From the drawing board to the building site

Aspiring architects learn from young professionals thanks to the Sto-Stiftung

Vienna. Only if buildings worldwide are erected and operated according to aspects of sustainability and economical use of energy is there a chance to reduce climate-damaging carbon dioxide. In view of the climate change, the construction sector plays an important role. Especially the education of future architects and civil engineers are thus moving into the focus.

This year, the international summer school Green.Building.Solutions. in the Austrian capital of Vienna addressed the concept of the passive house. For the fourth time already it brought together students of architecture and young professionals. More than 30 participants from 17 nations spent three weeks concerning themselves with the theory and practice of the passive house standard. Like the year before, the non-profit foundation Sto-Stiftung allowed four students from Russia, Bosnia, Croatia and Italy to participate with the help of a scholarship.

In order to do justice to the important issue of insulation by means of proper workmanship, a practical module was added to the summer school for the first time. Under the guidance of four young painter and varnishers from Germany, the participants learned the correct handling of a modern composite heat insulation system. Over four days, the goal was to work out the correct handling of insulation and plaster on a window-wall-model in international teams, to test the possibilities and limits of the technology and – above all – to work practically.

Michele D’Ostuni from Florence stressed how important this is for the architects: “Three days ago, insulation and plaster were just lines on paper to me. Here, we have made them a reality with our own hands.”

For trained painter Marina Bahnmann, who is now studying as a Sto-Stiftung scholar, the three weeks were a great experience, too: “Here in Vienna, we craftspeople worked as equal partners with budding architects from around the world. You can’t take that for granted in the field. This way, everyone has developed more respect for the other party and made thinking about the solutions to the problem a shared task.”

Konrad Richter, the foundation council member responsible for the crafts, sees the workshop as a successful pilot project: “Sustainability can only be achieved if theory and practice are interlinked. And Green.Building.Solutions serves as a great platform for that. In this respect, I am very pleased that the organizers want to continue the cooperation with the Sto-Stiftung.”

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