Designing with Living Systems online workshop, May 6-8 (McNeel Europe)

Designing with Living Systems online workshop

Tutors: Mariusz Hermansdorfer, Puja Bhagat, Jonathan Wong, 

Eleftherios Kourkopoulos, Jens Joschinski, and Verena Vogler

May 6-8, 2026

10 AM-5 PM CEST (Barcelona)

Hosted on Zoom by McNeel Europe

This workshop introduces a computational design framework that integrates environmental conditions, ecological processes, and human behavior within Rhino and Grasshopper. Participants will work across three simulation systems to understand how spatial decisions influence microclimate, vegetation dynamics, and pedestrian experience over time in an urban context.

The workshop is led by the development team of Rhino.Ecologic -Verena Vogler, Eleftherios Kourkopoulos, and Jens Joschinski (McNeel Europe), together with invited contributors including Mariusz Hermansdorfer, former Head of Computational Design at Henning Larsen, developer of jifto, and the development team behind Kova PedSim, Puja Bhagat, and Jonathan Wong from the Architectural Association London/ Populous. The instructors bring expertise spanning computational design, environmental simulation, ecological modeling, and socially driven agent-based systems.

Learn how to construct integrated simulation workflows that connect geometry, environmental analysis, ecological modeling, and human behavior. By the end of the workshop, you will be able to evaluate design scenarios across climate, biodiversity, and pedestrian dynamics, and use simulation outputs to inform design decisions. 

Day 1: Designing with Microclimate (jifto-a real-time sustainability analysis plugin for Rhino)

• Thermal comfort as a design driver in architecture and urban design
• Solar exposure, shadow behavior, and seasonal variation
• Wind, radiation, and environmental forces shaping outdoor space
• Real-time microclimate analysis within Rhino
• Integration of environmental data into early-stage design decisions

Day 2: Ecological Simulation in Design (Rhino.Ecologic-an ecological simulation framework for Rhino and Grasshopper)

• From geometry to ecological domain: Voxel-based spatial modeling
• Environmental mapping: Soil, solar, and precipitation as design parameters
• Simulation of plant communities (growth, competition, succession)
• Biodiversity and biomass as measurable design outcomes
• Scenario-based evaluation of long-term ecological performance

Day 3: Social Simulation and Pedestrian Dynamics (Kova PedSim-a socially-driven pedestrian simulation framework for Grasshopper)

• Foundations of agent-based and socially driven pedestrian modeling
• Simulation types: Network-based, cellular automata, and physics-based
• Analysis of density, interaction, congestion, and movement patterns
• Integration of behavioral data into generative design workflows
• Evaluation of spatial performance under dynamic and changing conditions

Course requirements: Intermediate Rhino knowledge is required.  No prior experience with environmental, ecological, or human interaction analysis needed. We will start with the fundamentals.

Software requirement: Rhino 8 for Windows. Rhino.Ecologic, Kova PedSim, and jifto will be provided to all participants.

Online course fees: EUR 395 (+VAT). Full-time students and university teachers receive a 50% discount (proof of status required). Please note that we will confirm your seat after your payment has cleared.

Maximum number of participants for each course: 25. If there is no quorum, the course will be canceled 15 days before.

Course language: English

Educational seats are limited. Sign up now by contacting Verena!

Casa Ecológica Campeche by Affonso Orciuoli + Marcelo Leal, arquitetos

"EcoHouse is a small house located on a plot very close to Campeche beach, on the island of Florianopolis, Brazil. It seeks to minimize the impact of construction, both in terms of interference with the landscape and the materials used. Except for the foundations (reinforced concrete), the entire house was built with autoclaved treated pine wood, and some walls were clad with plasterboard. The carpentry is aluminum, with mosquito screens, promoting cross-ventilation.

Another important aspect was building the smallest possible house to free up land for the garden. It has a living room with a home office space, dining room, and kitchen—all in one integrated area. This space opens onto a balcony and a deck that connects the house with the outside. The goal was to create a certain "confusion," where you don't know if you are inside or outside the house, or inside or outside the property. We believe in a continuous, integrated space. The bathroom is on the ground floor, and the bedroom, also without doors, is on the upper floor.

The timber frame construction process allowed for a lightweight yet high-quality build with excellent thermal and acoustic comfort. We used "rock wool" as insulation. When studying the best solution for rainwater, we noticed a tendency for people to cement the ground, which causes flooding because the soil cannot absorb the rain. Flooding is typical in Floripa on rainy days. So, we created a 40 cm layer with construction debris, which was practically free. When it rains, this "mattress" absorbs the rainwater, creating a natural drainage system that allows the earth to "dialogue" with the high-water table due to the proximity of the beach.

The house has a green roof and a large tropical garden on the ground. From above, what you see is a large green spot. Therefore, we do not interfere with the natural process of the rainwater cycle.

As a concept, the main idea is to minimize the boundary between being inside and outside. The house opens to the garden and the street, contrary to the trend of high walls with security systems. It aims to be as transparent as possible and to establish a dialogue with the neighborhood. This is the only way to build a city.

In terms of project development, we chose to use Rhino and VisualARQ. We were obsessed with having exhaustive control over all the materials used to generate the minimum amount of waste. In this sense, the material lists that VisualARQ generated were fundamental. VisualARQ also helped define the construction steps. We were able to complete the construction in 2 months with 3 people on-site.

EcoHouse aims to be an alternative for sustainable construction, rationalizing the materials used and the speed of execution. At the same time, it re-evaluates the amount of space a home needs. In its natural life cycle, it can be easily expanded, with the goal of reusing its materials."

Affonso Orciuoli + Marcelo Leal, arquitetos

Complete details (in Portuguese)...