PROFILE
Dr. Hanan Taleb is interior design alumna graduated from Dar Al-Hekma University with First
Honor in 2004. She is Atkins Assistant professor at the British University in Dubai, Faculty of
Engineering and an Honorary Fellow at the University of Cardiff, UL. She holds a PhD in
Sustainable Architecture from the University of Sheffield, UK.
She holds a MA in Interior Architecture from Bournemouth University in 2006, and a MS in
Architecture from University of Sheffield in 2007.She is also interested in the area of Education,
and recently obtained MArch Educational Leadership from the University of Leicester, UK in
2013. She graduated with distinction in all three degrees.
Dr. Hanan always tries to link the academia with practitioner fields and provides sustainable
consultation to Atkins and many local architecture firms. She collaborated with world-class
researchers in the UK and Europe. Dr. Hanan has previously worked at both academia and
industry. The latter includes working with a team of architects in designing several residential
and commercial projects in Saudi Arabia. She has recently undertaken formal training in
sustainability assessment tools including LEED and BREEAM, as well as various energy
simulation software packages. In addition, she is an active member of several professional
intuitions including the American Institute of Architects.
RESEARCH
Dr. Hanan’s research focused on many areas in sustainability design and studies including
energy-efficient buildings, suitable urban design, building performance simulations, passive
solar design, water efficiency in buildings, renewable/alternative energy sources, sustainable
communities, smart infrastructures, applications of green roofing, and sustainable design
curriculum.
She established the first Sustainable Summer School in BUiD and UAE . The SSS has become an
annual event and invite senior students from all over the world. The success of the event turned
the event into permanent sustainability community presents special offers for all SSS
participants. Based on that, D.r Hanan won Emirates Energy Award 2013- Dubai-UAE in her
efforts to raise the awareness of sustainability among the public. She presented several papers
at international conferences and published a number of peer reviewed journal on a wide range
of sustainability oriented subjects
RECENT RESEARCH PAPER PROJECTS INCLUDE
Enhancing the Skin Performance of the Hospital Building in UAE
Natural Ventilation as Energy Efficient Solution for achieving Low Energy Houses in the UAE
Teaching units
Passive Design
Climate and Comfort
Skin and Spaces
Sustainable Urban Design
Sustainable Interior Design
Giving lectures in research methods in faculty of Education
JOURNAL PAPERS

Taleb, H.M. and Musleh, M. A. (2014). Applying Urban Parametric Design optimization process
to a hot climate: Case Study of UAE. Sustainable Cities & Society. Vol. 14, Issue. 2, pp. 236–253.

Taleb, H.M. (2014). Monitoring Energy Reduction through Applying Green Roofs to Residential
Buildings in Dubai. International Journal of Sustainable Design. Vol. 2, Issue. 3, pp. 229–243.

Taleb, H.M. & Taleb, D. (2014). Enhancing the Thermal Comfort on Urban Level in a Desert Area:
Case Study of Dubai. Urban Forestry and Urban Greening Journal. Vol. 13, Issue. 2, pp. 253–260.

Taleb, H.M. (2014). Using passive cooling strategies to improve thermal performance and reduce
energy consumption of residential buildings in U.A.E. buildings. Frontier of Architectural
Research Journal. Vol. 3, Issue. 2, pp. 154–165.

Taleb, H. (2014).The potential for launching a postgraduate course on Sustainable Energy in
Saudi Arabia. Curriculum Journal. Vol. 25, Issue. 3, pp. 432-458.

Taleb, H.M. and Al-Saleh, Y. (2014). Achieving Energy Saving by Enhancing the Water Heating
practices in the ResidentialBuildings of UAE. International Journal of Environmental
Sustainability. Vol. 9, Issue. 2, pp. 35–51.

Taleb, H.M , Y. (2014). The Potential for Integrating a Distance-Learning Initiative into the
Curriculum of a Saudi Female Private College. Journal of Modern Education Review. Volume 4,
No. 4, pp. 282–298.

Ghazal-Aswad, N., Al-Saleh, Y.M. and Taleb, H. (2012). Clean energy awareness campaigns in the
UAE: an awareness promoters perspective. International Journal of Innovation and Knowledge
Management in MENA, Vol. 2, no. 2, pp. 131-156.

Al-Saleh, Y.M. and Taleb, H.M. (2010). The integration of sustainability within value
management practices: a study of experienced value managers in the GCC countries. Project
Management Journal, Vol. 41, no. 2, pp. 50-59.

Taleb, H.M. (2009). Barriers hindering the utilisation of geothermal energy in Saudi Arabia.
Energy for Sustainable Development, Vol. 13, no. 3, pp. 183-188.

Taleb, H.M. (2011). Gender and leadership styles in single-sex academic institutions.
International Journal of Educational Management, Vol. 24, no. 4, pp. 287-302.

Taleb, H.M. and Al-Saleh, Y.M. (2010). Evaluating economic and environmental benefits of
integrating solar technologies within future residential buildings in Saudi Arabia. Journal of
Energy and Power Engineering, Vol. 4, no. 1, pp. 18-25.

Taleb, H.M. and Pitts, A.C. (2009). The potential to exploit use of building-integrated
photovoltaics in countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council. Renewable Energy, Vol. 34, no. 4, pp.
1092-1099.

Taleb, H.M. and Sharples, S. (2010). Developing sustainable residential buildings in Saudi Arabia:
a case study. Applied Energy, Vol. 88, no. 1, pp. 383-391.
CONFERENCE PAPERS

Al-Saleh, Y. and Taleb, H.M. (2008). Delivering sustainable construction through value
engineering in the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council. In Role of Engineering towards a
Better Environment Conference, Alexandria, 20-22 December 2008.

Al-Saleh, Y.M. and Taleb, H.M. (2009). Renewable energy options in Saudi Arabia: The economic
viability of solar photovoltaics within the residential sector. In Fourth International Conference
on Energy and Environment. Cambridge, 24-26 February 2009.

Taleb, H.M. (2008). The viability of using solar photovoltaic technology at the buildings of Gulf
Cooperation Council. In Fifth Congress of Scientific Research Outlook & Technology
Development in the Arab World. Fez, 25-30 October 2008.

Taleb, H.M. (2009). An investigation into the barriers impeding the development of geothermal
potential in Saudi Arabia. In International Conference and Exhibition on Green Energy &
Sustainability for Arid Region & Mediterranean Countries. Amman, 10-12 November 2009.

Taleb, H.M. (2010). Towards sustainable buildings in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. In Technology
& Sustainability in the Built Environment. Riyadh, 3-6 January 2010.

Taleb, H.M., Sharif, A. and Sanduk, M. (2010). The role of date palm tree in addressing soil
salinity and global warming. In Fourth International Date Palm Conference. Abu Dhabi, 15-17
March 2010.

Taleb, H.M. and Sharples, S. (2010). Applying energy conservation measures within residential
buildings of Saudi Arabia: a scoping study of two case buildings. In International Conference on
Applied Energy. Singapore, 21-23 April 2010.

Taleb, D. and Taleb, H. M. (2012). Urbanizing the deserts of Dubai: an outdoor thermal comfort
case study of Dubai International Academic City, UAE. In Sustainable City 2012. Italy, May 7-9,
2012.

Ghazal-Aswad, N., Al-Saleh, Y and Taleb, H. (2012). Clean energy awareness campaigns in the
UAE: an awareness promoters perspective. In Gulf Research Meeting - The Political Economy of
Clean Energy Solutions in the GCC. Cambridge, 11-14 July 2012.

Taleb, H. (2013). Applying Energy Efficient Water Heating Practices to the Residential Buildings
of the United Arab Emirates. In on suitability conference. Hiroshima, 23-25 January 2013.

Al-Saffar, M. and Taleb, H. (2013). An assessment of office building indoor environment
performance by using the post occupancy evaluation tool: with reference to LEED certified office
buildings in UAE. In SB13. Dubai, 8-11 December 2013.