If you are a student or tutor at one of the UK's RIBA-accredited Schools of Architecture you can access our free online course, Design Performance for Climate Action, which aims to provide students with a solid foundation in climate-responsive building design and a toolkit for tackling the climate emergency.

Buildings are a significant culprit of carbon emissions – accountable for 35% of total global energy consumption. Design is the most powerful tool we have to improve their energy, both upfront and in use. Our course has been designed as a free resource to support existing architecture training in the UK, addressing priority areas in the emerging RIBA Climate Knowledge Literacy schedule and the ARB Competencies that form the backbone of the curriculum. It will empower architecture students with the knowledge and skills to design high-performance buildings using the Passivhaus standard as a proven and quality-assured route to achieving good building performance.

Passivhaus is a well-tested approach to reducing building energy use whilst also delivering high standards for comfort and occupant health. It adopts a whole-building approach focused on high-quality construction with clear, measured targets and certification through an exacting quality assurance process.

This course has been developed by a specialist team of low-energy experts and educators from Coaction Training CIC and the PASSIVHAUS TRUST, alongside RIBA and the Standing Conference of Schools of Architecture (SCOSA). It critically examines the Passivhaus standard, exploring its strengths and limitations over four modules: two cover the principles of building design for optimal performance, while the remaining two delve into the specifics of construction and services design.

"This course is responding to a direct demand from industry for more climate conscious architects. We are excited to be upscaling Passivhaus education in universities so that when architecture students graduate, they hit the ground running, embedding these skills in the practices where they work to have an immediate impact on the delivery of sustainable buildings in the UK."

Sarah Lewis, Research and Policy Director, Passivhaus Trust

"This is a huge opportunity for architects at the very start of their practice to gain access to Coaction's community of trainers - each bringing their long-standing experience and expertise within the Passivhaus industry."

Sally Godber, Director, WARM: Low Energy Practice & Coaction Training CIC