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Reflecting on CBE’s Key Milestones of 2023
As we gear up for our year-end rituals and activities, here at CBE we can take a moment to reflect on our efforts during 2023, and remember our purpose — to contribute towards making a more sustainable and equitable world. We are pleased to report on such wide ranging work, and also note that this would not be possible without the participation of CBE’s Industry Partners. We are grateful for their support and the ongoing contributions of our colleagues, students and affiliates. We wish you all the best for 2024, and in this post share some of our major accomplishments and milestones.
2023 Livable Building Awards Recognize Community Focused Residence Hall and Healthy Adaptive Reuse
The 2023 Livable Buildings Award has been awarded to VMDO Architects for their Paul Jennings Residence Hall, a 500-bed student housing facility at James Madison University completed in 2019. This project is the first residential building to be recognized by this award program, held annually since 2007. The awards also recognized the Bay Area Offices for SERA Architects with an honorable mention. SERA designed a full-floor office in a historic building in downtown Oakland, Calif., with a focus on creating a flexible and healthy workspace.
CBE Unveils Renovated Controlled Environment Chamber, Expanding Future Research
CBE’s controlled environment chamber has been used for research leading to hundreds of journal papers, including keystone work related to human response, indoor environments and mechanical systems in buildings and automobile cabins. A major renovation was completed this fall, updating obsolete systems and failing equipment that was hindering important research operations. This milestone was celebrated in a ribbon cutting ceremony and happy hour before CBE’s fall Industry Advisory Board meeting. In this post we acknowledge the recent contributors, and discuss past work and future directions.
Funding for California Clean Energy Entrepreneurs: Applications Due December 3, 2023
CBE is one of 30 research testbeds supporting the California Test Bed Initiative, a lab-based commercialization development program for innovators and entrepreneurs working to bring early to mid-stage clean energy concepts to market. CalTestBed will award vouchers worth up to $300,000 to test and validate candidate technologies at one of nearly 30 testbeds across the UC system and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Under this program, CBE has completed voucher-based research for two emerging cleantech companies.
CBE in the News See all
The trouble with air conditioning: ‘Damned if you do, damned if you don’t’
This article and radio piece describe Americans’ reliance on with air conditioning, with an anecdote of journalist Chris George attempt to go without using AC for a year in his home in Phoenix, Arizona. It notes CBE’s Gail Brager and her work around the concept of thermal delight, who explains that people benefit from variety, and that sitting in a “for hours under a river of cold air is the opposite of delightful.”
Stop setting your thermostat at 72: Let’s settle the heated debate over your AC, once and for all.
Author Adam Clark Estes illustrates this detailed article on the topic of thermostat settings with personal insights and references to national policies on the topic. He grapples with the paradox that using AC for cooling comfort contributes to global warming, and cites Stefano Schiavon who advocates for a “fans first” strategy, using fans to remain comfortable until AC use is really needed.
How to Properly Cool Your Home With a Fan
This article describes the benefits of using fans to keep people cool in hot weather. The author quotes CBE’s Stefano Schiavon, and also several other experts including frequent CBE collaborator Ollie Jay from the University of Sydney. The article also points to the Fans for Cooling People Guidebook for more guidance.
Livable Buildings Awards
Now in its fourteenth year, the Livable Buildings Awards recognize projects that demonstrate high occupant satisfaction, excellent design, and innovative operation strategies.