Illustration for the NY Times Article, Overpopulation is not the Problem.

“The science of human sustenance is inherently a social science. Neither physics nor chemistry nor even biology is adequate to understand how it has been possible for one species to reshape both its own future and the destiny of an entire planet. This is the science of the Anthropocene. The idea that humans must live within the natural environmental limits of our planet denies the realities of our entire history, and most likely the future. Humans are niche creators. We transform ecosystems to sustain ourselves. This is what we do and have always done. Our planet’s human-carrying capacity emerges from the capabilities of our social systems and our technologies more than from any environmental limits.

Two hundred thousand years ago we started down this path. The planet will never be the same. It is time for all of us to wake up to the limits we really face: the social and technological systems that sustain us need improvement.”

Pérez Art Museum Miami; Jonathan Chesley/Selldorf Architects; Alex Garvin

Reading my neighbor’s copy of the Sunday Times I found this article which I’ll share with my Systems Studio students (4th year design studio in the UTSA College of Architecture.) It begins:

“Building “green” is nothing new. For decades, many architects have tried to adapt their designs to forestall a new normal, choosing materials that will be less damaging to the environment and arranging rooms to be heated or cooled by the sun and wind, not the grid….Two design programs rolling out this year and next,…evidence of big thinking along the same lines: learning to solve with systems, not style.”

Seek simple systems and solutions to issues of function and sustainability, eyes open, and beauty will be had.

There have been some awards for the local achievements, also, of course. The recent LID Design Competition, turned out some great work.

This is the best software I have found to analyze both new construction and retrofit improvements for optimizing energy efficiency improvements decisions for residences. It is free software developed with our tax dollars by National Renewable Energy Laboratories.

Which retrofit will give you the most bang for your buck? This is the software package to answer that question and take the design process from energy-intensive construction to an elegant whole-house net zero design solution and any point in between. for example you might wonder how much energy can you save by designing a house with ducts in the conditioned space versus in an unconditioned attic. This allows you to compare alternatives such as this, as well as among different glazing assemblies, types and amounts of insulation, appliance types, etc.

From their website:
“The BEopt™ (Building Energy Optimization) software provides capabilities to evaluate residential building designs and identify cost-optimal efficiency packages at various levels of whole-house energy savings along the path to zero net energy. BEopt can be used to analyze both new construction and existing home retrofits, through evaluation of single building designs, parametric sweeps, and cost-based optimizations. BEopt provides detailed simulation-based analysis based on specific house characteristics, such as size, architecture, occupancy, vintage, location, and utility rates. Discrete envelope and equipment options, reflecting realistic construction materials and practices, are evaluated.”

I saw some parallels with the scenario this article describes for Chicago. We’re investing in place, here at home. We’re just operating on a much smaller scale, and we’re at an early stage in the process.