Strategies for Understanding and Managing Wind in the Built Environment

Course Description

This course explores the fundamentals of cross-ventilation, wind roses, and urban design strategies to enhance thermal comfort in buildings and neighborhoods. It aims to help you leverage wind patterns and natural airflow to create energy-efficient, comfortable environments. By understanding wind behavior and its impact on human comfort, you'll learn to design spaces that meet functional requirements while contributing to the occupant well-being and sustainability of your projects.

Learning Objectives

• Apply cross-ventilation strategies to building designs to improve occupant comfort and reduce cooling energy needs.

• Summarize the relationship between wind flow and local air pressure to identify opening locations for cross-ventilation

• Identify key data in wind roses to inform the design of more site-sensitive and energy-efficient structures

• Use basic wind rose data to inform your design of building and site plans to be responsive to local winds for improved project performance and occupant comfort.

• Plan strategies to manage wind at the urban scale, by understanding and managing wind shadows.