Mona Azarbayjani is an Associate Professor at the Integrated Design Labs, Energy Performance Laboratory of the UNC Charlotte School of Architecture, where she is currently teaching comprehensive studios, core building technology courses, energy modeling, and interactive envelope seminars. Her focus in research is on the energy performance of buildings, the study of thermal comfort with new technologies, and climate-responsive building design.
Dr. Azarbayjani received the B.Arch. and M.Arch. degrees (with highest distinction) from the University of Science and Technology (IUST), Tehran, Iran, and a Ph.D. degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), in Architecture-Building Technology.
Dr. Azarbayjani is the recipient of the 2006-2007 UIUC Merit Scholarship in Architecture and the scholastic excellence honor during 2008-2009 at UIUC. She is also the recipient of the Exceptional Talents Fellowship from the University of Science and Technology. She is a member of Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society by election of the chapter at the University of Illinois, a LEED AP with the U.S. Green Building Council and a member of ASHRAE, American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, as well as a member of the Building Technology Educator Society (BTES), Society of Building Science Educators (SBSE), and International Building Performance Simulation Association (IBPSA).
She was the lead PI of a Department of Energy/NREL grant to design, build, and operate a zero-energy house for the 2013 Solar Decathlon at the Orange County Great Park in Irvine, California, in October 2013. As the lead faculty and project manager, she collaborated with hundreds of students, faculty, and industry partners in garnering the People's Choice Award, eighth place in Architecture, and third place in the Engineering competition.