University of Warwick, School of Engineering
Dr Terry Thomas
Dr Terry Thomas is the Head of Development Technology Unit (est 1992), a research unit within the Engineering Dept, concerned with the development of technologies appropriate to rural areas of tropical countries and the study of "bottom up" industrialisation in those countries. He has worked in over 10 tropical LEDCs. For 25 years he ran the UK’s then main undergraduate programme in ‘Appropriate/Sustainable Technology’ and now runs African field courses for UK engineering students. He has undertaken fieldwork, consultancy and project supervision in water supply, artisanal construction, rural energy supply (esp supported by Dr Colin Oram) and transport. A one-time electrical engineer, he has current expertise in cementitious materials and rural house construction relevant to this application. He is also working on rainwater harvesting (Handbook published) and micro-hydro power. He is a director of SMEs in Uganda and Cambodia & has supervised many PhD students and two multinational research programmes (EU, DFID). At Warwick Engineering he has colleagues expert in cooling and solar technologies, (e.g. Prof Critoph’s team), innovative structures (e.g. Dr Tak Ming Chan), instrumentation etc. He has good links with UK consultancies specializing in the built environment (mainly via recent graduates) and with universities in LEDCs.
Mr Chris Butters
Chris Butters, a Norwegian citizen born in South Africa, holds a B.A in Literature (Stellenbosch), a Masters in Architecture DPLG (Montpellier) and a Diploma in Energy Planning (Oslo). He has worked with architecture, energy, ecology and sustainable planning for 35 years, both as practising architect, consultant, author and lecturer. He has been widely published and is the author or co-author of six books. Chris has been based in Norway for many years before taking the ELITH research posting at Warwick. He worked for 10 years in Bhutan, including design of schools and a hospital; as well as Tibetological research. He has been guest professor at the Oslo School of Architecture and at St. Johns University, Minnesota, USA. He has worked in countries including France, Norway, Scotland, Bhutan and Taiwan and is a co-founder of the GAIA group in Norway (1982) and of GAIA International (1992), a pioneering network in the field of sustainable building and “deep green” solutions. He is also the creator of the Sustainability Value Map.
T.H.Thomas, Low impact walling technologies, Bangkok ELITH workshop April 2016
Walling and stiffness testing, T.H.Thomas / ELITH, Uganda
Meeting with City Planning Office Ningbo, China, Chris Butters and Ali Cheshmehzangi