Photo © Ken Bendiktsen

Getachew Assefa is the new Athena Chair in Life Cycle Assessment at the University of Calgary.

In a sign the school is increasing its work in cradle-to-grave building science, the University of Calgary has welcomed Getachew Assefa as its new Athena Chair in Life Cycle Assessment (LCA).

A former researcher in Sweden's Royal Institute of Technology, Assefa will help the university's Faculty of Environmental Design assess and evaluate the environmental impact posed by products and operations.

"We need to know the whole story about the buildings we produce—from the initial design phase and the type of materials used in construction, all the way through to the energy providers and waste management systems," said Assefa. "There is a growing interest in this field, both in the industry and consumers. Along with developing methods, tools, and databases, we need to help communicate the information out to the end-users in an understandable format."

Assefa plans to incorporate his LCA research into existing systems to demonstrate economic advantages in more environmentally-responsible structures. He said if you invest higher initially in a building that is more energy-efficient and has a smaller environmental footprint, the cost will be replenished over the full lifecycle.

The Athena Chair in LCA is offered in partnership with the Ontario-based Athena Institute and will concentrate on LCA application to new and existing buildings. It is supported by FPInnovations–Forintek Division, Alberta Advanced Education and Technology, and the Alberta Forestry Research Institute.