On 2 June, the School of Industrial Engineering (ETSII) hosted a keynote lecture organised by the CATENERG Chair on the crucial role of new materials in building resilience against climate change.
From the Chair on Urban Energy Transition (CATENERG) at the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV), we had the privilege of welcoming Professor Umberto Berardi, Full Professor of Energy Transitions at the Polytechnic University of Bari (Italy) and President of the International Association of Building Physics. Prof. Berardi is today one of the most internationally renowned voices in the field of building energy efficiency and advanced materials development.
During his keynote lecture, entitled “Innovative Materials to Address Climate Change Challenges within the Built Environment”, the researcher demonstrated how material innovation is a key element not only for drastically reducing energy consumption, but also for improving thermal comfort and strengthening the resilience of our urban infrastructure against climate extremes.
From theory to urban application
The presentation offered a technical overview of cutting-edge solutions, covering topics from the integration of phase change materials (PCM) for thermal storage, to super-insulating systems based on aerogel and new advanced foams. The potential of retroreflective materials and climate-responsive envelope solutions — capable of dynamically adapting to surrounding environmental conditions — was also presented.
These concepts connect directly with CATENERG’s strategic lines of work for 2026, particularly in our area of Energy-Efficient and Smart Buildings. The solutions presented by Prof. Berardi are a great source of inspiration for projects already underway, such as nZEB (Nearly Zero Energy Buildings) optimisation at our Living Lab in La Harinera, and the solar gain mitigation strategies we are currently modelling with tools such as TRNSYS.
Fostering young research talent
In addition to presenting cutting-edge research results and real-world application cases in energy communities and urban planning, the session proved extraordinarily enriching for students of the Sustainable Development and Energy course within the Master’s Degree in Technologies for Sustainable Development (MUTEDS).
For CATENERG, the talent of our master’s and undergraduate students is the true operational driver of the energy transition. During the event, this young talent had the opportunity to explore how to apply this research to their own case studies. The conference also served as an excellent knowledge exchange space for research staff at the Institute of Energy Engineering (IIE) and our own Chair.
CATENERG extends its deepest thanks to Prof. Berardi for his visit and his willingness to share his knowledge with our university community. We continue working with scientific rigour to provide the city with transferable solutions that accelerate urban decarbonisation, always with the essential support of our founding entities: OAM València Sostenible and the Fundació València Innovation Capital.
