Architecture duo honoured by RIBA
Dr Tatjana Schneider and Professor Jeremy Till, both from the School of Architecture at the University, have had their latest research project honoured by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA).
The project on flexible housing has been awarded the 2007 RIBA's President's Award for Research, in the Outstanding University-located Research category.
The important awards encourage and reward outstanding research in architecture, and are generally seen as the most prestigious in the field. The judges called their work on flexible housing: 'an exemplary body of architecturally-relevant research…, offering comparative design plans, well-researched historical referencing, a new classification system and a practical manual/tool kit. An innovative and brave approach…'
The main focus of the project was the book, Flexible Housing, which was published by Elsevier in August this year. It investigates ways of planning housing that can adapt to different uses and technologies over time. Professor Till and Dr Schneider's team collected over 150 historical examples for their research that demonstrate the economic, environmental and social benefits of flexible housing.
Co-author of the book Dr Tatjana Schneider, who joined the School of Architecture 2004 said: "It is fantastic that an eminent professional body such as the RIBA acknowledges the topical importance of the research into housing and flexible housing in particular. Our research has shown that flexible housing is the only way to produce a truly sustainable future for housing in the UK. It would be great if the RIBA award and the publicity it creates can help to bring these ideas to the attention of the architectural profession and the housing industry."
"We are delighted that our research has been recognised by the professional community and is already making an impact on the design of housing," added Professor Jeremy Till, who has worked at the University since 1999.
Congratulations to both!
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