The axis Integrated Design Architecture and Sustainability (IDEAS) is a joint initiative of both the Interdisciplinary Laboratory of Performance-Integrated Design (LIPID) and Laboratory of Architecture and Sustainable Technologies (LAST) of the School of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering (ENAC) at EPFL.
IDEAS responds to a need to further reinforce the integration of sustainable architecture questions within the framework of the Doctoral program Architecture & Science of the city (EDAR) as well as a to strengthen exchanges and synergies between the three institutes of ENAC. Towards this end, it lies on one hand on a new interdisciplinary education offer in the form of seminars and workshops, and on the other hand on a networking structure for EPFL PhD students.
The philosophy of the teaching lies on an exploration of the modalities according to which sustainable architecture principles can contribute to the design of buildings by including an efficient and parsimonious use of nonrenewable resources, optimal comfort of the user, an optimum consideration of the specific climate and, more broadly, an optimization of environmental sociocultural and economic criteria.