Net Zero Emerging Leadership Intern Atousa Momenaei
Happy Earth Day!
In celebration of today, we would like to spotlight our recent Net Zero Emerging Leaders Intern: Atousa Momenaei.
A PhD candidate in architecture at the University of Oregon, Atousa’s has focused her studies on designing practical solutions that minimize environmental impacts and promote healthier, sustainable living environments. Her interests include building performance analysis, energy simulation and embodied carbon, and human-centric passive systems.
Before coming to Eugene to pursue a PhD, she received a B.Sc. in Architectural Engineering and a M.Sc. in Architectural Technology from the University of Tehran. For her PhD research, she is exploring how renewable energy strategies, such as natural ventilation, enhance cognitive performance in educational spaces.
As part of her Net Zero Emerging Leadership Internship sponsored by Energy Trust of Oregon, Atousa helped us make progress on our AIA 2030 Commitment to reach net zero emissions by 2030. The main objectives and tasks for this internship were the following:
2030 Commitment reporting of RB’s 2024 eligible projects.
Develop a standard process for 2030 Commitment reporting that RB staff will use for future projects.
Testing energy modeling software to determine one that can be used by RB architectural staff on a practical basis to inform design decisions.
Atousa presented her findings to the Rowell Brokaw office. Her internship also culminated in a presentation to the full Net Zero Emerging Leaders Internship cohort, Energy Trust of Oregon staff, and the community.
Congratulations to Atousa and all the Net Zero Emerging Leaders Interns! It’s very exciting to witness the passion, intelligence, and commitment to sustainable design of these young architects and engineers.