Adam Thwaites

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Senior Lecturer

Architecture and Cities

(United Kingdom) +44 20 7911 5000 ext 66648
35 Marylebone Road
London
GB
NW1 5LS
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About me

After some years in architectural practice in London, working primarily on residential and commercial projects, I was appointed as Lecturer and then Senior Lecturer at the University of Westminster. 

I have taught within both the School of Applied Management (Property and Construction) and the School of Architecture + Cities. Primarily, teaching on the Architectural Technology BSc. At time of writing, I have now been teaching at Westminster on the Architectural Technology BSc for 18 years.

I represent the AT BSc on the University of Westminster, Architecture + Cities Climate Action Taskforce. 

Teaching

I am involved in the design and planning of all Architectural Technology Design Modules and currently I am Module Leader for the 3rd year Design Studio and Research Project among other teaching responsibilities, PHD Supervision and Personal Tutoring.

Over many years, I have worked on Course Design and Module Design for the AT BSc, which is a design-led course, with a strong historical emphasis on Sustainable Design and an emerging emphasis on Regenerative Architectural Design with reference to UN Sustainable Development Goals.      

For example, I (and 3rd year AT Students) are in an on-going collaboration with Transformation Workshop (TW), Pedra Furada, Brazil, and the initiator of the TW project, Professor Paulo Gomes of the Federal University of Bahia. The TW project is a Social Enterprise, which meets 10 of the 17 UNSDG’s and 11 with our partnership. Our previous collaboration, 2022-2023, was awarded a grant from the Sustainability Fund and won the Architecture + Cities Climate Action Taskforce (ArCCAT) Prize for Sustainability 2023. 

We have been awarded an additional grant by the university Sustainability Fund 2024, to develop a Prototype Structure utilising the TW plastic material, in conjunction with Bamboo, appropriate for Tropical climates and marginalised communities.

My teaching is closely related to my Research interests, with students as collaborators in 'live' projects which centre on ways to address the Climate Crisis, Global Justice and the UNSDGs.   

 

Research

Current research interests, 

- the development of applications in construction (and design) for the TW recycled plastic material. 

- Bamboo, in the context of de-forestation in Brazil.

- the UNSDGs, in particular No 17 'Partnership for the Goals'. Housing and construction in the Tropics. 

- teaching via 'live' project, the studio as R&D tool to support a sustainable future, embedding sustainable and regenerative design practice as a priority for students.