When architect Ed Mazria announced that buildings account for nearly 50% of man-made greenhouse gas emissions, the building industry was taken aback. After a long career in passive solar architecture, he has taken on the goal of steeply reducing the carbon footprint of architecture – most notably with his 2030 Challenge, which aims to eliminate the use of fossil fuels in new construction, and to cut the use of fossil fuels in existing buildings by 50% by 2030. To help hit those targets, Mazria is launching a new initiative called the 2030 Palette—a robust, visually oriented online design tool which strives to help produce low-impact, people friendly projects. We recently visited Mazria’s offices in Santa Fe, where we spoke to the architect in-depth about his work and how sustainable development can save us from the worst climate change has to offer.

Read the rest of INTERVIEW: Ed Mazria, Founder of Architecture 2030 Introduces the 2030 Palette

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Post tags: 2030 Palette, Architecture 2030, carbon neutral architecture, Ed Mazria, global warming, green architecture, green construction, Sustainable Building

The term ‘building science’ is used quite often now in sustainable building circles, but much of what we understand of it can be traced back to the work of Dr. Joe Lstiburek, founder of Building Science Corporation. He is anything but your typical engineer or scientist who spends time crunching numbers or hiding away in a lab. Lstiburek has spent most of his career out in the field, testing and examining what works and what doesn’t. Many of the building standards today — from building codes to ASHRE to testing methodology — have his finger prints all over them, and his tough love criticism of building design is undercut with his wry humor and, of course, an encyclopedic knowledge of building construction. Read on to learn where buildings go wrong and what we can do about it.

Read the rest of INTERVIEW: Building Science Pioneer Dr. Joe Lstiburek on the Good, Bad and Ugly Side of Buildings

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Post tags: "leed", ASHRE, Building failures, Building Science, Green Building, green building expert, Joe Lstiburek, problems with LEED, Sustainable Building

The term “upcycle” – used to describe the process of turning something old and used into a new and useful item – has rapidly grown in popularity over recent years. The term was popularized by Cradle to Cradle pioneers Michael Braungart and William McDonough, and in their new book The Upcycle: Beyond Sustainability — Designing for Abundance they take the concept beyond the simple reuse of materials and propose a world in which everything we do improves the environment. The much-anticipated follow-up to their breakthrough book Cradle to Cradle, The Upcycle will hit the shelves on April 16th, and we got a chance to check the book out ahead of its release – read on for a first look!

Read the rest of BOOK REVIEW: William McDonough and Michael Braungart expand on Cradle to Cradle With The Upcycle

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Post tags: book review, cradle-to-cradle, green design, mcdonough, upcycle, upcycling

Bob Vila’s name has been synonymous with home improvement since he helped launch This Old House in 1979. After nearly thirty years of producing and hosting television shows about the world of home design and improvement, he now showcases many of his ideas on his popular website, BobVila.com – a destination also packed with how-to articles and archived episodes. A pioneer of the adaptive reuse movement, Vila helped bring “green” thought to the forefront, and in more recent years he has focused much of his efforts on investigating sustainable building and design. Read on for our conversation with one of the most recognized voices in remodeling as he discusses green building, retrofitting, materials and energy, and how we need to recognize science and the role of government when we talk about policy.

Read the rest of INTERVIEW: Home Improvement Legend Bob Vila Talks to Us About Green Building

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Post tags: Allan Slope, Bob Vila conversation, Bob Vila Green, Bob Vila green building, Bob vila interview, Boston renovation, Cash for Caulkers, eco retrofit, existing building design, Green Building, green renovation, green retrofit, healthy materials, Hometime, micro wind power, solar design, solar thermal aesthetics, This Old House, Victorian restoration

EVolo Magazine has made a name for itself with its annual skyscraper competition, which started in 2006. Since then there have been over 4,000 submissions arriving from across the planet, seemingly covering just about every imaginable design parameter when it comes to vertical construction. Their newly released book, EVOLO SKYSCRAPERS, is a selection of 300 of the best projects spanning six chapters and a hefty 1,223 pages. If you’re an aficionado of futurism in building design, then this is the decisive book on one of the largest scale human interfaces with the environment — the skyscraper.

Read the rest of BOOK REVIEW: EVolo Skyscrapers – A Reference Manual on the Future of Architecture?

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Post tags: "eVolo", eco building design, eco skyscraper, eco skyscrapers, evolo magazine, future building design, futurism, green building design, green buildings, ground breaking building design, mega skyscraper, skyscraper book, vertical farm

We had an opportunity to sit down with green building consultant Carl Seville, also known as the Green Building Curmudgeon for his no-nonsense look at green building and remodeling. Carl just published the textbook GREEN BUILDING: Principles and Practices in Residential Construction and is working on the new LEED for Homes Guide. We jump into the the quickly evolving world of green home construction and fly over the many local and national green building programs he has worked with. Fresh from speaking at the RaterFest Conference in the Colorado Rockies, he gives us a sometimes surprisingly optimistic look at better home construction.

Read the rest of INTERVIEW: Inhabitat Talks with Carl Seville, the Green Building Curmudgeon

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Post tags: Carl Seville, Earthcraft, eco housing, Energy Star 3, Green Building, green building book, Green Building Principles and Practices, Green Curmudgeon, green home rating, green multi-family, green retrofit, HERS score, home building, leed for homes, NAHB

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Post tags: book review, contemporary small house design, eco house, green home, micro house, mini house, nano house, portable house, small house book, small house design, smallest home, smallest house, top small homes

A project 30 years in the making, this tiny off-grid retreat on a coastal island in Maine is almost entirely self-sufficient. Designed and built by Alex Porter for her father, the project features a shed roof and is wrapped in a distinctive blue-grey corrugated skin. Dwell recently profiled the home, which is the only solar-powered retreat on the isolated island – its sustainable power source actually makes life a lot more leisurely, as the family does not need to schlep in fuel to run a noisy generator. They didn’t give anything up, as they have all the conveniences of a regular home — but with a view you don’t get in an everyday residence.

Read the rest of Tiny Off-Grid Cabin in Maine is Completely Self-Sustaining

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Post tags: green building maine, maine retreat cabin, off grid retreat, off-grid, rain catchment, Solar Power, sun mar, sunfrost

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Post tags: Bill McDonough, bill mcdonough interview, c2c, Construction Specialist, cradle-to-cradle, green architecture, Green Building, green design, green interview, green products, green wash, GreenBuild, Herman Miller, Howard Williams, intelligent materials pooling, Material science, materials recycling, MBDC, McDonough interview, Michael Braungart, product chemistry, PVC, reverse logistics, sustainable design, technical nutrient, upcycle, upcycling, use periods, william mcdonough interview, William McDonough Partners

A new film project is underway that will explore the power of thinking locally and how design can impact the world. Aptly named LOCAL: Make the Switch, the project will consist of 25 short films and an ambitious social media site that seeks to turn our media consumption into positive action. To help get the films in the can they are looking to Kickstarter for some love. With inspiring stories on rooftop gardens, eco hub communities, and the Living Building Challenge, LOCAL will provide the key insights about how we can make new urbanism a reality.

Read the rest of ‘LOCAL: Make The Switch’ Environmental Design Film Series Launches on Kickstarter

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Post tags: community gardens, green design, Green Film, green movie, green project Kickstarter, high line, kickstarter, Living Building Challenge, Local film, localisation

Read the rest of The Best Sustainable Building Products from Greenbuild 2012 in San Francisco

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Post tags: green innovation, green interiors, green products, GreenBuild, greenbuild 2012, greenbuild international conference and expo, Recycled Materials, San Francisco, sustainable innvoation, U.S. Green Building Council, usgbc

HINT.FM‘s real-time map of wind speeds in the US is a useful tool to help us better understand the wind’s power and potential. The kinetic map was developed by Fernanda Viégas and Martin Wattenberg, who are exploring ways that data set in graphical form can help us think better collectively. The above image shows the powerful gusts that encircled the east coast as Hurricane Sandy made landfall last night.

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Post tags: graphic visualization of wind, HINT.FM, real time wind map, wind map, wind power map

This year’s record breaking summer high temperatures and general worrisome warming trend don’t necessarily mean that the coming winter will be a walk in the park. Before the cold weather strikes, get your home buttoned up and ready for it with our expert hands-on game plan, which will not only make your home more comfortable and energy efficient, but save you some money while you’re at it. From big changes that will knock hundreds of dollars off your energy bill to smaller ones that need just a bit of elbow grease and a few materials from your local hardware store, we’ll show you what you need to get the job done! So no matter if you rent or own your house, check out these 7 handy tips that we promise will make a real difference in keeping you warm and your energy bill manageable this winter.

Read the rest of 7 Winter Home Improvement Tips to Save You Money and Energy In the Cold Season

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Post tags: "energy star", air sealing, diy home improvements, eco friendly ways to warm your house, eco friendly winter, eco options, energy audit, energy saving products, go green in your home, green home tips, green homes, green ways to warm your house, home depot, home depot environmentally friendly products, how to deal with a cold house, how to prepare your home for cold weather, how to prepare your home for the winter, How to weatherize, prepare you home for winter, products that help you save energy, products to save energy, save energy in your home, save money, save money in your home, tips for a cold apartment, why is my house so cold, winterize your apartment, winterize your home, winterize your house

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Post tags: "energy efficiency", air sealing, ERV, green insulation, HRV, passive house, Passive House 7th Annual PHIUS Conference, triple pane windows

Read the rest of Beautiful Spanish Retreat is a Shipping Container-Capped Rooftop Casa

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Post tags: 'Container House, container addition, eco B and B, eco house, eco rental, Green B&B, rooftop shipping container, shipping container architecture, spanish green building

When you combine Passivhaus with prefab you get one of the greenest buildings possible. Designers Vanda Holescakova of Architectonica and Katarina Husarova Volekova of DSU have conceived the Nest Box, a super-insulated prefab home that can be placed just about anywhere with minimal disturbance of the land. The plans come in several variations, ranging from a tiny apartment to larger combined units for growing families. And best of all, the occupants live in a healthy, low-impact environment requiring practically no energy to stay cozy over a long winter.

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Post tags: DSU, Green Building, modern passive house, passive house, passivhaus, Prefab, prefab passive house, Slovakia passivhaus

IKEA, the massive Swedish furniture retailer that brought scandinavian design to the masses, is now going to bring LED lighting to the world in a big way. The company just announced that it will sell only LED bulbs by the year 2016, and it’s given LED bulbs away to all of its 130,000 employees worldwide. The reason is simple – LEDs outlast incandescent bulbs twenty fold, and they produce the same quality of light while consuming nearly 90% less energy. IKEA was also the first US retailer to stop selling incandescent bulbs back in 2011.

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Post tags: Ikea LED, LED, LED conversion, LED design, LED lamps, low cost LED

A simple square of glass may hold the key to the vexing problem of storing data indefinitely. Developed by Hitachi, the technology prints a binary series of dots upon a sliver of quartz glass which can then be easily read with a common microscope. It sounds simple enough, and that is exactly the point – the data can be easily accessed no matter what the future technologies of the digital age bring. Even better, the data is safe from fire, chemicals, and water – almost anything, except perhaps a hammer.

Read the rest of Hitachi Invents Waterproof Glass ‘Disk’ That Can Store Data Forever

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Post tags: archival data technology, Data storage forever, glass data, Hitachi data, Hitachi glass data, long term data storage

Read the rest of Jones Studios’ Sculptural Lacey Residence is a Rammed Earth Home in the Arizona Desert

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Post tags: Arizona green home, contemporary earth home, earthen walls, Green Building, low impact desert home, rammed earth

Read the rest of Oxygen Villa Brings Fresh Air into Classic Arabic Architecture

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Post tags: Arabic contemporary housing, daylightng, Home studio desings, lattices, mashrabiya, natural cooling, shutters, Solar Power, Thermal storage