Carlos Cerezo Davila

Global Director of Sustainability

An internationally recognized building scientist and sustainable design authority, Carlos leads KPF’s Environmental Performance team (KPFep). Leveraging an evidence-based approach rooted in the digital modeling of energy use, thermal comfort, daylight, and other factors, Carlos collaborates closely with design teams and external consultants across KPF’s global network to ensure that projects meet high performance standards and environmental benchmarks.

Sustainable Design Leadership

Carlos works to minimize the lifecycle impact of architectural projects through high-performance design, considering projects’ operational and embodied emissions as well as their integration into larger energy, water, and ecological systems. At the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (Guangzhou), Carlos led the development of a holistic sustainability vision, collaborating with the design and technical teams to inform the planning of the 267-acre, climate-ready campus. HKUST(GZ) is designed to be net-zero carbon by 2060 and promotes resiliency through flood prevention and wetland protection. Carlos played a critical role in developing the decarbonization strategy for the Vagelos Innovation Laboratories at Columbia University, an innovative, all-electric life sciences lab. At the Comcentre Redevelopment, which aspires to be Singapore’s first end-to-end carbon-neutral development, he and his team applied multiple sustainability strategies to deliver a project designed to achieve BCA Green Mark Platinum and WELL Platinum.

The Hong Kong University of Science & Technology (Guangzhou)

Guangzhou, China

Vagelos Innovation Laboratories

New York, NY, U.S.A.

Comcentre Redevelopment

Singapore

Evidence-Based Approach

In academic research and architectural practice, Carlos leverages advanced digital simulation techniques to model building performance. Before joining KPF, he was an Instructor and Research Scientist with the Sustainable Design Lab at MIT, focusing on the application of energy simulation and uncertainty analysis at an urban and building scale. At KPF, his environmental modeling work has yielded journal papers on the effects of extreme heat on urban walkability and conference papers on new approaches to building energy modeling. Carlos and his team translate this research into KPF’s architectural projects, developing new tools and workflows to incorporate carbon, energy, thermal, and daylight modeling into the development of design projects.

District Scale Wind Modeling

Guangzhou, China

Microclimate Digital Twin

New York, NY, U.S.A.

Lifecycle Carbon Analysis

Washington, D.C., U.S.A.

Industry Leadership

Recognized by Crain’s as a Notable Leader in Sustainability and by Architectural Record as a Rising Professional, Carlos teaches at the MIT Center for Real Estate (CRE), guest lectures at Columbia University GSAPP, and has held teaching positions at Harvard GSD. He contributed to a chapter on urban building energy models to Building Performance Simulation for Design and Operation, 2^nd Edition, and his research has been published in multiple scientific journals including Energy and Buildings and Building and Environment.

Beyond academia, Carlos is involved with numerous organizations that work to further sustainability in the built environment including the Randall Lewis Center at the Urban Land Institute, the Waterfront Alliance, and the AIA New York Committee on the Environment’s Decarbonization subcommittee. He serves on the New York City Energy Conservation Code Advisory Committee, and he regularly presents research and design work to industry audiences at Greenbuild, AIA National, IBPSA, and ASHRAE conferences.