Moving Forward
University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, School of Architecture
Commercial Construction Ethical Decision Making: The Role of Authentic Case Studies View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session John R. Weber
This paper explores and promotes the effective use of case studies to teach ethical decision making to construction management (CM) students. The importance of ethical decision making in commercial construction and leadership is presented emphasizing the critical societal and economic impacts of industry. CM instruction developing student awareness of consequences of their individual decisions through the use of authentic case studies could contribute to both industry and society.
Haze Data : Accuracy and Affect View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Nurul Amillin Hussain
Taking the case of haze in Singapore, this paper explores how the collection and dissemination of environmental data shape the affective experiences of smart city residents. To understand this, I explore two kinds of haze materiality. The first kind of materiality is the ‘toxic’ nature of the substance of haze, which can be measured in terms of particulate matter concentration – this enacts a larger socio-technical assemblage that is the haze reporting system, which includes air pollution monitoring systems, communication technologies, traditional and social media. This assemblage can constitute ways of expressing governmental forms of care (e.g. the dissemination of ‘health advisories’) that encourage individualized action, revealing the limits of the Smart Nation in establishing sovereignty over its ‘volume’. The second kind of materiality emerges in the sensorial engagement residents have with the haze. This direct experience of the haze challenges the perception of the accuracy of the official haze data, creating tension between the state and residents. In this paper, I discuss how some unique cases of contestations over environmental data show through the entanglements between state, citizen science, and the sensorial materiality of the environmental event. I aim to show how focusing on perception rather than ideology can reveal that these contestations are based on affect, not accuracy. This alternative understanding of the relationship between residents and data can be used to better leverage technologies and other interventions to improve perceptions of public health and well-being during periods of poor air quality.
A Review of the Smart Readiness Indicator and Its Applicability in the U.S. View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Eerika Janhunen
More efficient and flexible energy use will play a vital role in a sustainable built environment. Buildings consume 40% of energy demand globally and thus provide a great demand flexibility potential to support the future renewables-driven energy system. Today, most buildings do not have the technological capabilities to adjust their operation according to the energy grid signals. Therefore, to promote the uptake of smarter building technologies, the European Union has proposed a regulated implementation of a smart readiness indicator (SRI). The SRI rating scale has been developed to support European Green Deal and the Renovation Wave. The indicator aims to raise awareness of the potential of smartness to improve buildings' overall in-use performance, support the occupant's well-being, and energy grid flexibility. This presentation reviews the SRI's rating criteria and shares the first experience of the framework's applicability in California. The study reviews the next steps towards more advanced and climate-neutral building operations by introducing the SRI rating of a LEED Platinum baseline design building. The study also shows the core technologies to increase the scoring while enhancing the demand-based building operation. The results highlight the importance of raising more discussion on the potential of smart building technologies to support the electrification of the energy system. However, as the SRI suggests, this should be done while supporting occupants' well-being, health, and comfort in buildings.
