Overview of the International Conference on AREQ “Alternative and Renewable Energy Quest - Towards Environmental Development” 2020

The third edition of the International Conference on “Alternative and Renewable Energy Quest- Towards Environmental Development” was held virtually on the 29th of September, due to the travel restrictions caused by the pandemic.

The Conference intends to highlight the importance of using alternative and renewable energy and its integration in smart city planning and development, as well as the different ways in which energy can be produced without being detrimental to the environment. It also aims to provide inspiration for researchers from different backgrounds and around the globe, making it an effort to facilitate an interaction between academic and practical perspectives where theories and ideas from different cities are debated.

Among the main topics discussed in the Conference:

1-     Applications of Clean and Renewable Energy

2-     Energy Management Systems

3-     Designs and Systems for Future Smart & Sustainable Cities

4-     Architecture, Energy, and the Environment

5-    The Road to Energy Efficiency and Renewable Cities

Welcoming Session:

The “Opening Ceremony” started with the online registration and welcoming speeches from the Conference Chair and IEREK founder.

Short welcoming speeches were given by the conference chair Dr. Federica Rosso, Professor at the Department of Civil, Building, and Environment Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy, and the First Session Moderator Professor Ferdinando Trapani, Associate Professor in Urban Planning, Polytechnics School at the University of Palermo, Italy.

Following the speeches, a brief presentation about IEREK introduced the company and its activities to the audience by Dr. Abdelaziz Sakr, IEREK representative and Previous General Director, Egypt, before a short break.

Plenary session:

A “Plenary Session” followed introducing the first keynote speaker, Dr. Federica Rosso, Professor at the Department of Civil, Building, and Environment Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy, whose speech was entitled: “Prompting Energy-Demand Management and Its Usefulness Towards the Reduction and Human-centric Architectural Technology of Buildings' Energy Demand.”

After the keynote speech was the “First Session” of the conference entitled “Architecture, Energy, and the Environment”. The session was moderated by Professor Ferdinando Trapani, Associate Professor in Urban Planning, Polytechnics School at the University of Palermo, Italy. The session discussed six presentations before a short break.

Following the short break was the speech of the second Keynote Speaker Professor Marco Ferrero, DICEA Department of Civil, Building and Environment Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy.

The “Second Session” entitled “Designs and Systems for Future Smart & Sustainable Cities” started and was moderated by Dr. Claudia Fabiani, Ph.D. Building engineer, Department of Engineering, University of Perugia, Italy. Six presentations were discussed during the “Second Session” and concluded the first day of the Conference.

A “Discussion and Questions and Answers” session followed, and the Conference was concluded by a “Panel Session” where final remarks and feedback were discussed.