Wind Engineering and Building Aerodynamics have developed in the past three decades as a modern interdisciplinary engineering science with aspects of meteorology, fluid mechanics and structural engineering. The COST Action C14 brings together the main European researchers and research Institutions working on these subjects. Its main objectives are:

• To evaluate and quantify wind effects in dense urban areas with an European wind climate, in terms of wind effects on people, buildings, other structures, and urban built environment.
• To improve the design tools available to engineers and urban planners to allow for such effects with a view to improving the quality of the urban environment and mitigating windstorm impacts and reducing wind induced failure.

16 European countries (and Canada) have joined the action; about 100 researchers have been involved in the different working groups. Details on the Action can be found on the following web site: http://www.costc14.bham.ac.uk/. COST action C14 has started in Sept. 2000 and will finish in May 2004 with this final International Conference.

Conference Themes

The Conference themes are those of COST Action C14:

• Urban wind climate, involving the development and understanding of how wind speeds and turbulence characteristics vary with different urban forms.
• Effects of wind on people, particularly in terms of the pedestrian wind environment, building ventilation and serviceability, and effects on transport.
• Transport of gases and particles in the urban atmosphere, i.e. the transport of gaseous and particulate pollutants, the mechanics of wind driven rain, and the drifting of snow between buildings.
• Wind effects on buildings and structures within urban areas, including fundamental problems related to building behaviour in high winds.