What is "Sustainable Architecture?" 

Our definition of "sustainable architecture," which we developed and believe to be the best one we have seen to date, is: "Environmentally-friendly houses and commercial buildings, that are designed and built using sustainable building technologies, sustainable building materials, and sustainable energy systems, that don't burden future generations with environmental and financial debts."

Our definition needs to also include some historical viewpoints and data to better understand the need for sustainable architecture and sustainability. 

The following information will provide more information and hopefully provide a fundamental understanding as to why there is an urgent need for our country to change the way we build our homes and commercial buildings.  And, these discussions below will provide greater depths and understanding of what is sustainable architecture, and why all new homes and commercial buildings need to be built according to nationally-accepted standards of sustainable architecture. 

Why we need an Immediate Paradigm-shift to Sustainable Architecture for Building our New Homes and Commercial Buildings 

The idea of sustainable architecture is not new. Just take a look at the countless numbers of homes and buildings that were built 200, 300 and even 500 years ago throughout much of Europe.  They were built to last.  They're cool in the summer and warm in the winter, without consuming massive amounts of electricity and energy made from limited natural resources such as natural gas, coal, oil and other crude oil products that also make us dependent on unstable crude oil producers such as OPEC, that do NOT care about America's best interests.  

As defined by architect Robert Berkebile, "Sustainable Architecture" is a design that improves the quality of life today, without diminishing it for the next generation.” (Berkebile 1993, p.109)  But sustainable architecture is seldom, if ever used when we build our new houses and commercial buildings. 

The non-sustainable "cheap" homes and buildings that we now build, have significant and very costly repercussions in terms of the home or commercial building's life-cycle costs, which places further demands on our nation's limited natural resources.  Our nation's demand for cheap, non-sustainable architecture, instead of utilizing sustainable architecture -  is both the fault and responsibility of the architect and his/her customer. 

The responsibility to inform the customer about sustainable architecture rests solely with architects.  However, like most professional firms, architectural firms many times, simply design their next home or commercial building the way they did the last one, maybe with the door placed on the left side instead of the right, or the garage in the back instead of the front.  Most architectural firms do not have the resources or the incentives to design sustainable (green) buildings, or have the time to investigate and learn new ideas about sustainable architecture. 

Even if sustainable architects present the features and benefits of sustainable architecture, ideas and designs to their clients, the client is the one that has the final decision. The client may not want to pay, or "invest" in any additional costs it may take to design and build his/her new home or commercial building.  However, we have determined, most of the time, that architects do not fully understand or inform their customers about the life-cycle dividends and return on investment that the sustainable architecture design will return to all of the present and future home/building owners.  

The Cost of NON-Sustainable Architecture to Our Nation

NON-sustainable architecture, like our country's national debt, has provided our country with cheap, non-sustainable homes and commercial buildings that threaten our nation's safety, security, health and finances.  Our non-sustainable homes and commercial buildings use inordinate amounts of our limited natural resources and like our national debt, we are threatening our children's futures by living beyond our means. Our national debt that we are leaving our children to pay back has mortgaged our children's financial futures - wherein we who incurred this debt, have been living beyond our means.  There will  be a day that there will be a demand for payment of this debt, and this will come from those who hold our national debt - many of these being foreigners.  

The construction and operation of our country's homes and commercial buildings consume the majority of the world's natural resources and energy, and contribute the bulk of landfill waste. Non-sustainable buildings (built in the standard, non-sustainable architectural and engineering methods) of the world presently consume about: 

• 40% of the world's energy and materials 
• 25% of the wood and timber 
• 20% of our water

In the U.S., homes and commercial buildings account for about: 

• 40% of the total electricity consumption 
• 65% of electricity use 
• 30% of greenhouse gas emissions 
• 37% of ozone depletion potential

According to the National American Homebuilder's Association, a typical, (non-sustainable) "stick-built" or wood-frame home was 2,085 square feet and required more than one acre of trees/forest! And the waste created during the construction of this typical home averages between 3 tons to 7 tons, for EVERY new house built! 

In addition, this typical, non-sustainable home used the following resources:

• 13,127 board feet of lumber 
• 6,212 square feet of sheathing 
• 2,085 square feet of flooring
• 14 tons of concrete
• 2,325 square feet of exterior siding 
• 3,100 square feet of roofing material
• 3,061 square feet of insulation
• 6,144 square feet of interior wall material 
• 120 linear feet of ducting
• 15 windows
• 13 kitchen cabinets and 2 other cabinets
• 1 kitchen sink
• 12 interior doors, 7 closet doors, 2 exterior doors, 1 patio door, 2 garage doors
• 1 fireplace 
• 3 toilets
• 2 bathtubs; 1 shower stall
• 3 bathroom sinks
• 68 gallons of paint and coatings

Sadly, the majority of new real estate developments (subdivisions) in United States are built on   “greenfield” sites/land.  Greenfields is land that was not previously built on. New subdivisions built on greenfields threaten our farmlands, fragment the landscape, reduce wildlife and fish habitat, and significantly alter the new subdivision's hydrology as well as any underground aquifers.  In the interim period, as new subdivisions are built further and further from developed downtown areas, the passenger miles driven (to work, shopping, etc.) significantly increases, further increasing our reliance on foreign energy supplies, not to mention the increased pollution from a car's internal combustion engine, increase need for more cars to be built, etc.  By overlooking, and neglecting "prime" real estate, typically situated in developed, downtown areas, developers of subdivisions on greenfield sites are overlooking existing sites that may have been abandoned or degraded within the city – where this land and real estate is the most suitable for new development.

What are "Green Buildings?"

“Green buildings," like our Net Zero Energy Buildings and our Net Zero Energy Houses are an environmentally-friendly way of designing, constructing, and operating homes and buildings that increases a building's performance, minimize environmental impact on our natural resources, and maximize the experience for people who work, live and play in these homes and commercial buildings.

Green buildings and homes:

     *  Reduces energy consumption from the electric grid and natural gas utilities
     *  Saves energy (like our Net Zero Energy Buildings our Net Zero Energy Houses
         that actually produce more green power and energy than they consume)
     *  Minimize environmental-impact, less dependence on natural resources
     *  Minimize waste 
     *  Reduces building materials - incorporates low-impact materials
     *  Protects the site 
     *  Saves water
     *  Are healthier 
     *  Recycles existing building materials
 
The term green building is often used interchangeably with sustainable, high performance,  healthy buildings.

Eco-housing, green development, sustainable design -- environmentally sound housing has as many names as it has definitions, but the Rocky Mountain Institute, in its "Primer on Sustainable Building", flexibly describes this new kind of architecture as "taking less from the Earth and giving more to people." In practice, "green" housing varies widely. It can range from being energy efficient and using nontoxic interior finishes to being constructed of recycled materials and completely powered by the sun. 

Green building practices offer an opportunity to create environmentally sound and resource-efficient buildings by using an integrated approach to design. Green buildings promote resource conservation, including energy efficiency, renewable energy, and water conservation features; consider environmental impacts and waste minimization; create a healthy and comfortable environment; reduce operation and maintenance costs; and address issues such as historical preservation, access to public transportation and other community infrastructure systems. The entire life cycle of the building and its components is considered, as well as the economic and environmental impact and performance.