The quality of the housing environment (HE) is an important issue that has a direct impact on the life of inhabitants. Aiming for quality in residential architecture begins with a well-designed HE, with the designing process being a value that is difficult to evaluate. Nowadays, a well-designed HE takes into account the energy efficiency of a building. An appropriate degree of thermal comfort, which is required by inhabitants, needs to be considered at the design stage. Designers can use building certification programs and multi-criteria analysis to motivate investors to construct buildings in accordance with energy efficiency requirements. These systems respond to the needs of energy efficiency, thermal comfort, sustainable heating, and ventilation. Defining ways and methods to evaluate quality in architectural projects will allow the value of the HE to be improved. For this purpose, a multi-criteria analysis of five systems that can be used to evaluate HE quality and energy efficiency in a temperate climate was conducted: (1) Building For Life 12, (2) Home Quality Mark, (3) Housing Quality Indicators, (4) Système D’évaluation De Logements (Sel), and (5) NF Habitat-NF Habitat HQE. This analysis concerned information about the systems, their applicability in practice, and the applied assessment measures. The article shows that the quality of the HE consists of specific factors that can be distinguished and indicated by evaluation systems. As a result of the carried out assessment of the housing environment, 13 original categories of building assessment criteria were defined. The results of the conducted analysis indicated that it is possible to: (i) identify factors for the improvement of HE quality; (ii) prepare objective systems for the measurement of the HE; and (iii) use such systems in practice, e.g., in the design industry, real estates, and public administration. Moreover, the systems can be used in legal regulations for updating urban policies.

When designing a year-round home heating system that uses only solar radiation energy, the cooperation of an architect and an HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) designer is necessary. These systems occupy a large area in relation to a building’s floor surface, especially when they are located in a climate like Central Europe or colder. The aim of the article was to create a balanced integration process by implementing the subsequent steps that are necessary to integrate a solar heating system within a building. In the first stage, a solar collector and a heat accumulator were selected. The innovation of the system involves the use of a solar concentrating collector as an air heater. Assessment criteria were then proposed in order to show the influence of the location of the solar heating system on the building’s architecture, functionality, and energy balance, while at the same time assuming its passive standard. System integrations concerning both an existing and new building were analyzed. The system’s basic components were selected for the three chosen solutions, taking into account the possibility of using heat losses resulting from the location of the installation.

This article describes the innovative photovoltaic powered seasonal thermal storage—PVPSTS system. It was used in the design of a plus-energy detached single-family house with a usable area of 98 m². This area meets the requirements of the latest building regulations in Poland. The building, with the innovative HVAC installation, was subjected to energy analysis, and a numerical model was also developed. The model was tested based on TMY data for the location of Wroclaw, Poland. Analysis of the results allowed the authors to learn the specifics of the operation of the system throughout the year and to also define its efficiency. The required size of the storage stack was determined to be 1.6 × 1.6 × 0.3 m. The photovoltaic installation, which was integrated with the roof, can produce 48 GJ of electricity per year. This is five to six times more than the building’s heating needs, and any excess energy can be exported to the power grid.

The building industry contributes to the global environmental challenges; however, sustainable solutions provide opportunities for a relevant architectural response. It is the architect’s role to design with consideration of those issues and potential solutions. The objective of this paper was to evaluate the extent to which architecture graduates demonstrate their knowledge about sustainability principles. A total of 346 Bachelor’s and Master’s theses, defended at the Faculty of Architecture, Wrocław University of Science and Technology in 2023, were analysed in terms of Frequency of Occurrence of Sustainable Priority Areas distinguished based on key contemporary policies. In order to validate and compare the results, a baseline from projects submitted to a sustainable competition was prepared. The analysis revealed that only 40% of the examined theses addressed priority areas. An average difference of 56.6% in the Frequency of Occurrence of priority areas was noted between theses and competitions abstracts. Furthermore, tendencies within Frequency of Occurrence of sustainability priorities, as well as formal requirements of the Polish higher education system, were identified and reviewed. Based on all findings, preliminary diagnoses and respective recommendations were proposed. This study is a foundation for further research on architecture graduates’ readiness to tackle environmental challenges within architecture.

The article presents chosen technological solutions that affect the energy efficiency of multi-family zero-energy buildings – MFZEB. Based on detailed analyzes of 15 buildings built in a climate zone similar to Polish zone, strategies that have direct application in the integrated design process were selected. Both elements and features that can be considered as trends as well as specific cases of MFZEB were indicated. Authors hope that the described problems will contribute to changes in the design of multi-family housing for the 21st century in Poland.

The building industry contributes to the global environmental challenges, however sustainable solutions provide opportunities for a relevant architectural response. It’s the architect’s role to design with consideration of those issues and potential solutions. The objective of this paper was to evaluate the extent to which architecture graduates demonstrate their knowledge about sustainability principles. 346 Bachelor's and Master's theses, defended at the Faculty of Architecture, Wrocław University of Science and Technology in 2023, were analysed in terms of frequency of occurrence of sustainable priority areas distinguished based on key contemporary policies. In order to validate and compare the results, a baseline from projects submitted to sustainable competition was prepared. The analysis revealed that only 40% of the examined theses addressed priority areas. An average difference of 56.6% in the frequency of occurrence of priority areas was noted between theses and competitions abstracts. Furthermore, tendencies within frequency of occurrence of sustainability priorities, as well as formal requirements of the Polish higher education system, were identified and reviewed. Based on all findings, preliminary diagnoses and respective recommendations were proposed. This study is a foundation for further research on architecture graduates’ readiness to tackle environmental challenges within architecture.