M.TBVU Faculty & Advisory Panel

The Masters of Tall Buildings and Vertical Urbanism (M.TBVU) program is led by faculty and advisory panel members who are prominent and distinguished experts in the industry. These individuals are committed to help develop a new generation of expertise in a subject they are immensely knowledgeable and passionate about.

Program Director

Antony Wood, Director, M.TBVU, IIT; President, CTBUH

Dr. Antony Wood is President of the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH), responsible for leading the Council’s thought leadership, research, and academic initiatives. Prior to this, he was CTBUH chief executive officer (CEO) from 2006-2022. During his sixteen-year tenure as CEO, CTBUH significantly increased its outputs and initiatives across all areas globally.

Wood is also a professor in practice and director of the Masters in Tall Buildings and Vertical Urbanism program in the College of Architecture at the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT), Chicago; and a visiting professor of tall buildings at Tongji University, Shanghai. A UK architect by training, his field of specialization is the design, and in particular the sustainable design, of tall buildings. Prior to joining the Council and IIT, Wood was an associate professor in architecture at the University of Nottingham in the UK from 2001–2006, where he ran the third- and fifth-year programs, respectively, and was an active member of various research teams. While at the University of Nottingham, he founded the Tall Buildings Teaching and Research Group.

Prior to becoming an academic, Wood worked as an architect in practice in Hong Kong, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, and the UK, between 1991-2001. It was during this time that he developed his passion for, and professional background in, tall buildings. Projects he has been involved with in these countries include the $165 million, 11-tower mixed office/residential project SV City, Bangkok (1995); the $96 million four-tower, 44-story Kuningan Persada condominium project, Jakarta (1997); and the prestigious $275 million Kuala Lumpur Central International Railway Terminal, Malaysia (completed 2001).

Wood’s PhD dissertation explored the multi-disciplinary aspects of skybridge connections between tall buildings. He is associate editor of the CTBUH Journal and serves on the editorial board of several other journals. He is the author of numerous books and papers in the fields of tall buildings, sustainability, and related fields. Wood has been conference chair and chair of the scientific committee at all CTBUH conferences since 2006. He has also presented at numerous conferences, and lectures regularly around the world.

Wood is chair of the CTBUH Tall Buildings Sustainability Committee, chair of the Expert Peer Review Committee, a member of the CTBUH Height Committee, and a standing member of the CTBUH Awards Jury. He has been principal investigator for numerous funded research projects. He currently resides in Oak Park, Illinois, with his wife and two children.

Advisory and Teaching panel

The high-profile, multidisciplinary M.TBVU Advisory and Teaching Panel meets once per year to review outputs and the direction of the course. In addition, each member—who is appointed for a three-year term initially—is committed to a significant involvement in the course during their appointment. That involvement might embrace tutorials and studio reviews; presentations to the group; hosting office visits; and other initiatives.

His Excellency, Mohamed Ali Alabbar
Founder and Chairman, Emaar Properties, Dubai