Best wishes for a meaningful Holiday Season and a grounded start to 2026
On behalf of the Sustainable Building Design Lab, thank you for being with us.
Over the past year, the SBD Lab at the School of Engineering, University of Liège, maintained strong international engagement despite increasingly unstable global conditions. We actively contributed to IEA EBC Annex 89 on net-zero whole-life carbon buildings and IEA EBC Annex 97 Sustainable Cooling in Cities, advancing work on microclimate fundamentals, KPIs, validation methods, and climate-responsive cooling strategies. At the same time, we marked the closure of IEA EBC Task 43 on thermally activated building systems, under the leadership of Christoph Rohringer, concluding three years of joint work on building mass as an energy storage medium.
2025 also marked important academic milestones. Dr. Hicham Fawzi Arrar and Dr. Muheeb Al-Obaidy successfully completed their PhDs, strengthening our contributions to urban microclimate science and circular building design. We also concluded our leadership role in COST Action HELEN, coordinated by Gerhard Fink, and continued our engagement in COST CircularB, reinforcing work on circularity assessment, adaptability, and disassembly.
Beyond Europe, our activities expanded through participation in UNDP Global Resilience projects, alignment with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and technical work on CEN EN 18777 circularity in construction, in collaboration with Lisbeth Ottosen. We strengthened scientific collaboration with researchers in China, the United States, and Denmark, while maintaining strong academic ties with Palestine Polytechnic University. Our position remains clear and consistent: academic collaboration without normalization of occupation and a principled stance of boycotting Israeli institutions.
This year made one reality unavoidable. The lack of a coherent world order is no longer abstract. It is visible in climate inaction, institutional fragility, growing inequality, and selective ethics. These are the colors of our time. No credible environmental or sustainability agenda can exist without human rights, international law, and moral consistency.
Despite staff shortages, inflation, and rising pressure on teaching, research, and service, the SBD Lab continued its mission thanks to the resilience of students, colleagues, and collaborators who value rigor over slogans and evidence over illusion.
I hope 2026 offers more clarity, less noise, time with loved ones, and the courage to face challenges without denial.
🔴 SBD Lab Projects https://lnkd.in/enP_DpUN
🔴 SBD Lab Publications: https://lnkd.in/gn7mtGbv
🔴 MSc Thesis Topics https://lnkd.in/gSAzesvx
🔴 Academic Modules on YouTube https://lnkd.in/gW6_N8fK
Thanks to all SBD Lab supporters, collaborators, and critical thinkers.
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