The Pardee School for Global Studies collaborates with local governments and advocacy groups worldwide to develop strategies for a more sustainable economic, social, and environmental future. Situated at the heart of Boston University’s campus on a former parking lot, the Pardee School’s new 70,000-square-foot building will provide a central hub for interdisciplinary collaboration on global issues, while simultaneously increasing urban density and open space. The vertically-stacked program will concentrate the building footprint to just 10% of the site, with the remainder dedicated to a future central green for Boston University.

Rising to 186 feet, the new home for the Pardee School for Global Studies will be the tallest mass timber tower in the Northeast United States. It will house event and conference facilities, classrooms, faculty offices, and social spaces. Research centers converge around double-height “living rooms” for informal gatherings and community-building, connected by a social stair. This vertical collaboration network will broadcast the school’s internal activity along the building’s facade.

The all-electric, fossil fuel-free design features a monolithic massing to minimize material use and energy loss. Its mass timber structural frame reduces embodied carbon by 87% compared to an initial steel-and-concrete option. The entire building envelope is triple-glazed with integral solar screening to reduce solar heat gain while maximizing natural light to interior spaces. Together, the massing and exterior wall significantly reduce building conditioning loads so that over 85% of spaces require no perimeter heating or cooling. Lastly, the roof is equipped with a solar-ready infrastructure, supporting the university’s renewable energy goals.

Sean A. Gallagher, Project Leader and DS+R Director of Sustainable Design, stated: “We are thrilled to be part of Boston University’s effort to make urban environments healthier, more vibrant places to live. The Pardee School of Global Studies marks a significant step toward densifying urban centers in a carbon-neutral way.”