Learn how to build sustainably, with topics ranging from deep dive comparisons of natural building techniques to insighftful reports on green infrastructure to improving a building’s indoor environmental quality.
People are constantly changing, yet the homes that they live in, once constructed, are inflexible to their changing needs. Open Building (OB) represents an alternative approach to building that accounts for the changing needs of homeowners and communities through its […]
Screen reader version: Recycling by the Numbers 13,000 feet of framing lumber the average newly constructed home requires – that’s enough lumber to line 2.5 miles of road if laid end-to-end. 85 million tons of material recycled in the U.S.
In this age of energy-efficiency another method of building the top of a building is taking root: green roofs. On such “upland” terrain one can grow foods from strawberries to cornstalks, enjoy the view, even have fountains and topiary—whatever one’s
Green building is smart building. Aside from their obvious benefit to the environment, green buildings deliver financial savings, are more comfortable, healthier, return higher productivity rates and have higher resale values. See this infographic for a quick look at why
Once you’ve analyzed the weather and the landscape around a building, your next line of defense towards making its indoor spaces economically comfortable every hour of the year is insulating its lowest floor, outer walls, and roof: what is known
As the Asia representative for the UNESCO Earthen Architecture program, the Auroville Earth Institute in South India is a great source for people wanting to learn earthen construction. In addition to building, they conduct research and development, operate training programs
The New Ecological Home: A Complete Guide to Green Building Options Dan Chiras [Chelsea Green Publishing, 336 pages] THE QUANTITY OF BOOKS ON GREEN and sustainable home design grows by the day. Many of them cover similar material in similar
“I believe in the 3/4-baked philosophy. People chase perfection—trying to ‘fully bake’ their ideas before they share them with the world. Too many people end up never sharing their ideas, songs, dreams, novels, and inventions. The 3/4-baked philosophy is about
Corbett Lunsford has performed hundreds of comprehensive home performance assessments as technical director of Green Dream Group and has also written Home Performance Diagnostics: the Guide to Advanced Testing. In this Q&A he answers some common questions about home performance
Earth. The abundant resource is locally accessible almost everywhere on Earth. The ease of transportation alone makes it a fine green building material, but its benefits are much more than just that. It’s non-toxic, has a high thermal mass, low
