Challenges and Opportunities
Editorial Director of Green Architecture Notes , Principal of Feldman Architecture
Launching Thoughts & Happy Earth Day
As an architect who is often on the lookout for information about sustainable design strategies, materials and products, I have been frustrated at how hard it is to find people who have experience they are willing to share. It’s not that people are so protective of what they have learned, quite the contrary. When I have stumbled across somebody who has wrestled with the problem that I am seeking to solve, she is normally quite happy to share the lessons she has painfully learned. But finding these guiding lights takes a lot of work and considerable luck.
Green Architecture Notes sprung from a modest idea: that the explosion of online communities, discussion groups and blogs has placed at our feet some powerful new opportunities for exchange. We are seeking to create a place to post new discoveries when we find them and to ask for guidance of others when we are coming up empty. And because of all the new interest in the green building world, it’s also a place to verify, challenge and debate the claims of new products and strategies.
We have started by asking the architects, engineers, builders and consultants who we know to share key things they’ve learned about green design and to pose challenging questions. We invite others to jump in and join the discussion.
Green Architecture Notes comes, we think, at an appropriate, if difficult, time. As projects get scaled back, put on hold or outright cancelled, we are forced to cut expenses and find new sources of work. With these challenges come some unique opportunities.
We suddenly have more time to establish better ways of working, research products and materials, improve our workflow and project delivery strategies, and tighten or reinvent our detailing. We also can tap into the expertise other professionals who might previously have been too busy to help us work on these important areas. The excesses of recent times have caused many to question the wasteful and unsustainable ways of our construction industry and to replace them with more thoughtful and restrained efforts. It’s clear that the new economy is pushing sustainable design to the center of the profession architecture. Our hope is that Green Architecture Notes will facilitate better and more efficient green design by connecting professionals and helping practitioners avoid repeating costly mistakes.
Here are some images from recent and current Feldman Architecture projects showing green design components. I look forward to exploring these and other topics in the near future.
Approach to house
Living roof
Photovoltaic integrated solar skylights
Photovoltaic integrated solar skylights
Rammed earth walls and concrete floor provide thermal mass for passive heating and cooling
Rammed earth site wall
Thin film solar mounted on metal roof
House on site
practices architecture out of a small, award-winning, design studio in San Francisco where he focuses on residential and modest-scale commercial projects. Recognized for creating warm, light-filled spaces that are site sensitive and carefully detailed, Feldman Architecture is committed to incorporating sustainable technologies and minimizing environmental impact.
Feldman Architecture projects have been recognized with a number of prominent green design awards, including the San Francisco American Institute of Architect’s Honor Award for Energy and Sustainability, the Green Roofs for Healthy Cities’ award of excellence, California Home + Design’s Eco-Friendly Design Award, and have been featured on green and solar home tours. Feldman Architecture currently has its first two projects with the USGBC LEED for Homes program and both are on their way to platinum certifications, it’s highest rating. More about Feldman Architecture can be found here.
look forward to hearing more
Thanks for putting this out. We all could benefit from sharing this sort of knowledge. This could be a great forum and I hope it takes off!
Nice picts!
It’s great to see an innovative use of rammed earth.
I really liked this post. Can I copy it to my site? Thank you in advance.
Hi Kris,
We’d love to see your site too, please post a link. And it is OK to copy this story – or better yet post a link to it!
cheers,
Bridgett
Nice work Joanthan. Doyou have a name for a green roof consultant. I’m doing a residential project in Palo Alto and we are exploring this option.
Thanks,
Ana
Ana,
There are two good conultants i’ve worked w/. You’d be in good hands w/ either.
Best,
Jonathan
JEFF CONDIT LEED AP
Rana Creek
http://www.ranacreek.com
Lauren Schneider
Wonderland Garden and Landscape
Hey there, interesting Interent site; I would like to visit more often.
Good stuff. I like these posts. Thanks for puttin them together.
Wonderful to read!
Looking forward to another post from you showing more of your work.
Would you share more pics of that rammed earth house?
As energy prices sky rocket the prices of solar panels will only go up. This will hopefully prove that solar panels will be a great investment for anyone wanting to save some money or help the environment. Either way, solar panels really should be at the top of the “to do” list. Someone has recommended Solar Panels so I am really looking forward to getting them.
I have to respctfully dissagree that solar panels should be at the top of anybodies list. As wonderfull and important as they are making smaller and more energy efficient buildings that are better insolated and less energy hogs should be emphasized above these other expensive high-tech solutions.
I have to agree with Ben. While I am a big fan pf pv panels, your I think your first $’s should be spent on insulating the building’s envelope, reducing wasted space and properly orienting building and windows. Then, by all means, get out the panels!