Michael Jemtrud

Michael Jemtrud is the Chair in Architecture, Energy, and Environment and an Associate Professor in the School of Architecture. He is a founding member of the DeCARB (DeCarbonizing Architecture and Building) Research Group at McGill University whose mission is to develop new concepts, methods, tools, and integrated solutions for the reduction of the Global Warming Potential of the full building environments process (design, construction, operation of buildings) in transitioning to a clean energy, low-carbon future. He is the Founding Director of FARMM (Facility for Architectural Research in Media and Making) and former Director of the School of Architecture from 2007-11.

Prof. Jemtrud is trained in design and construction techniques for high-performance design and construction and skilled in multi-stakeholder co-design and consultation having worked with various communities and industries in Montreal and across Quebec. His primary mode of research and teaching is applied and focused on real-world implementation: designing, prototyping, and constructing at full-scale by incorporating novel building technologies and configurations that address climate change including policy and socio-economic pathways. His current research focus concerns developing solutions for Building Climate Retrofit and Renovation of existing building stock.

Current/recent work:

• 2021-26: ReCONstruct: Building Climate Retrofit Solutions for Canada. NSERC Alliance (with Hydro-Québec and Quebec Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources, Energy Transition sector). Budget: $6.0M. Principal Investigator.
• 2020-23: BARN (Building Architecture Research Node). Canada Foundation for Innovation - Innovation Fund/Quebec Ministry of Economy and Innovation. Budget: $19.2M. Co-Principal Investigator with Salmaan Craig.
• 2020-21: Buildings as a Global Carbon Sink. McGill Sustainability Systems Initiative - Clean Tech Fund. Budget: $366k. Co-applicant (PI: Salmaan Craig).
• 2019-23: Arctic Wood Architecture Network. Danish Agency for Science and Higher Education. Budget: $56k. Co-applicant (PI: Niels Martin Larsen, Aarhus School of Architecture).
• 2020-23: World Sustainable Built Environment Conference 2023 - Montreal. Awarded bid to host 2023 triennial conference in Montreal. Co-chair with Danny Pearl (Université de Montréal).