Expert Bio
Nancy Ma is an Assistant Professor of Architectural Engineering at WPI and the founding director of the Laboratory for Healthy, Environmental, and Resilient Buildings (HERB-Lab). Her work is centered around the belief that we have to force a collision among disciplines to achieve two goals: healthy buildings and environmental resilience. She is also committed to understanding the challenges faced by marginalized communities and vulnerable populations, particularly children and seniors, within the context of heatwaves, wildfire smoke, and power outages. Her current projects focus on leveraging data sources (e.g., fieldwork, simulation, and social media) from the built and urban environments to improve indoor environmental (air) quality, human satisfaction, heat resilience, environmental equity, and energy and carbon emission reduction. In 2026, Ma was recognized by the International Building Performance Simulation Association-USA with an Emerging Contributor Award, which honors early-career individuals who have demonstrated exceptional promise and strong potential to make significant contributions to the field of building simulation.
She can offer interviews, consultations, and consumer tips on architectural design and building retrofits, focusing on sustainable development and integrating the performance goals of energy efficiency, carbon neutrality, and healthy living environments into decision-making. Professor Ma’s unique interdisciplinary approach across building, health, and data and computer sciences highlights the need to engage all kinds of stakeholders to take action and make positive changes in building practices.
