Sustainability
The term “sustainable” implies that a building will do no harm, by current standards. But there is no neutral position in architecture today. The buildings we produce must serve a future in which performance standards will inevitably exceed those we work with today. Buildings exist not in isolation, but as parts of a network of resource consumption. Every new building represents an opportunity to immediately offset the impacts of other buildings in its community.
Achieving net-positive environmental impact requires transcending sustainability to serve an environmentally regenerative function—an ambitious goal, but one to which we are fully committed. To succeed, we must create buildings that perform in several critical areas: energy efficiency, embodied carbon, use of locally produced materials, site ecology, and community.
Energy Efficiency
Every structure we design must produce more energy than it consumes through its operations. The key to achieving this goal is a high-performance building envelope, based on Passive House design principles, coupled with a building plan that supports on-site renewable energy systems. In our design process, we always utilize energy modeling to ensure the future building’s performance meets the passive house principals of performance. Read more…
Embodied Carbon
Each structure must account for its embodied carbon, which comprises the carbon footprint of material production, the energy required for construction, and the impact of eventual deconstruction and recycling. Our goal is to achieve net-positive energy performance of the structure using on-site renewable energy production to completely offset its embodied energy over a 50-year time frame, resulting in a true net-zero total carbon footprint. To do this we focus on lower negative carbon footprint materials, in particular, building products produced from sustainably harvested timber.
Local Materials
In order to reduce a structure’s carbon footprint, we must prioritize the use of materials that are local, are derived from renewable resources, have low carbon footprints, and sequester carbon. For each project, we research locally produced materials that are durable, low-maintenance, and appropriate for the project’s specific climate. We also seek out materials that reflect the original character, local building culture, and sense of place unique to each project. Read more…
Site Ecology
Each building should seek to enhance the ecological potential of its site. We accomplish this through water conservation in the building and careful design of storm water management on the site. The site design must also seek to improve the habitat quality of local ecosystems. We accomplish this by designing landscapes and outdoor spaces that use native plants, thrive on minimal water and energy inputs, support biodiversity, and serve as bio-filters to improve water quality, and by deploying technology to preserve and restore wildlife habitat.
Community
A sustainable structure must support the development of community. We understand that a sense of shared purpose is essential to solving the environmental problems we face. To build our sense of community, we must design environments that support diverse populations, in safety and with universal access, while also addressing concerns of security and privacy. We work closely with our clients and user groups to analyze their specific programmatic needs. We also strive to understand the identity of each institution we work with, so the gathering spaces we create truly reflect and embody their collective aspirations. Our goal is to create environments that function on a range of scales, where conditions of possibility abound and expressions of community, both planned and spontaneous, may arise.
