Nader Khalili Creates Homes from Natural Elements

Nader Khalili is looking to tradition for clues on how to produce ecologically friendly buildings. He is following what many peoples of pre-industrial age used, materials that were readily available, local, and free.
"To me it's obvious to use earth as a building block," says Khalili in an interview with AFP, "I don't consider that I have invented anything at all. All the Mediterranean civilizations used earth or natural materials in their architecture."
Nader Khalili came to th US in 1971, bringing with him ideas about architecture from his homeland of Iran. Traditionally in the Middle East, primitive houses were not only made of the abundant materials of the earth, but they were shaped differently. They used a shape from nature- the sphere. Like an egg that is strong when pressure is applied in equal amounts over its surface, the simple properties of physics in a dome shaped structure increase its strength. In our modern day of steel and braces, timber in mass production we began making our homes like cookie cutter productions. Khalili has shown us that domes lack the inherent flaws of cubes, making them resistant to wind, rains, and even earthquakes.
Its a simple concept, to fill bags with earth, stack them, and cover them with clay. The dome is fired, and the finishing touches put in. Khalili teaches these principles at CalEarth Institute in California. His students are able to build a beautiful home built for less than $4,000, safe to live in and good for the environment. They use natural light, passive heating and cooling, and are easy to build.
I learned about Khalil a few years ago and bought his book to check out how he does it. Ceramic Houses and Earth Architecture turned out to be a wonderfully comprehensive manual on how to build an earth dome, so detailed he even included instructions on how to make clay temperature gages for the firing process.
Khalil's latest project is to build domes on the moon for NASA.

for the original article in Yahoo News

NASA Predicts the Climate

The IPCC notched up the urgence months ago when they released their climate change report that predicted sharp increases in temperatures across the United States. This recent report on NASA's findings blew me away.
According to CBC, NASA climate models predict we can expect average summer temperatures in the eastern United States to rise by as much as 20 degrees Farhenheit by the year 2080. Their models take into account urban heat islands of city centers such as Atlanta and Chicago, where they say average summer temperatures could rise to as high as 106 degrees. Imagine having a day that hot, and then picture tha day lasting for several weeks, with temperatures rising above even that on the hottest of days. Makes the countryside seem much more appealing, doesn't it?
The IPCC predicted summer temperature increases, but not this severe. The main difference: NASA used weather patterns and rainfall amounts to more accurately predict the future, unlike the IPCC, which used an average rainfall amount for the entire country rather than region by region.
With temperatures rising like this, changes will have to be made to create more liveable cities. The urban heat island is a well documented phenomenon, where the thermal mass of concrete, buildings and other hard surfaces collect heat by day and continue to radiate throughout the night, allowing temperatures to continue rising day by day. As this happens, more energy must be produced to power the fans and air-conditioners people need to make cities liveable. As a result of more power use, the utilities are pushed to the limits of their output capabilites, and more plants must be built. More people get in thier cars and drive to the country to escape the heat. As a result, there is more carbon released into the air which in turn adds to the global warming problem all over again. It's a nasty cycle.
But there are ways to prevent this trend. Chicago is no stranger to high temperatures. It was a series of heat waves in 1995 that killed 700 people which lead Chicago's Mayor Daly to say enough is enough. His goal is to prevent another tragedy like this from ever happening again, and he plans to make his city the greenest in the country.
As part of an effort to cool the city, strict requirements for greenroofs, energy efficient buildings and urban landscaping have forced even the most powerful businesses such as Walmart to comply. There are great financial incentives, fund matching programs, and tax breaks for those who choose to go green.
As a result: Chicago's city hall has a large green roof, but Walmart now has the largest greenroof in the entire country. Decaying neighborhoods where buildings once crumbled are now being redeveloped with incentives from the city. Green collar jobs are on the rise, creating new employment opportunities. The city is experiencing a renaissence.
If Chicago can do it, so can the rest of the country.

for the CBC article on NASA's report
check out Chicago's Department of the Environment for the latest in green

Jennifer Berry, Eco-Defender

Ok, so I talk a big talk sometimes, but that's what you all like, right? Here I go again.

A friend of mine tipped me off to some recent permitting issues in his neighborhood, where a grove of trees and building are set to be torn down so a bigger building can occupy its space. I puffed myself up for a professional letter to the City of Mill Valley, and this is what I wrote.

"I'm writing this in concern to the oak grove on Forrest Street that is threatened by development.

I am an ecological consultant who assists in sustainable building and design projects, my scope of work ranging from single residences all the way to college campuses. I am currently working on a green SPCA facility in Monterey County, two LEED buildings at a community college in Tuolomne County, and a LEED boy-scout camp in El Cerrito. A large part of my work involves using natural habitat to enhance a building and its surroundings. The design professionals I work with seek ways to increase the aesthetic quality, efficiency and health of their buildings while having little negative impact on the surrounding ecology of a site. Preserving trees are a large part of this process. I lived at two houses on Forrest over the years, giving me an intimate view of the ecology for this neighborhood.

When considering the ecology of a small site such as this one, it is necessary to look at a larger picture and determine how a building effects the surrounding lots, the block, and then the neighborhood as a whole. On Forrest Way, houses and gardens have been built with the miccroclimate provided by the trees that make up the forest that incorporates surrounding streets. The appeal of living on Forrest for me was that it was a quiet oasis just a block away from downtown Mill Valley. Over the years the large trees have been leaving, one by one, slowly bringing the sound from downtown into the neighborhood.
Also, the temperature of the neighborhood has increased in the summers. Little by little, the fan usage has increased, air-conditioners have been purchased, increasing the power use in this area and in turn putting a greater demand on utilities. Carbon emissions increase as each tree is no longer present to pull CO2 from the atmosphere and as people use more energy to cool their homes.
Flooding is always an issue in the winter months on Forrest. Large trees help reduce the saturation of soils by soaking up all that rainwater and releasing back into the atmosphere. Permeable landscape reduces the demand on waste water systems by allowing storm water to percolate into the water table rather than traveling across pavement and into the sewers.

This isn't just a case of one group of trees and one lot in consideration. This is taking a step back and looking at the picture as it should be viewed- as a whole. I assure you that cutting down this group of native trees at the fore-mentioned site will have a significantly negative impact on the surrounding neighborhood, and alternatives must be sought.

I work with a group of specialists we affectionately refer to as the Green Team, which includes architects, hydrologists, engineers, planners, and ecologists. We put on eco-charettes with design groups to help them make their projects more sustainable. As an integrated team, we solve problems and find ways to build without cutting down trees and damaging the ecology of a site. It is possible and very necessary to encourage economic growth and increase housing without having a negative impact on the environment. I urge the City of mill Valley to take a step up and find ways to do so, by starting with this project."

Pretty cool, huh? This is one of the many things I do for a living, and its great to be able to lend my professional knowledge to a friend, especially one as dear as my good friend Jimo Thomas.

Want to get involved with saving the grove at 78 Forrest? Drop me a line at:
jennie1234 at mac dot com
(I wrote it out so the spam-bots leave me alone, but you'll figure it out)

Know of the propsal and want to get involved?
let the Ciy of Mill Valley know
rwalsh at cityofmillvalley dot org
(once again written out to keep away those pesky spam-bots)

Sustainable is so 1956

The Crown Hall at Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) was recently discovered to be sustainable upon completion in 1956, though subsequent changes to the building had decreased its functionality.
Mies van der Rohe designed the building to reflect the Modern style that was en vogue at the time, but used techniques that were clearly ahead of his time when it came to natural lighting and radiant heating. Over the years the radiant heating had gotten old, and had been replaced with cheaper, less efficient systems. Trees along the south west side of the building had been cut down to expand the driveway, and natural light that was once welcomed on the hand-drawing tables and classrooms had become a nuisance when students turned to using computers. Recently, (IIT) hired environmentally friendly design firm Atelier Ten to evaluate the old building and determine what steps were necessary to improve the performance of the building without changing the aesthetics.
What they uncovered was evidence that simple design with the intention of efficiency had made Crown Hall a sustainable building even by our current standards. Once the original systems had been returned to their functions, all that was left was to increase the amount of control students had over lighting, windows, and heating. The energy efficiency increased by 50% simply with these measures.
With intentional design and proper maintenance, the green revolution is beautiful, affordable and not some distant technology yet to be discovered. It's 1950's Modern.

full article at NY's AIA newsletter eOculus

Green Cities: The 2010 Imperative/ 2030 Challenge

The American Institute of Architecture has joined with the USGBC in the effort to reduce carbon emissions. Who causes the most pollution- Did you know that buildings account for 48% of carbon emissions in the United States? It's power to heat, light, and cool our homes that accounts for most of the carbon we release into the air. Now architects have stepped up to change this, by setting out the 2010 Imperative.
The imperative states that many of the measures we need to make our buildings greener already exist in common sense practice, and reduction in green house gasses can be achived by intentional design. We have the technology, now let's use it.

for the 2030 website and webcast
for a slide show on the Current Situation

Building a Green Structure from the Ground Up

An old friend of mine who has also been in the environmental movement for years just told me this week he's going to study straw bale house construction up north this summer. He reminded me about the Solar Living Institute in Mendicino County.
The Institute was started in Hopland by Real Goods founder John Schaeffer, when their original offices in San Francisco became too small for their growing company. The main building was designed by a favorite architect of mine Sim Van der Ryn, and David Arkin. The SLI has continued to develop its visions of living close to the earth, and their mission is to promote a healthy environment through education. They have programs that teach ecologically friendly design and landscape.
Looks like I'll have to take a trip up north soon to check the place out!

Tree Hugger: Green Foundations

Perfect timing! The TreeHugger blog has a feed this week regarding green foundations, with a couple of how-to diagrams. There seems to be a debate going about how long a foundation should last and just how you should build to minimize the impact on the land.

for full feed at TreeHugger

Designing Green Buildings from the Ground Up

Which brings me to today's book review. I mention that Sim Van der Ryn is a favorite architect of mine. I happened to stumble on his book 'Design For Life' at the library recently. I'd call it a personal essay on the design process, and the story follows the journey of his life and how it influenced his creations. He was at the forefront of the green design revolution back in the 60's, and taught provocative ideas in his classes at UC Berkeley for decades.
As I flipped through the pictures before delving into the story, I kept gasping as I recognized more and more of his firm's projects: The Life Expression Chiropractic Center; the Zen Center; the Kirsch Center at De Anza College. They're all award winning projects, and I'd studied them in classes or heard about them but had never put them together as the work from one firm, Van der Ryn Architects.
Van der Ryn Architects use nature as a model for designing their buildings. They create places with no need for artificial heating and cooling, places that fit in the landscape. There is a lot of talk these days about reducing carbon and creating sustainable buildings, and I see a lot of green washing out there. But these guys have never built anything but green buildings, and it shows. Bravo.

Revisiting the Works of Antonio Gaudi

Ever use the term 'gaudi' to describe the outfit of someone who has gone over the top with ornamentation? As all catch phrases have a history so does this one, but times have changed and the once-ridiculed works of Barcelona's famous architect Antonio Gaudi are now hailed as magnificent works of beauty.
Gaudi's buildings are hard to catergorize, borrowing from the Art Noveau fashion of the time and from the previous Gothic era, but remaining wholly different from anything before or after. What seperates them from the norm is Gaudi's attempts to model after his favorite designs found in nature.
Fellow blogger Megan Prusynski takes us on a journey through the world of Barcelona's most famous (and Green) architects in her article at Green Options.

AIA Angle: Clinton Introduces Zero Emissions Building Legislation

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) with AIA Federal Affairs Senior Director Tom Wolfe.

On March 29th, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) introduced S. 1059, the “Zero Emissions Building act of 2007.” The bill tracks closely the AIA’s model legislation for federal buildings that served as the Institute’s principal “ask” during February’s Grassroots Capitol Hill Day.

The bill requires that all new and renovated buildings owned or leased by the federal government reduce fossil fuel energy usage by 50 percent as compared to a 2003 baseline. In 2010, the requirement would increase to a 60 percent reduction and increase by 10 percent every five years until carbon neutrality is reached in 2030.

The AIA worked closely with Clinton’s staff on the bill. Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) has already agreed to cosponsor the legislation, and the AIA is actively seeking additional support. The AIA’s next goal is to have the provision included in the omnibus energy efficiency bill that Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-NM), chairman of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, is preparing for hearings and consideration later this spring. The AIA is seeking House introduction as well.

for original article click here