Who we are02 / 06 — TerraViva Homes

Built on research.
Driven by care.

TerraViva Homes bridges the gap between climate science and the everyday decisions that shape a safe, comfortable home.

Our purpose

A home is more than a building. It is a place where health, comfort, energy costs and climate risk meet.

Extreme heat doesn't affect every home equally. Urban form, tree cover, building materials, ventilation and household resources all matter. Yet the information needed to make informed choices is often technical, fragmented or expensive to access.

TerraViva Homes is an independent advisory initiative in development, created to bring evidence-based knowledge closer to households who need it. Our focus is free, science-informed guidance—not product sales, construction services, or retrofit funding.

Meet the Founder
Debanjali Banerjee, founder of TerraViva Homes

Founder & Research Lead

Debanjali
Banerjee.

Architectural researcher · Educator · Climate resilience advocate

Debanjali Banerjee is an architectural researcher and educator whose work bridges architecture, urban climate science, building performance, and data-driven environmental analysis. She investigates how urban development, neighborhood microclimates, and building characteristics influence thermal comfort, energy demand, and unequal exposure to extreme heat, particularly for vulnerable communities.

She is completing her Ph.D. in Architecture at the University of Cincinnati and holds a Master of Architecture from the Savannah College of Art and Design, a Bachelor of Architecture, and a Graduate Certificate in Data Science. Her research integrates environmental monitoring, remote sensing, geospatial analysis, machine learning, and physics-based building simulation to develop context-sensitive approaches to climate adaptation.

Alongside her research, Debanjali has taught architecture and interior design at the University of Cincinnati, Carleton University, and Algonquin College. Her teaching spans architectural design studios, building science, sustainable design, materials, and applied research. She emphasizes connecting scientific knowledge to practical design decisions and communicating complex environmental ideas clearly.

Her professional background spans architectural practice, higher education, and sustainable building design across the United States, Canada, and India. She has presented her work at universities and academic conferences across North America and has been invited to deliver a keynote address at an international engineering conference.

Her scholarly contributions include a publication in Enquiry: The ARCC Journal for Architectural Research and a co-authored international research study for Nature Cities. She also contributes to urban climate research through the International Association for Urban Climate (IAUC) Bibliography Committee.

TerraViva Homes grew from her conviction that access to climate-resilient housing knowledge should not depend on household income. The initiative bridges the gap between scientific advances and practical housing decisions by offering free, understandable, evidence-based guidance to homeowners and renters facing rising energy costs, uncomfortable indoor conditions, and climate-related risks.

Ph.D. Candidate in Architecture — University of CincinnatiMaster of Architecture — Savannah College of Art and DesignGraduate Certificate in Data Science — University of CincinnatiResearch focus — Urban heat · Microclimate · Building performance
Our commitment

Science should be accessible.
Climate resilience should be equitable.

We prioritize research-informed explanations, transparent limitations, and recommendations that recognize each household's circumstances.

Our principles

The values behind
the advice.

01

Context over assumptions

What works in one place may fail in another. We start with the home and its local conditions.

02

Evidence over products

We do not sell retrofit products or have a commercial interest in recommending specific brands.

03

Clarity over jargon

We explain what the evidence suggests, what it cannot tell us, and which decisions require a qualified professional.