School of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering (ENAC)

ENAC combines the forces of Architecture, Civil Engineering and Environmental Sciences and Engineering to help ensure a sustainable living environment for humanity through the sound and respectful integration of human activities into the biosphere.

The faculty grasps major challenges such as climate change, global digitalization, and rapid urbanization in its entirety whilst considering economic, technical, and social demands.

Value Proposition

ENAC contributes substantially to a sustainable transition of the built and natural environment.

Our mission and goals

ENAC Sustainability challenges

ENAC aims to play a leading role in the transition to a sustainable living environment by its inter- and transdisciplinary approach and its unique collaboration of architecture, civil and environmental engineering. ENAC focuses on 3 strategic challenges:

  1. Developing knowledge and innovations to anticipate, mitigate and adapt to climate change.
  2. Reap the benefits of digitalization to serve a sustainable development of cities and infrastructures.
  3. Adopt new approaches to urbanization and innovate to contribute to sustainable territories.

Discover our interdisciplinary approach

ENAC’s latest news

Sarah Planchamp, diplômée en architecture devant le barrage de la Grande Dixence.© EPFL/Marie Geiser

What will the Grande Dixence region look like 200 years from now?

Education

Master’s project – An EPFL architecture student explored what the area around the Grande Dixence dam in Valais Canton might look like in 2223, drawing on scientific data to shed light on the long-term implications of environmental change.

Andreas Schüler with an infrared camera in his laboratory.© EPFL/Alain Herzog

Physics sheds light on the study of architecture

Education

Andreas Schüler, an expert in specialty materials for solar energy conversion, is this year’s winner of both the PolySphère award for best teacher at EPFL’s School of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering (ENAC) and the PolySphère d’Or award for best teacher at EPFL. The awards are given out by EPFL students, who selected Schüler for his outstanding teaching in his Building Physics class. 

Salvatore Aprea, between archives and projection of wall prototypes. © 2023 EPFL / A. Herzog

Experts revive ancient techniques to make concrete more sustainable

Research

A team of experts from EPFL, ETH Zurich and a Geneva-based architecture firm has developed a new type of non-reinforced concrete made from stone offcuts. Their method, which reduces the use of carbon-intensive cement-based binders, draws on ancient techniques uncovered in historical archives.

ENAC news portal

ENAC three disciplines

ENAC bring together three transformative disciplines:

  • Architecture
  • Civil Engineering
  • Environmental Sciences and Engineering

ENAC explores the potentials of interdisciplinarity to achieve excellence in the training of tomorrow’s architects and engineers as well as to place scientists at the forefront of research.

EDUCATION

Three sections to train tomorrow’s engineers.

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Section

Architecture

Section

Civil Engineering

Section

Environmental Sciences and Engineering

RESEARCH

Three institutes with over 70 laboratories.

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Institute of

Architecture

Institute of

Civil Engineering

Institute of

Environmental Engineering

Innovation and knowledge transfer

ENAC promotes research partnerships with enterprises and public organizations. To encourage innovation and implement scientific knowledge, ENAC plays an active part in technology transfer and spin-off initiatives.

New initiatives by our partners and collaborators are warmly welcome! Special care is taken to establish long-term relationships of high quality. Collaborating companies and public authorities have access to state-of-the-art research teams, facilities, and equipment.

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Events

ENAC Fribourg Grants: prepare your application now!

06-11-202309-01-2024

Category: Call for proposal

Innovations in carbon capture: porous materials and atom-thick films

11-12-202311-12-2023

With: Prof. Wendy Queen Prof. Kumar Agrawal
Online: https://epfl.zoom.us/j/63821341998
Category: Conferences – Seminars

ENAC General Assembly 2023

11-12-202311-12-2023

Place and room: CM 1 3
Online: https://epfl.zoom.us/j/69761135361?pwd=OFltbURSbEF4NlQ2SmF1ZUxYQ3pWUT09
Category: Conferences – Seminars

EESS talk on "Biological nitrogen fixation: Cooperativity, artificial (re)activation and biotechnological prospects"

12-12-202312-12-2023

With: Prof. Ross Milton, Department of Inorganic and Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Sciences, University of Geneva
Place and room: GC B1 10
Online: https://epfl.zoom.us/j/69011077410
Category: Conferences – Seminars

CC-BY-NC-SA

Research Visibility: Impact beyond citation

12-12-202312-12-2023

With: EPFL Library
Place and room: Online
Online: https://epfl.zoom.us/j/63345680640
Category: Internal trainings

Honorary Lecture – Prof. D. Andrew Barry

12-12-202312-12-2023

With: Prof. D. Andrew Barry
Place and room: CO 1
Online: https://epfl.zoom.us/j/62964539721
Category: Inaugural lectures – Honorary Lecture

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L’énergie : où la trouver, comment la conserver ? #1

13-12-202313-12-2023

With: Alain Beltran historien de l’électricité, directeur de recherche au CNRS; Anais Kistler cinq fois championne suisse amateure de boxe anglaise, boxeuse professionnelle depuis 2021; Sophie Lufkin architecte, collaboratrice scientifique au Laboratoire d’architecture et de technologie durable de L’EPFL
Place and room: Hall du Rolex Learning Center
Category: Cultural events

Modeling the mechanics and rheology of porous and granular media: an elastoplastic continuum approach

15-12-202315-12-2023

With: Lars Kristoffer Uhlen BLATNY
Place and room: CM 1 2
Online: https://epfl.zoom.us/j/66559395767?pwd=YndHb0hMNkxkdytaaEJnYm9OS0k5dz09
Category: Thesis defenses

Semester Exhibition / EPFL Architecture

18-12-202321-12-2023

Category: Exhibitions

Domesticated Foodscapes: Forum Iv – Distil / Superstudio

19-12-202320-12-2023

With: Isabel Concheiro Guisan, Johnny Fleury, Axel Humbert, Beate Jessel, Jade Rudler, Margaux Schwab, Tim Seidel, Axel Simon, Frank Westermeyer
Place and room: SG 1212
Category: Conferences – Seminars

Progress Reviews : Intersections (Tectonics) / ALICE

19-12-202320-12-2023

Place and room: AAD
Category: Miscellaneous

Architectures de l'(in)hospitalité. Urbanité, spatialité et matérialité des politiques d'accueil à Bruxelles.

22-12-202322-12-2023

With: Marie Hannah Florence TROSSAT
Place and room: SG 294.22
Category: Thesis defenses

Effective Lecturing

16-01-202416-01-2024

With: Ingrid Le Duc and Reinaldo Saavedra
Category: Conferences – Seminars

Learn more & apply

Conserving genetic diversity of at-risk species across the data-availability spectrum

18-01-202418-01-2024

With: Dr Brenna Forester, Branch of Species Status Assessment (SSA) Science Support, Division of Endangered Species, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Fort-Collins & Department of Biology, Colorado State University, CO, USA. The role of the Species Status Assessment Science Support is to provide scientific expertise to teams of biologists who are assessing species for listing under the Endangered Species Act as well as planning recovery for listed species. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has a huge workload of species to assess and develop recovery plans for. Most species are data limited, so making decisions with low information availability is common, including genetic data. Goals of Dr Forester’s recent work are to improve inferences of intraspecific variation in these cases to improve and streamline decision-making, both for listing and recovery.
Place and room: GC B1 10
Category: Conferences – Seminars

NOX TEMPUS / MANSLAB

11-03-202411-03-2024

Place and room: SG 294.22
Category: Cultural events

ENAC Innovation Seed grants: information event

13-03-202413-03-2024

Place and room: GC B1 10
Online: https://epfl.zoom.us/j/68013681689
Category: Conferences – Seminars

Learn more & apply

Ambros Lüthi Foundation | Prize in the field of economics

30-04-202430-04-2024

Category: Call for proposal

See all events

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