Influential building scientist William Rose will deliver the keynote address at the Ninth Annual North American Passive House Conference in San Francisco on Sept. 12, according to the Passive House Institute U.S. (PHIUS).

Rose is a widely known researcher, teacher and consultant. He’s a senior research architect at the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and the author of Water in Buildings: An Architect’s Guide to Moisture and Mold. Rose chaired the committee that produced the ASHRAE Handbook chapters on building envelopes, and has been involved in a variety of other ASHRAE programs on energy efficiency and moisture control.

“Because he knows where building science has been, Bill Rose can provide a one-of-a-kind perspective on where passive building needs to go,” PHIUS Executive Director Katrin Klingenberg said in a news release. “We are honored that he’ll be joining us, and eager for his insights.”

Rose will speak at the conference’s opening plenary. The conference is taking place at the San Francisco Airport Waterfront Marriott Hotel Sept. 10-14. Registration for the conference is now open.

Other conference participants

Joseph Lstiburek, of Building Science Corp., will lead a day-long pre-conference session on building science fundamentals, PHIUS said, as he takes part in the conference for the third consecutive year.

Achilles Karagiozis, Global Director of Building Science at Owens Corning, will deliver the closing address, PHIUS said. Before joining Owens Corning, Karagiozis was a research and development engineer at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory where he headed research in how buildings are affected by heat, air and moisture.

PHIUS announced that the conference will include sessions on technology, policy, and business issues related to passive building, and will offer a tour of Bay-area Passivhaus projects on September 14.

The PHIUS announcement noted that other conference details will be nailed down within the next couple of weeks.