PhD Position in Urban Climate Morphology

We invite applicants to join our international and interdisciplinary team of passionate and ambitious academic professionals at the Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment, TU Delft. One of the world’s leading institutes in the field, ranked 3rd in the QS World University by Subject-Ranking. We are looking for a motivated person to strengthen our team at the Section Environmental Technology and Design (ETD), Department of Urbanism, in the 4 TU Project HERITAGE.

HERITAGE (HEat Robustness In relation To AGEing cities) is a research program aiming at the detection, reduction and prevention of heat-stress occurring due to the ageing of built environmental settings and buildings in Dutch cities through socio-technical solutions. This programme is a 4TU initiative connecting the four universities of technology in The Netherlands: the Delft University of Technology, Eindhoven University of Technology, University of Twente and Wageningen University and Research.

The TU Delft team of HERITAGE is seeking a highly motivated and talented candidate for an interdisciplinary PhD position focussing on the relationship between urban form and outdoor and indoor heat in the context of climate change. We specifically welcome applications from candidates with an interest and experience in conducting data-driven research and linking spatial analysis at different scales.

You will be involved in HERITAGE activities related to work package 4 which aims to i) develop clustering classification methods to identify building and context types based on key form parameters that influence outdoor and indoor temperatures; ii) assess climate performance of morphological types by using climate simulations and on-site measurements

As a PhD candidate, your key responsibilities will be to:

• In collaboration with the promotor team, develop within the first year a GO/No Go report describing the detailed PhD proposal and the strategy for completion within the foreseen 4 years.
• Conduct systematic literature reviews to gain an in-depth understanding of relevant theories, concepts, and methodologies in urban climatology;
• Collect and analyse quantitative data to examine the relationships between local climate types and microclimate patterns;
• Collaborate with interdisciplinary research teams to develop innovative climate data collection and modelling strategies.
• Publish research findings in reputable peer-reviewed journals and present results at international conferences and workshops.
• Contribute to the teaching and supervision activities of the Urbanism Department (10% in year 2 and 3).
• Follow the Doctoral Education Skills Training Programme offered by the Graduate School (45 ECTS credits)

The section of Environmental Technology and Design (ETD) contributes to inter- and transdisciplinary, context-driven and problem/solution-focused research and education for the sake of a better environment. It involves a collaborative design and engineering approach, with social- and environmental-based methods and techniques as operative instruments, as well as the development and application of advanced urban data science and geospatial information technologies to support this primary aim. Research and education blend environmental technology, urban ecology, citizen participation and environmental behaviour at different scales. There is a strong emphasis on the interaction of these fields in terms of theories, methods and techniques, as well as their application via concepts, strategies and spatial interventions, as a significant part of ETD’s research portfolio concerns applied science for and often with public and private partners.