Design for Sustainability

Engineering > Civil & Environmental Eng > Design for Sustainability

Design for Sustainability posted by member150_php on 2/28/2009

Add To Favorites

Abstract/Syllabus

Courseware/Lectures

Test/Tutorials

Design for Sustainability

Fall 2006

Photograph of the Zion National Park Visitor Center.

The Visitor Center at Zion National Park is an example of a sustainable building, with features including photovoltaic panels and natural ventilation. (Photograph courtesy of the U.S. Department of Energy.)

Course Highlights

This course features lecture notes from the instructors and guest lecturers, and examples of student presentations in the projects section.

Course Description

Syllabus

The course considers the growing popularity of sustainability and its implications for the practice of engineering, particularly for the built environment. Two particular methodologies are featured: life cycle assessment (LCA) and Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED). The LCA methodology is a rigorous, quantitative approach to environmental impact evaluation that tallies the impacts of products throughout their lifetimes; it has been used successfully in a number of industries (particularly packaging and manufacturing) but less frequently in the built environment. The LEED rating system awards points to projects for achieving specific goals considered relevant to sustainable design, and rates built projects according to the total number of points achieved. The fundamentals of each approach will be presented. Specific topics covered include water and wastewater management, energy use, material selection, and construction.

Class meetings will consist of general lectures and guest lectures, often followed by a tutorial/discussion session. Students are required to conduct and present a group case study, the topic of which will be decided per group according to interest.

Course Grading

Grading criteria.
ACTIVITIES	PERCENTAGES
Homework 2 - Carbon Dioxide	10%
Homework 3 - Life Cycle Assessment	10%
Homework 4 - Sustainable Buildings and Sites	20%
Final Project	60%

Each homework will be assigned one week before the due date, with the sole exception of the Final Project.

Calendar

Course calendar.
LEC #	TOPICS	KEY DATES
1	Introduction The Green Engineer Chris Schaffner, The Green Engineer, LLP
2	Sustainability and the Building Industry Prof. John Ochsendorf, MIT Architecture	Homework 1 due
3	Current U.S. Trends Prof. John Ochsendorf, MIT Architecture	Homework 2 due
4	Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) Dana Ozik, MIT Civil and Environmental Engineering
5	Sustainable Design in Practice Mark Webster, SGH Consulting Engineers	Homework 3 due
6	The Genzyme Building Rick Aimes, Next Phase Studios Byron Stigge, Buro Happold Consulting Engineers
7	Student Presentations	Homework 4 due Final Project assigned
8	Energy in Buildings Prof. Leslie Norford, MIT Architecture	Project proposal due
9	Materials Prof. John Fernandez, MIT Architecture
10	Water and Sanitation Dr. Eric Adams, MIT Civil and Environmental Engineering	Project progress report due
11	Stata Center Tour Robert Cunkelman, MIT
12	Project Working Session
13	Final Presentations 1	Presentation due
14	Final Presentations 2	Report due

Readings

Chaturvedi, Swati, and John Ochsendorf. "Global Environmental Impacts due to Cement and Steel." Structural Engineering International (August 2004).

Dholakia, R., and M. Wackernagel. "Ecological Footprint Accounts: Moving Sustainability from Concept to Measurable Goal." Oakland: Redefining Progress (October 1999).

Ford, Edward. "The Theory and Practice of Impermanence." Harvard Design Magazine 3 (Fall 1997).

Hawken, Paul, Amory Lovins, and L. Hunter Lovins. "Building Blocks." Chapter 5 in Natural Capitalism: Creating the Next Industrial Revolution. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1999. ISBN: 0316353167.

ISO: 14040 "Environmental management Life Cycle Assessment Principles and Framework." Geneva: ISO, 1997.

LEED. "Building Rating System for New Construction and Major Renovations." Version 2.1. U.S. Green Building Council, 2002.

Matos, G., and L. Wagner. "Consumption of Materials in the United States, 1900-1995." Annual Review of Energy and the Environment 23 (November 1998).

Meadows, Donella H., Jorgen Randers, and Dennis L. Meadows. "Author's Preface" and "Overshoot." Chapter 1 in Limits to Growth: The 30-Year Update. White River Jct.: Chelsea Green Publishing Company, June 1, 2004. ISBN: 193149858X.

Ochsendorf, J. "Sustainable Structural Design: Lessons from History." Structural Engineering International (August 2004).

Womack, James P., and Daniel T. Jones. "The Value Stream." Chapter 2 in Lean Thinking. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster, September 9, 1996. ISBN: 0684810352.

Webliography:

Related Resources

My Footprint is a Web page that calculates the amount of land and water resources that an individual uses. Use the "Ecological Footprint Quiz" to calculate the effects of your daily lifestyle.

Intent of the Footprint Quiz

The quiz is based on national consumption averages and is meant to give you an idea of your Ecological Footprint relative to other people in the country you live in. It is not highly detailed, but should give most people an idea of where they stand. If you already live a sustainable lifestyle, do not be discouraged by your results. There are some portions of your Footprint that are not the direct result of your consumption habits. For example, each resident of a city is 'responsible' for a portion of the city's infrastructure, such as roads, schools, and government offices, regardless of whether the resident uses those services. In addition, some options that could make your Footprint smaller are not available to you as a result of choices on the part of local decision makers, such as reliable and efficient public transportation as an alternative to driving. Therefore, an important path to reducing your Footprint is to advocate for more sustainable decisions at all levels of government. This will make it easier for you and many others to reduce Ecological Footprints.