The University of Portsmouth, located in Portsmouth, United Kingdom, offers a Masters of Arts course in Sustainable Architecture. According to the university's course description, the program seeks to have students "engage in current debates about the potential role of architecture in an era of climate change." Courses focus on sustainable design, the technology behind this design, and the social context in which this design will be implemented. Students are not only told how and why to create sustainable design, they are also asked to provide their own research and evidence when making their own design decisions.
The Carnegie Mellon University, is located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, offers a Masters of Science program in Sustainable Design. The university's course description states that it will strive "to prepare its graduates for careers that will reshape the built environment in a sustainable fashion." Core courses range from "Zero Energy Homes" to "LEED Buildings and Green Design Concepts" and students may select additional courses from the "Environmental Economics Tools and Calculations," "Environmental Law and Policy" and "Sustainable Design and Development" categories. Students are also expected to meet the two-year residency requirement prior to their graduation.
Students in the Ph.D. Architecture program at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have the option of focusing their courses on the study of the technology and environment and, according to the university's program description, how the study of sustainable design and technology can "improve our surroundings and building environments." Courses range in focus from "Building Science and Environmental Technology" to "Ecological Design" and from "Structures, Materials, and Construction" to "Information and Digital Technology."
The Graduate School of the Environment at the Centre for Alternative Technology is a branch of the University of East London that offers a Masters of Science program in Architecture with an optional focus on "Advanced Environmental and Energy Studies." Based out of the almost completely green and sustainable Wales Institute for Sustainable Education, this course hopes to offer its students "a holistic approach to sustainable design, architecture and building." Students are expected to complete eight modules in the course of one year, cover topics that include "ecosystems and biodiversity," "climate change and resource depletion," "water cycles and management," "energy conservation and generation," "materials and resources," "land use and food," "transport," "trade, economics and livelihoods" and "governance and culture."