Sonja Dragojlovic-Oliveira

Sonja is Professor in Architecture and Sustainability Design Innovation with over 20 years innovation and research experience in the sustainability and design sector. She has worked as an associate architect, senior manager and principal investigator in delivery of complex multidisciplinary research, innovation and design projects ranging in value from £200k-£29mil in the UK and internationally. She founded the Radical Architecture Practice for Sustainability network (http://www.rapsresearch.com) in partnership with leading design practitioners and researchers in Sweden, the Netherlands, Portugal, Austria, Serbia and France. She has been appointed as a Thought Leadership Specialist Advisor to the Design Council and is a board member of the World Green Building Council (Serbia), as well as scientific and industry advisory member of numerous scientific committees including ARENA and the New European Bauhaus Collective. Her research, design and teaching practice are fostered through building strong industry and academic links across disciplines within the built environment as well as in computer science, psychology, environmental science and sociology. Her recent work carried out for accelerating socially responsible design capability and capacity for housing delivery has been selected for the House of Lords Science and Technology Select Committee’s report, Off-site manufacture for construction: Building for change and presented as invited keynote at the Westminster Social Forum in Dec 2020. Sonja has worked with UK and EU government institutions, EU business consultancy, international design firms, UK innovation hubs, research institutions and recently housing associations to examine complex cross-disciplinary problems that emerge in the designed environment. Trained in architecture and construction management and engineering, Sonja takes a novel approach to developing new insights into complex climate change phenomena in the designed environment.

Publications

• Beyond energy services : a multidimensional and cross-disciplinary agenda for Home Energy Management research
  Oliveira Sonja, Badarnah Lidia, Barakat Merate, Chatzimichali Anna, Atkins Ed
  Energy Research and Social Science (2021)

• Energy Modelling in Architecture : A Practice Guide
  Oliveira Sonja, Gething Bill, Marco Elena
  (2020)

• Prioritising storage practices : a new approach to housing design thinking
  Marco Elena, Williams Katie, Oliveira Sonja
  Interiority Vol 4, pp. 223-248 (2021)

• Sustainability of the Built Environment [Written Evidence - SBE0060]
  Oliveira Sonja, Marco Elena, Betancour Ana, Schröder Torsten, Mosley Jonathan (2021)

• Transcending disciplines in architecture, structural and building services engineering : a new multidisciplinary educational approach

• Oliveira Sonja, Olsen Luke, Malki-Epshtein Liora, Mumovic Dejan, D'Ayala Dina
  International Journal of Technology and Design Education (2021)

• Health and wellbeing in design studio briefs– architecture and engineering graduating students' motivations and approaches
  Oliveira Sonja, Griffin Emma, Cash Dan, Marco Elena
  Building Services Engineering Research and Technology Vol 41, pp. 137-152 (2020)