At a recent event (held on 29th September 2011) at Leicester University (UK) - ‘Building new collaborations in eco-housing research and practice’ - there was extensive inspiring discussion about the future of eco-housing. Talks included understanding young people’s perspectives of new ‘sustainable’ urban design and the user experiences of environmental technologies. Others explored whether kit, … Continue reading Interesting seminar about eco-housing held at Leicester University
Columbia Eco-village, Portland, Oregon
Columbia eco-village is a relatively new co-housing project in the north east of Portland. It is on the site of an old nut farm which was partly sold to developers in the 1960s who built five apartment buildings. These buildings and the remainder of the farm and farmhouse now constitute the eco-village. Using a loan … Continue reading Columbia Eco-village, Portland, Oregon
Kailash Eco-village, Portland, Oregon, USA
I had the great opportunity to stay at Kailash Eco-village for ten days in August last year. It was the last stop on my trip around eco-buildings in the USA and it did not disappoint. Kailash shares some similarities with Los Angeles Eco-Village – in that it is a deliberately urban project which enables … Continue reading Kailash Eco-village, Portland, Oregon, USA
Report on key findings from research: Affordable Eco-homes
I have written an initial report from the research project looking at ways we can make eco-housing more affordable. Please download a copy from here: Eco-homes Report 2011 (1 MB). Please also feel free to redistribute it. You can also download higher resolution versions: Eco-homes Report 2011 (3 MB), Eco-homes Report 2011 (12 MB) The key findings about low cost eco-homes are that: ~ We need both a technical … Continue reading Report on key findings from research: Affordable Eco-homes
Permaculture and eco-building
The philosophy of permaculture is a useful framework through which to understand the broader principles behind many eco-houses. There is a synergy between eco-building and permaculture in that they are both design systems which at heart seek to interconnect the processes of life and create more sustainable systems. They are both based upon understanding and creating … Continue reading Permaculture and eco-building
ECO-HOMES + COMMUNITIES 