# Cooling the Concrete Jungle – Rethinking Urban Heat and Human Comfort Through Radiant Design - Episode 133 with Dorit Aviv & Eric Teitelbaum

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/better-buildings-for-humans-6593348/cooling-the-concrete-jungle-rethinking-urban-heat-and-human-comfort-through-radiant-design-episode-133-with-dorit-aviv-eric-teitelbaum-2
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/better-buildings-for-humans-6593348/cooling-the-concrete-jungle-rethinking-urban-heat-and-human-comfort-through-radiant-design-episode-133-with-dorit-aviv-eric-teitelbaum-2.md
Podcast: [Better Buildings For Humans](https://stenobird.com/podcast/better-buildings-for-humans-6593348)
Published: 2026-04-15T12:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/bbfh6/episodes/Cooling-the-Concrete-Jungle--Rethinking-Urban-Heat-and-Human-Comfort-Through-Radiant-Design---Episode-133-with-Dorit-Aviv--Eric-Teitelbaum-e3hrpcq
Audio file: https://anchor.fm/s/e6dc7530/podcast/play/118399834/https%3A%2F%2Fd3ctxlq1ktw2nl.cloudfront.net%2Fstaging%2F2026-3-13%2F421993580-44100-2-90fb38b38610e.m4a
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Duration seconds: 2795

## Resource

This week on Better Buildings for Humans, host Joe Menchefski welcomes back Dorit Aviv, joined by Eric Teitelbaum, for a powerful conversation on one of the most urgent—and often overlooked—climate challenges: extreme urban heat. Drawing from their work at the University of Pennsylvania and AIL Research, they unpack how the urban heat island effect disproportionately impacts vulnerable communities and why conventional cooling solutions fall short. Together, they explore an innovative breakthrough—membrane-assisted radiant cooling—and how it reimagines comfort by cooling people directly, not the air around them. From solar-powered cooling shelters to redesigned bus stops, their work blends building science, material innovation, and human-centered design to reduce heat stress in real-world settings. This episode challenges us to rethink how cities can become not just more sustainable—but more livable, equitable, and resilient in a warming world. More About Dorit Aviv and Eric Teitelbaum Dorit Aviv, PhD, AIA, is an Assistant Professor of Architecture at the University of Pennsylvania Weitzman School of Design, where she directs of the Thermal Architecture Lab , a cross-disciplinary laboratory at the intersection of thermodynamics, architecture, and material science. Her work examines synergies between renewable environmental forces and architectural materials and forms to improve energy efficiency and occupant wellbeing. Aviv is a licensed architect and holds a PhD in architectural technology from Princeton University. Her work has been supported by federal grants from the U.S. Department of Energy, the National Science Foundation and the Environmental Protection Agency. Her prototypes for passive and low-energy cooling have won major international awards, including a Hol…

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