Architecture, High Performance Building Envelopes and Design
Edgar Stach, Dr.-Ing., AIA/IA, RA (Germany)
Professor of Architecture
UNESCO Chair & Founding Director, Institute for Smart &ealthy Cities
Contact Information
Jefferson - East Falls Campus
4201 Henry Avenue
Smith House Room 106
Philadelphia, PA
Professor of Architecture
UNESCO Chair & Founding Director, Institute for Smart &ealthy Cities
Areas of Specialization
Education
Doktor der Ingenieurwissenschaften (Dr.-Ing./PhD) Magna Cum Laude
Technische Universität Carolo-Wilhelmina zu Braunschweig, Germany
IPMA Studies: Project Management Certificate, Bauhaus University Weimar and International Project Management Association
Diplom-Ingenieur, Architekt (Dipl.-Ing./MArc)
RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany
BIOGRAPHY
Professor Dr.-Ing. Edgar Stach is a tenured Professor of Architecture at Thomas Jefferson University and serves as UNESCO Chair in Smart, Healthy and Learning Cities, as well as Founding Director of the Institute for Smart and Healthy Cities. He previously held a Joint Faculty appointment at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Building Technologies Research and Integration Center.
Trained as an architect and engineer in Germany, Stach holds a doctoral degree (Dr.-Ing., PhD) and is a registered architect in Europe. With more than 25 years of global professional and academic experience, his work operates at the intersection of architecture, urban systems, and advanced building technologies, with a focus on high-performance envelopes, climate-responsive design, and the relationship between the built environment and population health.
Before joining Jefferson in 2012, he held tenured faculty positions at the University of Tennessee and previously taught at Bauhaus University Weimar. He has also served as Visiting Research Professor at TU Delft.
Stach has led major interdisciplinary research initiatives and strategic programs, including his role as Program Manager for Energy Efficiency and Building Efficiency at King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy, where he developed national R&D strategies and guided large-scale urban and research developments.
He is the author of multiple books, including Mies van der Rohe. Space – Material – Detail and Renzo Piano Building Workshop. Space – Material – Light, and has published over 50 scholarly and technical works. His research and design work have received numerous recognitions, including multiple Provost Awards at Thomas Jefferson University, five Chancellor’s Awards from the University of Tennessee, and honors from the American Institute of Architects.
As a licensed architect and founder of an international architectural practice, Stach integrates research, teaching, and professional practice. His work emphasizes innovation, ecological responsibility, and the development of resilient, human-centered environments through design, technology, and interdisciplinary collaboration.