Cooling the Concrete Jungle – Rethinking Urban Heat and Human Comfort Through Radiant Design - Episode 133 with Dorit Aviv & Eric Teitelbaum
About this episode
The episode discusses urban heat challenges and innovative cooling solutions with experts Dorit Aviv and Eric Teitelbaum.
This week on Better Buildings for Humans, host Joe Menchefski welcomes back Dorit Aviv, joined by Eric Teitelbaum, for a powerful conversation on one of the most urgent—and often overlooked—climate challenges: extreme urban heat. Drawing from their work at the University of Pennsylvania and AIL Research, they unpack how the urban heat island effect disproportionately impacts vulnerable communities and why conventional cooling solutions fall short. Together, they explore an innovative breakthrough—membrane-assisted radiant cooling—and how it reimagines comfort by cooling people directly, not the air around them. From solar-powered cooling shelters to redesigned bus stops, their work blends building science, material innovation, and human-centered design to reduce heat stress in real-world settings. This episode challenges us to rethink how cities can become not just more sustainable—but more livable, equitable, and resilient in a warming world. More About Dorit Aviv and Eric Teitelbaum Dorit Aviv, PhD, AIA, is an Assistant Professor of Architecture at the University of Pennsylvania Weitzman School of Design, where she directs of the Thermal Architecture Lab , a cross-disciplinary…
People in this episode
Host: Joe Menchefski
Guests: Dorit Aviv, Eric Teitelbaum
Topics covered
- urban heat
- climate challenges
- radiant design
- sustainable cities
- human comfort
- heat stress
- equity in urban design
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: University of Pennsylvania, AIL Research, Weitzman School of Design
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- Building Hope from Garbage – Why the Future of Sustainable Design Might Look Nothing Like You Expect - Episode 134 with Matthew Panaitz
- Cooling the Concrete Jungle – Rethinking Urban Heat and Human Comfort Through Radiant Design - Episode 133 with Dorit Aviv & Eric Teitelbaum
- Salutogenic Design and the Future of Prisons – Episode 132 with Helena Pombares
- The Empty City Lie: Why We Keep Building Out While Our Best Land Sits Wasted – Episode 131 with Chelsey Jersak
- The Sustainability Illusion: Why “Green Design” Is Failing People—and What Actually Works – Ep 130 with Jenny Heim
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