Cracking the Code on Sustainable and Measurable Climate Action

Ahead of the curve in bringing the science of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to design and on the heels of the Inflation Reduction Act, Environmental Life Cycle Assessment in Design (eLCAd2023) once again draws together a diverse group of educators and professionals in concentrated dialogue to explore the rapidly evolving conjunction of LCA and design.

This year’s symposium focuses on the most recent developments in policy, education, and communications, and how the integration of LCA with design will produce sustainable and measurable environmental, social and economic impact. A recent article explores this in more depth. 

The third annual eLCAd builds on the successes and momentum of the previous two spring symposia co-hosted by New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) and the American Center for Life Cycle Assessment (ACLCA) in cooperation with the Centre Interdisciplinaire de Reserche en Opérationnalisation du Développement Durable (CIRODD). Co-chairs for the event are Chirstopher Richard, ACLCA, and John Cays, NJIT Hillier College of Architecture and Design. 

The symposium starts Tuesday, Mar. 28 and runs through Mar. 30, and provides the opportunity to interact with a growing international community of practitioners, working together to design and develop commercially viable interventions to improve the environmental profile of the industrial economy one product, one building and one infrastructure component at a time.

Speakers of note include Manuel Lima, David Benjamin of The Living, Heather Dylla of Construction Partners, and NJIT alumna Erin Heidelberger. Click here for speakers, registration and agenda. NJIT students and faculty may register at a discounted rate. Students use SR2023. Faculty use VIP. 

Mar. 28 — 1 p.m. Student workshop

Join world class LCA expert, Jean-François Ménard, for a hands-on 2.5-hour workshop to gain an overview and understanding of LCA and how you can effectively use it to design sustainably. Construction materials selected during the design phase of a project create an embodied carbon footprint and other critical measurable environmental impacts. You will learn:
- how to measure a project's environmental impacts
- tools used to simplify and integrate complex data into your design projects
- how LCA can immediately help designers and design students

Mar. 28 — 9 a.m. Session 1. Policy  

Recent policy developments and commitments at all levels of governance, from local to international, have created new opportunities for those working in the sustainable design space to profit while improving the environmental profiles of many new products coming to market. In this first session, four panelists will present a series of case studies showcasing recent policy successes in practice. 

Mar. 28 — 10:45 a.m. Session 2. Policy
The second session focuses on work specifically executed at multiple scales in the design for environment (DfE) space. LCA and the designs that integrate it can simultaneously benefit from alternative and complementary frameworks. These can address different facets that influence the overall evaluation of a given design’s sustainability profile throughout its life cycle and that of its supply chain. Policy session moderators are Maya Jegen and Hassana Elzein. 

Mar. 29 — 9 a.m. Session 1 Education 

Building formal siloed activities and structures is endemic in the academy. Traditional disciplinary boundaries define one field or subfield from another and the requirements one has to meet to be considered properly educated or expert in a discipline. The broad topic of environmental literacy, as it relates to the negotiated and constantly changing interactions between ecosphere and technosphere that comprise today’s industrial economy, requires a new kind of collaborative model especially in the professions. The first session looks at the cross-disciplinary necessities and opportunities inherent in sustainable design studies throughout the full life cycle of a student. 

Mar. 29 — 10:45 a.m. Session 2 Education
The second session highlights the traditional coupling of the arts and sciences in academia. Architecture and design disciplines naturally blend qualitative and quantitative subjects. Maximizing opportunities for greater integration between art and science at the point of intersection between LCA, LCT, and design requires familiarity with terms and literacy that crosscuts many of today’s academic paradigms and cultures. Biomimicry, multicriterial parametric design, and regenerative sustainability principles in emerging material are some of the topics under consideration. Education session moderators are Mukunth Natarajan and Erin Heidelberger. 

Mar. 30 — 9 a.m. Session 1. Communication

How do we make ourselves understood? LCA relies on inherently dense and abstract quantitative structures to express insights into specific topics, processes, and product systems. These objects of study and the analytical techniques brought to bear are largely opaque to many of the uninitiated. Numbers, words, charts, and graphs convey complex, nuanced information in LCA reports and the environmental product declarations (EPD’s) that reference them. This first session reviews the latest internal tools and communication technologies used to translate LCA concepts, outputs, and insights into understandable and actionable documents.

Mar. 30 — 10:45 a.m. Session 2. Communication
Public understanding of basic LCA concerns is increasingly important as issues of potential greenwashing increase skepticism of sustainable design and development. What are the key elements in effective communication about technical matters tailored to a non-technical audience? The final session presents expert perspectives to help frame translational best practices for those presenting complex issues to a broader audience of policy makers, clients, and the public. Communication session moderators are Justin Schwartzhoff and John Cays.