Piper is a LEED accredited designer in San Francisco with architectural experience ranging from project manager at C. David Robinson Architects to design consultant at Origo, Inc., developing the Best House Ever business model. Trained in Architecture at the environmentally-conscious University of Oregon, she admits to an obsession with materials and resources and thrives on finding new means and methods of sustainable design. She is co-chair of the NCC Emerging Green Builders committee of the USGBC and teaches a class in Sustainable Project Development at the UC Berkeley Extension. She enjoys knitting, running marathons, and the occasional design competition, winning first prize in the Green Dollhouse Competition. She also loves trekking through virgin rainforests in Oregon, Thailand, Malaysia, and Brazil, where she recently fell in love with Ipe trees.
Can you tell me if there is any bamboo being grown for production in the United States? In my area I see it grow in the yards of people’s homes, so it must be able to adapt to the California climate.
I Have also heard about the benefits of Ipe wood for deccking, but am weary to call it out in my designs because it requires a good amount of upkeep to maintain, and must be shipped from Brazil. Any thoughts? are there any other wood alternatives to redwood, other than Ipe that is grown here in the United States?