Graduate Certificate in the Built Environment

UNSW focuses on six key areas: Extreme Weather (climate mechanisms, modelling, bushfire dynamics and fire safety engineering), Biodiversity (marine and terrestrial ecology, living seawalls, underwater reforestation), Advanced Manufacturing, Waste Reduction & Recycling (circular economies, MICROfactories, e-waste transformation), Food & Water Sustainability (membrane bioreactors, water-sensitive urban design), Climate Risk & Response (coastal engineering, climate policy, actuarial risk), and Sustainable Cities & Construction (high-performance architecture, embodied carbon reduction, smart cities).

UNSW is advancing resilient smart cities by integrating high-performance architecture with urban planning, policy, and technology research. Researchers reduce embodied carbon and waste in the AEC sector through sustainable materials, hybrid structures, and intelligent systems. From ultra-tall buildings to high-density housing, they use big data and energy design to mitigate the urban heat island effect, creating positive environmental, social, and economic outcomes.

Yes, UNSW actively partners with industry, government and the community. Prospective partners can discuss specific research projects, conduct PhD research with UNSW, or explore R&D partnerships. UNSW also offers access to facilities and instruments, and has an investment portfolio and expert opinion service through Unisearch.

Key researchers include Scientia Professor Veena Sahajwalla (materials scientist who transforms waste into green materials), Professor Deo Prasad (international authority in sustainable buildings and cities), Professor Jason Sharples (expert in dynamic bushfire behaviour and fire risk management), Professor Richard Kingsford (river ecologist and conservation biologist), Professor David Waite (expert in water quality and wastewater treatment), and Professor Qihe Tang (works at the intersection of climate change and actuarial research).

UNSW researchers have produced practical outcomes including converting single-use coffee cups into new road materials (led by Prof. Nasser Khalili and Assoc. Prof. Ailar Hajimohammadi), developing fire-retardant paint to combat bushfires (Prof. Guan Heng Yeoh and Prof. Cyrille Andre Boyer), and creating advanced materials for mercury-free dental fillings (Prof. Gangadhara Prusty).