Decarbonisation as a Design Skill with CEA-4
Two intensive days to master district-scale energy & carbon analysis
with the CEA Team.
Why this course
Urban decarbonisation is now a mandate, not a nice-to-have in urban design proposals. Yet mastering technical tools and assessments often takes months. This course compresses that learning curve into two days of hands-on work—so you can deliver carbon-credible designs and reports with confidence.
Building on the success of the 2018 CEA Executive Course at the Future Cities Laboratory (Singapore), the CEA Team is running this official course for the second time in seven years—now in Zurich, and available online.
Who should attend*
Urban design & planning firms (SMEs and large studios) needing district-scale decarbonisation without expanding headcount.
City planning agencies evaluating policy scenarios, PV siting, and district heating/cooling.
Academics & instructors integrating decarbonisation into design studios.
*Prereqs: Comfortable with urban design data (GIS/BIM). No prior CEA experience required.
What you’ll learn
By the end you can:
Turn massing/footprints into simulatable models in minutes.
Run building energy and PV potential workflows; interpret KPIs.
Compare district cooling/heating options and read techno-economic outputs.
Produce client-ready auto-reports (standard KPIs, clear visuals, etc.).
Agenda
Day 1 – Foundations and Hands-On Modelling
Introduction to CEA: scope, modelling boundaries, and typical use cases
Overview of CEA workflows and core modules
Understanding the CEA database and context-specific assumptions
Data preparation and scenario setup (wizard, QGIS, Rhino/Grasshopper)
Running and interpreting first energy demand simulations
Overview of additional CEA features (renewables, networks, emissions, optmisation)
Day 2 – Application and Design Exploration
Participants work in interdisciplinary groups on one (or more depends on the size of the participant groups) of the following themes:
District heating and cooling & energy communities
Urban regeneration and emissions timelines
Urban densification and solar energy targets
Building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) and envelope design
The day concludes with short group presentations and submission of results.
NOTE: The course syllabus is subject to change to reflect final logistics, participant profiles, and pedagogical refinement. Prospective participants are welcome to reach out to the CEA team with questions, opinions, or suggestions.
Pricing
Standard: CHF 2,400 (includes a 3-month promo CEA-4 Pro license)
Education (students & faculty): 50% off
Team (2+): 10% off
Format & certificate
Hybrid: on-site at ETH Zurich and live online (simultaneous).
Language: English (Q&A also possible in German, Mandrain Chinese, French & Spanish).
FAQ
Is this for beginners?
Yes. You should be comfortable working with basic urban data (GIS / footprints / massing), but you don’t need any prior experience with CEA.
Do I need to install software?
No local install is required. You’ll get access to the CEA-4 Cloud environment during the course. We’ll also provide optional instructions if you want to run CEA locally afterward.
What if I can’t travel?
You can join live online. The online track gets the same lectures, the same hands-on exercises, and live Q&A.
Will I get a certificate?
Participants receive a confirmation of attendance issued by the ETH School for Continuing Education.
Can I get a refund?
- Cancellations by the participant are only possible in written form, either by email or by letter. The cancellation becomes effective only once it has been confirmed by the course organiser or the course administration by email. Failure to pay the course fee does not constitute a cancellation.
- Cancellation of individual courses up to 30 calendar days before the start of the course is possible free of charge. For cancellations made from 29 calendar days before the start of the course, half of the course fee will be charged. For cancellations made from 10 calendar days before the start of the course, in the event of non-attendance or withdrawal after the course has begun, the full course fee will be charged.
- Parts of the course that are not attended generally cannot be made up and will not be refunded.
Please refer to this document to download the General Terms and Conditions for Short Courses (German). In the event of any discrepancies between this webpage and the regulations, the regulations shall prevail.
Should you collect intent first?
Yes. It lets you gauge on-site demand, pick the right room, and avoid sunk costs. We offer an early-bird discount at CHF 100.
Meanwhile, you can also let us know what you want to see at the course.
Questions?
Have an idea about the CEA Official Course? Share with us here!