Eight Canadian university teams accept Solar Decathlon challenge
November 7, 2023 | By HPAC Magazine
The annual U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon Design Challenge invites university teams from around the world to design high performance zero energy buildings.
Canadian teams from Concordia University (Montreal), Queen’s University (Kingston, Ont.), UBC (Vancouver), UBC-Okanagan (Kelowna), Thompson Rivers University (Kamloops, B.C.), University of Victoria (Victoria, B.C.), University of Waterloo (Waterloo, Ont.) and York University (Toronto) will all be competing in the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon 2024 Design Challenge.
In total, 105 teams from 93 collegiate institutions will be creating zero energy building designs for new or existing buildings in one of four categories: single-family housing, attached housing, multi-family building, or an education building.
The Solar Decathlon competition has been ongoing since 2002, and the winners are selected from those teams that best blend architectural and engineering excellence with innovation.
The 2024 Design Challenge teams will present their building designs at a virtual semifinal event in February 2024, and the Solar Decathlon Competition finals event will be held April 19-21, 2024, at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Golden, Colorado.
In last year’s competition, Concordia University placed 3rd in the new housing category for a project designed for Iqaluit; and UBC Okanagan and Thompson Rivers University teamed up to take 2nd place in the attached housing category for a project designed for Lytton, B.C.
