The Jubilee Professors of 2022 have recently been appointed, and two of them will strengthen activities at ACE. Doina Petrescu and Christopher Robeller are both renowned internationally, but also with previous engagements at the department. Their return, in a more formalised way, shall add edge and depth in areas such as civic participation in urban planning as well as robotic fabrication and digital timber construction.
Chalmers Jubilee Professors are designated annually by the President of Chalmers and shall add new skills and strengthen the university's international relations. Among Chalmers Jubilee Professors of 2022 are Prof. Doina Petrescu at the School of Architecture, University of Sheffield and Prof. Dr. Christopher Robeller, at the School of Architecture, Bremen University of Applied Sciences. Both of them renowned authorities in their fields.
Doina Petrescu is an architecht, teacher and researcher in architecture and urban planning, focusing on issues of civic participation and gender and the relations between co-production and resilience. Her involvement in practice and co-founder of Atelier d’Architecture Autogeree (urbantactics.org), an internationally acclaimed research-based practice, pioneering participation in architecture and urbanism – in a democratic and ecological spirit.
– Except for the fact that Doina is a most inspiring lecturer she has a unique practice experience that will benefit our students, not the least within the master’s program MPDSD Architecture and Planning Beyond Sustainability, permeated by the idea of societal benefit and co-creation. Genie is yet another evident area for exchange, and her holistic view and international rreputation will be valuable also for ongoing research, says Emilio Brandao.
Christopher Robeller’s focus lies in the intersection of computation, digital fabrication, timber engineering and architectural design – where he also also holds a leading position of his field internationally. One of the keys to his broad expertise is his educational background and experience, with one leg in architecture and the other one in civil engineering – which makes for great possibilities for a broad exchange with several divisions and research groups at ACE.
– We see that Christopher can add a multi-disciplinary edge to the research output and pedagogical work related to computation, timber, design, fabrication, and construction at the ACE department that we currently do not possess. His expertise and experience from both teaching, research and experimental practice are also relevant to many divisions and soon to be subject groups, says Jonas Lundberg.
The plans are that Christopher Robeller joins ACE in February 2022 and Doina Petrescu in two different periods in 2022, with the first period in March.
– I see the Jubilee Professorship as a fantastic opportunity to enrich activities in education and research, and as an excellent way to strengthen our international network, says Fredrik Nilsson. The presence of these world leading researchers also makes for a positive and inspiring addition that goes hand-in-hand with our efforts to develop the department.
Chalmers Jubilee Professorship was instituted at the time for Chalmers’ 150-year celebration in 1979 – as a gift from the Swedish government. A tradition was established, and the President of Chalmers now appoints a few Jubilee Professors annually, funded by Chalmers.