An Added Direction: Climate Resilience
In this weekly Q&A column, retired builder/building inspector Cam Allen answers readers’ home renovation questions. Have a question? Enter it in the form below.
A couple of weeks ago it was brought to my attention that the first anniversary of writing this column had just passed. A year ago when I decided to come out of a “ semi-retirement”, after a couple of years off from 20+ years of writing for Post Media on sustainable buildings and related subjects, I was pleased to find an organization like Green Building Canada who shared my passion for improving both homes and the environment. It has been an enjoyable year
and I have expressed my appreciation to the management of this
organization.
During my past years I watched how the green building initiative evolved and it was a path with some small curves and the odd advancement that shook the industry up when it needed it. Those of us in the industry have watched for years as the climate was affected by various human contributions, mostly air quality related.
Within the past few years this upset has advanced dramatically and this year, 2026, it seems our planet is reacting violently to the rising temperatures that we have created, as seen in Nepal, Europe and here in North America.
With the permission of the folks at Green Building Canada I am going to add another direction to this column, that being recommendations on how to prepare your home for pending climate crisis issues and how to react after a disaster has passed. I will also pick up on the changes coming to the national building codes in Canada. I am hearing rumours they are heading towards a more climate resilient assembly. In the United States a number of states are now regulating home resilience. Washington State for example is moving ahead with metal roof coverings and cement board siding as the required installations.
While I have and will always support sustainable housing and the green initiative, we must recognize that the majority of our homes as built today are not built to survive our climate as it is evolving. Climate-resilient homes can be built and major renovations assembled to similar values of security. Actor Tom Hanks took this initiative a few years ago and built a climate-resistant home on the California coast highway. When the massive Palisades wildfire went through in January 2025 his home stood proud, a testament to our ability to adapt.
On September 1, 2026, the UN released an extensive report on the state of the climate. In it they state “The UN has acknowledged that Earth has lost its chance to prevent some of the worst warming harms.” They now recommend trying to limit excessive warming.
I have watched this climate crisis coming for 40+ years and with my former construction business partner we decided to share our experience by co-writing a series of books on the housing crisis. They are based upon how fragile our homes are and why they are so dramatically affected.
Get the Green Building Project Checklist
Use this handy checklist on your next project to keep track of all the ways you can make your home more energy-efficient and sustainable.
Over the next few months I will be offering free, downloadable booklets with recommendations for homeowners on how to prepare for the climate reactions as we now see them. They will be available as links from my column here.
I will not discontinue offering recommendations and advice on sustainable home renovations, rather include the “how to” for climate resilience in your plans. I will also provide columns on current issues related to how the climate is affecting our residences long term. I hope you find this “curve” in the direction of this column helpful – I felt it was a necessary growth step.
Images from Depositphotos
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