Rate My Professor Roberto Minunno

Dr. Roberto Minunno serves as Senior Lecturer at the Curtin University Sustainability Policy (CUSP) Institute and in the School of Design and the Built Environment, Faculty of Humanities, Curtin University. With a PhD in Environmental Sustainability from Curtin University and an MEng in Structural Engineering from the University of Cagliari, Minunno has dedicated his career to advancing circular economy principles and sustainable practices in the built environment. His doctoral research focused on the circular economy of prefabricated buildings, leading to the ideation of the Legacy Living Lab—a modular, disassemblable structure in Fremantle that facilitates research on building materials, components, and operations while fostering industry collaborations. Since joining Curtin in 2014 as an Associate Research Fellow, he has advanced through roles including Postdoctoral Research Fellow and now Course Coordinator for the Master of Environment and Climate Emergency. Additional experience includes a Visiting Research Fellow position at Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden on sustainable buildings and Industry PhD Program Coordinator for RACE for 2030 CRC.

Minunno's research interests encompass quantification and implementation of circular economy strategies in construction, embodied carbon and life cycle assessments, supply chain traceability, circularity metrics, industrial symbiosis, and policy integration for net-zero goals. He has supervised over 40 dissertations on climate, waste, and circular economy topics and teaches units such as Sustainability Challenge and dissertation courses. His prolific publications include 'Strategies for Applying the Circular Economy to Prefabricated Buildings' (2018), which earned the Best Paper Award from Buildings Journal; 'Exploring environmental benefits of reuse and recycle practices: A circular economy case study of a modular building' (2020); 'Interconnections: An analysis of disassemblable building connection systems towards a circular economy' (2021); and recent works like 'Solar photovoltaics value chain and end-of-life management practices: A systematic literature review' (2024) and 'Developing Traceability Systems for Effective Circular Economy of Plastic' (2024). Minunno has garnered significant recognition, including Humanities Early Career Researcher of the Year and Excellence in Teaching Award (2022), Pro Vice-Chancellor Award for Industry Partnership & Engagement (2023), Faculty of Humanities Research Supervisor Award (2024), and Global Impact Award (2024). As Handling Editor for the Journal of Circular Economy, he contributes to editorial leadership and influences sustainable policy and curriculum development.