Climate Responsive Design: Introducing Principles in Passive Design & Low-Carbon Construction

As the world embarks upon a Decade of Action in which to achieve the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, the Commonwealth Association of Architects has recognised an opportunity to provide mutual support by means of a structured programme of knowledge exchange in the form of a pilot CPD series and, with nearly 50% of the projected increase in the world’s urban population to 2050 forecast to be in the Commonwealth, architects and built environment professionals have a critical role to play in helping to achieve a more sustainable future for all.

This webinar is the fifth in the series and will be presented in two parts. Part 1 is titled ‘A Manifesto for delivering Climate Responsive Design’ and will be delivered by Peter Clegg and Isabel Sandeman from Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios. The lecture provides an overview of climate responsive design including a reminder of the importance of passive design principles and low carbon construction. Part 2 is titled ‘Collaborating for Sustainable Development’ and will be delivered by Rachel Sayers from Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios with clips from Rafiq Azzam from Shatotto. The lecture provides a case study of how the principles of Climate responsive design can be used in a project in Bangladesh to create an inspiring and comfortable educational environment for the Aga Khan Academies unit.

This lecture series presents practical approaches to climate responsive design through real-world built projects, emphasizing participatory processes, passive design strategies, and contextually appropriate solutions. Part one introduces a manifesto for climate responsive design developed for East African educational buildings, featuring nine key themes illustrated through exemplar case studies from Uganda, Rwanda, DRC, and Malawi. Part two examines the Aga Khan Academy in Dhaka, Bangladesh, demonstrating how these principles translate to different cultural and climatic contexts through international collaboration.

Outline 

• Introduction to the manifesto for climate responsive design and its nine key themes
• Exemplar case studies demonstrating participatory design, sustainable materials, solar shading, passive ventilation, natural daylighting, and sustainable landscape strategies
• Exploration of water management, waste systems, and renewable energy generation in educational buildings
• Case study of the Aga Khan Academy, Bangladesh, showcasing international collaboration for sustainable development
• Analysis of design responses to high humidity climates, including prototype testing and performance monitoring

Learning Outcomes

The sessions learning outcomes were:

• Understand the nine principles of climate responsive design and how they can be adapted to different climatic and cultural contexts, from East Africa’s equatorial climate to Bangladesh’s subtropical monsoon conditions.
• Recognize the critical importance of participatory design processes that engage all stakeholders—students, families, teachers, local communities, and authorities—throughout all project stages to ensure buildings effectively fulfill user needs and empower local communities.
• Apply passive design strategies including solar shading principles, cross-ventilation and stack-ventilation mechanisms, and natural daylighting techniques to create comfortable internal environments without relying on mechanical systems.
• Appreciate the environmental and economic benefits of using local, low-embodied-carbon materials such as compressed stabilized earth blocks, locally sourced stone, and responsibly harvested timber from managed plantations.
• Implement sustainable landscape design strategies that address site challenges, provide food security through agriculture, support biodiversity, and mitigate extreme weather events including flooding and landslides.
• Design integrated water and waste management systems including rainwater harvesting, greywater recycling, ecological sanitation (eco-san) toilets, and biogas generation that turn waste into resources.
• Understand the value of building prototypes and post-occupancy evaluation for testing design assumptions, refining construction techniques, and providing evidence-based feedback on thermal comfort and environmental performance.
• Recognize how climate responsive design contributes to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, particularly in areas of health and wellbeing, quality education, gender equality, sustainable cities, and climate action.
• Appreciate the opportunity for rapidly urbanizing nations to leapfrog industrialized countries by constructing passive, climate-ready buildings from the outset and investing in clean energy technologies rather than following a path of later decarbonization.
• Develop skills in international collaboration that combines local knowledge and construction expertise with international experience in sustainable design to create contextually appropriate, high-performance buildings.

Core Curriculum Topics

• Sustainable Architecture
  The lecture comprehensively covers climate change mitigation and adaptation through passive design strategies, low-carbon materials selection, whole-life carbon considerations, natural ventilation, solar shading, renewable energy generation, water conservation, and sustainable landscape design. It demonstrates practical implementation of these principles across multiple climate zones.
• Design, Construction and Technology
  The session explores technical knowledge of building systems, construction methods, traditional and contemporary materials science, and appropriate technology. It includes detailed examination of compressed earth blocks, thermal mass strategies, performance monitoring, prototype testing, and locally-appropriate construction techniques.
• Architecture for Social Purpose
  The lecture emphasises architecture’s role in addressing social inequality through participatory design, community engagement, skills development, gender equity in construction workforces, educational facility design, and creating buildings that serve the public good while improving health, wellbeing, and educational outcomes.

SDG Learning Outcomes

• SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being – Climate responsive design creates comfortable, healthy learning and living environments through natural ventilation, daylighting, thermal comfort, clean water provision, and sanitation facilities that reduce disease transmission.
• SDG 4: Quality Education – The projects demonstrate how thoughtful architectural design enhances educational environments through appropriate lighting levels, acoustic comfort, thermal comfort, and inspiring spaces that support learning and academic performance.
• SDG 5: Gender Equality – The lecture highlights participatory construction processes requiring minimum 50% women workforce participation, recognizing that educating women and ensuring their economic participation is one of the most effective ways to combat climate change.
• SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy – Projects feature renewable energy systems including biogas generation, solar power, and energy-efficient design that reduces dependence on grid electricity and fossil fuels.
• SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth – Using local materials and construction techniques creates employment opportunities, supports local economic growth, builds community capacity, and provides skills training for local workforces.
• SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities – The session demonstrates how to create inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable educational facilities through strategic master planning, flood mitigation, biodiversity enhancement, and contextually appropriate urban design.
• SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production – Projects showcase sustainable materials sourcing, waste reduction, circular economy approaches including composting and biogas systems, and the reuse of human and organic waste as fertilizer and fuel.
• SDG 13: Climate Action – The entire lecture series focuses on climate-responsive building design, low-carbon construction, passive design principles, and approaches that help mitigate and adapt to climate change impacts.

The following CPD questions forms part of the learning guide for this session. As different Institutions of Architecture across the Commonwealth have different CPD reporting requirements, it is suggested that you retain a copy of your responses to these questions for your records.

1.  Climate-Responsive Passive Design: Review your recent projects and identify opportunities where passive design strategies (solar shading, natural ventilation, thermal mass, natural daylighting) could have been enhanced or better integrated. What specific barriers—client expectations, budget constraints, regulatory requirements, or knowledge gaps—prevented fuller implementation? How might you overcome these barriers in future projects, and what would you need to learn or demonstrate to convince clients of the long-term value of passive approaches?
2. Contextual Adaptation and Local Materials: Consider a project in your region and analyze how the nine climate responsive design principles presented in the lecture could be adapted to your local climate, culture, and construction practices. Which locally-available, low-embodied-carbon materials could replace conventional materials? What traditional building techniques or vernacular architectural strategies from your region could inform contemporary sustainable design? How would you balance modern performance requirements with traditional wisdom?
3. Participatory Design and Stakeholder Engagement: Reflect on your current approach to stakeholder engagement in the design process. How could you adopt a more participatory design methodology that genuinely incorporates the voices of end-users, local communities, and construction workers—particularly women and marginalized groups—throughout all project stages? What mechanisms would you need to establish to ensure meaningful participation rather than token consultation? How might this change your design outcomes and the long-term success of the building?
4. Performance Monitoring and Evidence-Based Design: The Aga Khan Academy case study demonstrated the value of building prototypes and post-occupancy monitoring to test design assumptions and refine approaches. How often do you return to completed projects to evaluate their actual performance against design intent? What specific metrics would be most valuable to monitor in your climate zone—thermal comfort, energy consumption, water usage, user satisfaction? How could you build evidence from past projects to improve future designs and demonstrate the value of sustainable strategies to skeptical clients?
5. Climate Action and Professional Responsibility: Bangladesh has one of the highest rates of urbanization globally while facing severe climate vulnerability. Many Commonwealth nations face similar challenges. As an architect, how do you see your professional responsibility in addressing climate change through your design decisions? What specific actions could you take in your next project to reduce embodied carbon, operational energy, and climate impact? How might you help your clients and communities understand that climate-responsive design is not an optional luxury but an essential response to the climate emergency?
6. Leapfrogging and Transformative Change: The lecture suggests rapidly urbanizing nations could “leapfrog” industrialized countries by investing in passive, climate-ready buildings and clean technologies from the outset, avoiding the need for later decarbonization. What role can architects in your region play in advocating for this transformative approach to policy makers, developers, and educational institutions? How can professional bodies like the CAA support this shift? What specific policy changes, building regulations, or educational reforms would accelerate the adoption of climate-responsive design principles in your context?