Dear Fellows, Alumni, Students, Staff and Faculty members:

In 2021, we have forged ahead and thrived through expedition and exploration; in 2022, we will pack our hope and sail even further. As the old year draws to a close and the new year unveils itself, we hereby present noteworthy Top 10 Events of 2021 at the School of Architecture, Tianjin University.

1.Stepping-up - International Reputation

In 2021, the international reputation of the School of Architecture of Tianjin University has been significantly improved. Benefiting from the profound academic richness of the school, as well as the fruitful results from recent years’ international cooperation in scientific research, teaching, competitions,academic activities, publication, student exchange and the training of foreign students, overseas media publicity and other aspects, great feedback has been widely received by colleagues and employers at home and abroad.
We thank our international partners and alumni for their support, and will further strengthen the exchanges and cooperation.

2.Teaching  Honor and awards

In 2021, Students from the School of Architecture have constantly won over 60 awards in various competitions and contests, among which, we took the first prizes of the following international and national student design competitions: Tianzuo Cup, UIA-HYP Cup, Evolo, etc. In particular, during China Newer 2021 Competition of Student Awards—which had received more than 1800 entries—, 27 students’works from our school were enrolled in the Top 100, and both the proportion and the probability of the awarded again ranked the first in the country. In TEAM20 Graduation Design Program Contest, our school also ranked the first and made it the third year in a row.

Architectural Typology written by Professor Wang Lijun won the First National Textbook Award, which is the top award in the field of textbooks of higher education in China. Our school gained 37 planned textbooks projects within the architecture section of “the Fourteenth Five-Year Plan” approved by the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, and 3 provincial first-rate curriculum construction projects. Yang Hongwei won the first prize of the E9 University Teaching Innovation Competition The teaching program instructed by Yang Jing was set as the outstanding example of the Industry-Academia-Research Co-operational Cultivation Project of the Ministry of Education. 
 

3.Scientific Research - Expanding Territory

In October 2021, the School of Architecture and the Vocational Skills Appraisal Guidance Center of the China Ministry of Natural Resources signed a strategic cooperation agreement to jointly promote the country's land and space planning. In November 2021, Tianjin University and the French Embassy in China signed a contract to jointly build a Sino-French cultural heritage and urban research center, focusing on javelining and integrating cultural heritage into urban development and daily social life. In November 2021, the Faculty of Economics and Management and the School of Architecture of Tianjin University jointly applied for the approval of the "Tianjin Science and Technology Innovation Think Tank", which will provide high-quality research results and consulting services for Tianjin's scientific and technological innovation and development.

The national key social science research  project on“Inheritance and Contemporary Representation of Chinese Cultural Genes” hosted by Professor Xu Subin of the School of Architecture was approved by the National Social Science Foundation of China in 2021. Professor Zeng Peng successfully applied for the key incubation project of “Smart Technology-Oriented Urban Renewal Mode and Decision Support” for Tianjin’s innovative “project + team”. This project is the only “project + team” key incubation project in the field of urban planning in Tianjin .
In 2021, 3 Tianjin Social Science Outstanding Achievement Awards, including 1 second prize (Xu Subin), 2 third prizes (Hao Weiguo, Zuo Jin), together with 1 first prize (Zhang Qi) and 2 second prizes (Cao Lei, Liu Tingfeng) of Tianjin Haihe Cup Excellent Survey and Design Award were received.

4.Inheritance: People from Tianjin University

On December 18, the annual meeting of Tianjin University Architectural Education Academic Committee was successfully held. The committee members led by Academician Cui Kai conducted discussions on the recent work and disciplinary construction of the School,furthermore, the direction of future focus.
The year of 2021 marked the 100th anniversary of the birth of Mr. Shen Yulin. Prof. Shen Yulin was a famous urban planner and urban planning educator. As one of the pioneers and founders of urban planning in China, he established the Urban and Rural Planning program of Tianjin University.At the opening ceremony of the event, "Shen Yulin Collection" was released, the bronze statue was unveiled and the 100th anniversary of Mr. Shen Yulin's birth and an educational seminar was launched. Mr. Shen's family, representatives of the industry and academia, representatives of teachers and students, etc. participated in this special event online or offline.

5. Dissemination Academic publications

The bilingual journal Contemporary Architectural Education obtained the international standard serial number (ISSN). Besides, Urban Environmental Design (UED), originally a Magazine focusing on practical works, has transformed into dual publications on both “Academic papers” and “Practical works". It follows the current global design practice site and concentrates on design theory and historical research in the fields of architecture, planning, and landscape, devoting to building a platform for the exchange of academic media in the China architectural design industry. The Book Launch—Zhou Kai: Integration and symbiosis the way of stylite" was planned and published by UED on December 18th, which was the first issue planned by UED after its upgrading. It took the “Integration and symbiosis”—the key of Mr. Zhou Kai’s architectural design and practice as the theme. Subsequently, an in-depth and quality academic discussion was conducted.

6.Sustainability - Design with making

‘R-CELLS: A Lifetime well-living home’ is a sustainable solar house prototype developed by TEAM Tianjin University plus, a multi-disciplinary team with university-enterprise partnership led by Yang Wei, Ren Jun and several other professors. As a finalist of the ongoing 3rd Solar Decathlon China Competition, the building had just been completed in Desheng Village, Zhangjiakou on September 14th, 2021. It integrated the wisdom of traditional Chinese architecture with the solutions of contemporary green building, renewable energy and smart control technologies, and created a positive energy, full recycling, zero emission prototype that incorporates the ingenious design concepts with advanced construction technologies.

In addition, the "Zero House" created by professor Ren Jun,is the first near-zero energy building in China that has been completed and certified. Since its completion in 2019, it has been running smoothly and won many international and domestic awards. In 2021, this very building has continued drawing attention and popularity from the society.

7.Voices - Forums and Exhibitions

On June 5th 2021, the "Urban·Environment·Design" (UED) Academic Committee was established and Architectural Academic Media Development Forum was successfully held in School of Architecture, Tianjin University. In future, UED will academically focus on the latest changes in urban and rural environments, and intends to participate in urban development, urban regeneration and rural restructuring via design, technology and arts.

In October,as a part of Beijing International Design Week, the exhibition themed "Ingenuity, Tectonic & Craftsmanship", was held at China Millennium Temple, Beijing. It included five sections, namely"Great Wall Research",  "Reconstruction of Tradition", "RuralConstruction", "Smart Construction" and "Teaching Experiment", and presented the teaching and research achievements of the faculty and the students from School of Architecture, Tianjin University.
In addition , 20 academic conferences, both domestic and international, have been organized in 2021.

8.Education - International Cooperation

In 2021, School of Architecture, Tianjin University and Politecnico Di Milano have signed AGREEMENT ON DOUBLE MASTER’S DEGREE EDUCATION and AGREEMENT FOR JOINT PHD SUPERVISION. Since 2021, the two universities have sent doctoral candidates bilaterally for joint training, according to the Innovation Program funded by China’s Ministry of Education. Based on the achievements in historical village preservation, the program will take advantage of Polimi's strengths in the renewable ecological strategy of ancient villages. It will cultivate international high-end talents in sustainable renewal of rural architectural heritage.
Furthermore, the two Schools are establishing a joint campusin Fuzhou. It intends to launch innovative international cooperative architectural education based on the characteristics and advantages of undergraduate training from both sides.

9.Staff -Faculty construction

Honorary Dean of School of Architecture, Academician of the UK’s Royal Academy of Engineering, Professor Kang Jian has been elected Academician of the European Academy of Sciences in 2021. Academician Kang Jian is a worldwide leading scholar in architectural and environmental acoustics. His paper citation rate ranks top 1 worldwide in this field. In 2021, the school has completed the systematic reformation of the faculty. 7 talent professors and 7 associate professors were employed. Professional title assessment was completed, which includes 3 professors and 5 associate professors. What’s more, 1 professor, 3 associate researchers, and 6 post doctorates were employed via the Talent Program, while 1 associate professor was employed via previous contract system.

10.Facilities-Chasing dreams

The Northern Hall of School of Architecture (previously the No.2 Dining Hall ) was put in use during the autumn semester. The reconstruction plan was hosted by the school’s alumnus Academician Cui Kai. The 2000m2 double-floor building serves students from four majors and three grades. It immensely improves the teaching and learning circumstance of our School. At the same time, the concept of “open teaching” was reported by Guangming Daily, People’s Daily Online, and many other news media. The Norther Hall has become the new “name card” of our School.

Every end makes a new beginning. We would like to take this opportunity, on behalf of School of Architecture, Tianjin University, to thank all for your support! Wish you and your family a happy New Year!