Danielle Densley Tingley

Professor Danielle Densley Tingley is a Professor in Architectural Engineering within the Civil and Structural Engineering department of the University of Sheffield's School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering. Her research focuses on sustainable building design solutions to create a built environment operating within planetary carrying capacity through material efficiency and circular economy principles.

Danielle completed her undergraduate degree and PhD at the University of Sheffield, followed by postdoctoral research at both Sheffield and the University of Cambridge.

Her interdisciplinary research spans:

• Material efficiency and embodied carbon reduction in construction
• Design for deconstruction and material reuse (PhD focus)
• Urban resource flows as Director of the Urban Flows Observatory
• Environmental impacts of building retrofit and materials

Analysis of her 15 most recent publications reveals consistent focus on quantifying material stocks, circular economy metrics, and carbon implications in construction. Recent work (2024-2025) emphasizes spatial modeling of urban material stocks, structural adaptability's carbon cost, and steel reuse barriers, integrating life cycle assessment with urban metabolism.

Danielle leads the Sheffield Urban Flows Observatory (funded with Prof. Martin Mayfield) and the Multi-scale circular economic potential of non-residential building stock project. Previously, she directed material efficiency research for the UK INDEMAND Centre at Cambridge and contributed to Sheffield's BIG Energy Upgrade Project on external wall insulation. Though not currently seeking PhD students, she encourages inquiries in her research areas.

As Director of the Urban Flows Observatory, she studies city-scale energy/resource flows using sensor networks. She is a core member of the Resources, Infrastructure Systems and built Environments Discipline, collaborating across Materials Science, Geography, Architecture, and Urban Planning.