Dr Sally Shahzad (Wyville)

Profile

I am very passionate about leadership, research and teaching on the practical aspects of Architecture and Sustainability. My aim is to enhance people’s lives through balancing energy and thermal comfort and to make a difference. I believe in individual differences and reflect this in my research and teaching practices. I introduce and encourage innovative solutions to enhance the relationship between the architectural design, environmental challenges and the end-user. Supporting staff, students and others, and to see them flourish is my life’s passion.

After practicing Architecture for four-years, I expanded my research and teaching practices to the University of Edinburgh, Derby, Sheffield, and Leeds. I graduated my PhD in adaptive thermal comfort in architecture from the University of Edinburgh. I introduced the Visual Thermal Landscaping model (VTL), and I received the Edinburgh Award twice. I enjoyed a Postdoctoral Research Fellowship at the University of Leeds collaborating with interdisciplinary researchers. I was the Programme Leader of Architectural Technology and Practice at the University of Derby and I received the Vice-Chancellor’s Early Career Researcher Award of the year. I was the Programme Leader of the MSc Sustainable Architecture Studies and the Director of the Postgraduate Taught Programmes at Sheffield School of Architecture, University of Sheffield. I introduced innovative methods of learning, such as the Behavioural Landscaping model, and I was highly recommended in the Vice-Chancellor’s Learning and Teaching Award.  

Research interests

I am a dynamic thermal comfort researcher and the leader of the Dynamic Thermal Comfort Research Group. My research aims to enhance the thermal comfort of the occupants, while reducing the energy use of the building. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion and particularly vulnerable people, such as older people and babies, are at the heart of my work. My research highly values individual differences in perception, expectation and experiences of thermal comfort and acknowledges the energy bills related to heating and cooling. In response to this, I research and design innovative solutions, such as Personal Comfort Systems (PCS), which can reduce the overall energy use of the building. I introduced the Visual Thermal Landscaping (VTL) model, which maps individual information on the architectural plan of the building enabling a qualitative analysis of the data.

I have received many awards and grants, such as the CoI in the international and interdisciplinary UKRI funded JUSTHEAT project, several seed fund grants, international and internal grants. I have received the Edinburgh Award twice and the Vice-Chancellor’s Early Career Researcher award.  

Qualifications

• Doctor of Philosophy in Architecture (University of Edinburgh)
• Fellow of Higher Education Academy (FHEA)
• MSc in Architecture

Professional memberships

• ASHRAE Technical Committee provisional member