A study of thermal comfort and thermal preferences in the upland tropical climate of Uganda, Proceedings of 9th Windsor Conference: Making Comfort Relevant, Cumberland Lodge

Abstract

Upland tropical climates, are often regarded as ‘benign’, but are of increasing concern, particularly with regard to thermal comfort in the context of climate change induced thermal comfort of university students in the central region of Uganda. The study was undertaken in two parts: the initial phase (reported in this paper), looking at thermal comfort in student’s accommodation, and the second in teaching spaces, both carried out during the dry (hot) season. temperature rises. Further, in light of increased economic prosperity and associated lifestyle changes, that suggest a trend toward the use of mechanical ventilation and air-conditioning equipment, Thermal comfort parameters collected include: Temperature, and Relative Humidity, as well as personal adaptations such as clo and Met. Questionnaires were used to garner student’s perceptions and acceptability of their thermal environment and other subjective measures. The how people perceive, respond and adapt to climatic conditions emerges as an area of interest in these regions. This paper reports the findings of an ongoing study investigating findings of this study indicate a neutral temperature of 26.8°C derived using the Griffiths method. The wide range of comfort votes suggest varied preferences and adaptations for this upland tropical climate and the complexities related to thermal comfort in naturally ventilated building