As part of KPF’s Earth Month activities, the firm’s New York office hosted the Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability Advisory Council Meeting and a lively panel discussion about sustainability and resilience in the built environment.
The Atkinson Center for Sustainability, a cross-disciplinary research institution, brings together experts across fields—from geoengineering to regenerative agriculture and conservation finance—to develop integrated solutions to global challenges. During the group’s Spring Advisory Council Meeting at KPF’s New York office, researchers from the center took time from a busy schedule to present a panel discussion to KPF’s staff of architects and designers, creating new connections between research and practice, science and design.
KPF Principal Jill Lerner, a member of the advisory council, introduced the panel discussion, which featured four members of the Center’s leadership team. David Lodge, Director of Cornell Atkinson, opened with an overview of the Center’s priorities and its research-to-impact mission. Amanda Rodewald, Professor & Faculty Director, followed with a presentation on how big data gathered by citizen scientists can inform our understanding of biodiversity. Next, Vibha Kalra, Professor & Faculty Director, described her research into reviving and recycling the large batteries used in EVs and similar applications. The discussion concluded with Patrick Beary, Director of Strategic Partners, who spoke on how partnerships with corporations, NGOs, and government agencies accelerate the impact of academic research.
Following the presentation, the three professors sat down with KPF’s Global Director of Sustainability, Carlos Cerezo Davila, for a brief discussion of how this cutting-edge sustainability science might inform real-world applications in the built environment.
