in the latest science and engineering technologies to inform how you approach your next ‘net zero home’, whether you are a professional in the building and architecture field, as a developer or a homeowner.
Week 1 – Defining net zero and key principles
Week 2 – Rating schemes, approvals and regulations
Week 3 – Modelling
Week 4 – Design solutions
Week 5 – One day face-to-face workshop
Week 6 – Constructability
Week 7 – Monitoring and usage
Week 8 - The final plan
Who should attend?
A great professional development opportunity for:
designers
engineers
architects
planners
developers
innovators
sustainability experts.