Centre for Interactive Research on Sustainability

The Centre for Interactive Research on Sustainability (CIRS) at the University of British Columbia accelerates the adoption of sustainable building technologies and urban development practices. The multi-disciplinary research clusters housed in CIRS focus on three major research areas: Tools for Modeling, Visualization and Community Engagement, Building Design and Operations, and Policy Analysis and Strategy.

When it opened in November 2011, CIRS was the most innovative and high performance building in North America.

CIRS is a ‘living laboratory’—a sandbox—for researchers and industry partners to study technical, social and economic issues related to sustainable building design, products, systems and policies. The innovative, flexible design is adaptable to rapid changes in building technology or long term changes to environmental conditions. 

Energy and Environment

One of the key goals of CIRS is to be a net producer of clean, renewable energy in a GHG positive way. This is achieved by maximizing building energy efficiency and taking full advantage of opportunities for energy generation.

Natural daylighting is maximized through building design and in employing daylighting shelves that distribute natural light while reducing glare. Solar shading panels block undesired heat gains, while operable windows allow for natural ventilation through the interior space. In addition, the high performance building envelope includes a 25 kilowatt array of building integrated photovoltaic panels (BIPV) that help generate electricity for the building.

A heat recovery system taps into the fume hood exhaust stack of an adjacent building recovering waste thermal energy. A geo-exchange heat pump system provides a back-up source of heat and is used to cool the 500-seat Modern Green Auditorium. A 40 kilowatt solar hot water system provides about 60 per cent of domestic hot water needs.

CIRS employs stormwater infiltration wells, bio-swales, grey-water collection and distribution systems, wastewater systems (such as Solar Aquatics®) and grey-water storage tanks to treat and reuse stormwater and wastewater onsite.

As a testing facility of leading-edge sustainability solutions, the building program utilizes flexible design solutions. Various building components, such as heating and lighting, may be adapted or replaced in response to new and rapidly developing technologies and their applications.

CIRS is equipped with a state-of-the-art monitoring system that is used to continuously and seamlessly assess and display building system performance for inhabitants. Energy and water consumption, indoor environmental quality, temperature and daylight harvesting are monitored systematically to collect reliable post-occupancy data of building performance and to develop a set of indicators applicable to the performance monitoring of other buildings. This not only allows for continuous improvements of efficiency over time but also helps to educate the public.

Community and Economy

The store-front wastewater bio-filter glazing allows visitors and inhabitants of CIRS the ability to observe the biological wastewater treatment system at work. Diagrams and schematics explain many of the sustainability strategies employed in the building design.

The design of CIRS demonstrates innovative local applications of sustainably harvested wood, thereby supporting an emerging market for pine beetle wood in British Columbia. 

Research at CIRS is pioneering new forms of multi-sectoral partnerships among researchers, industry, practitioners and community members to apply research results in public policy and business decision-making arenas and, in turn, inform further research. This approach produces pivotal insights, methods and policies advancing sustainable urban development in British Columbia, Canada and around the world.