passivhaus

We had a chat with architect and building physicist, Gary Wilburn. He's the MD of EP Projects (the architectural wing of Energy Pro Group), and Chair of the Board of Trustees at the AECB.

He's been a pioneer in sustainable construction, pushing innovation in sustainable architecture and design, incorporating building physics and whole-life value as an essential part of the process, across retrofit and new build projects at all sorts of size and scale.

EP Projects website
Please join the AECB, it's excellent value.
Retrofit Reimagined festival, 13-16 July, at various locations across Birmingham.

Great discussion with Yogini of the Passivhaus Trust, Dr Ken Gibb at Glasgow University and Chris Morgan of John Gilbert Architects on the retrofit of the sandstone tenement block in the Southside of Glasgow at Niddrie Road to EnerPHit standards. 

The AECB is a network of individuals, companies & organisations promoting sustainable building since 1989. With over 1800 members, their aim is to bring together tradespeople, architects, engineers, and builders interested in low carbon retrofit to train and promote best practices, bring about lasting and sustainable change within the construction Industry and push toward net-zero targets.

In this podcast, we speak to Andy Simmonds CEO of the AECB retrofit standard, CarbonLite, and the Low Energy Buildings Database (LEBD), PH Ribbon and embodied carbon and loads more. 

The AECB is a network of individuals, companies & organisations promoting sustainable building since 1989. With over 1800 members their aim is to bring together tradespeople, architects, engineers, builders anyone interested in low carbon retrofit to train and promote best practices.  With the aim of bringing about lasting and sustainable change within the construction Industry and pushing toward net-zero targets

After our scheduled guest postponed their appearance we took the opportunity to discuss an issue that's been a little bit fractious in the Zero Ambitions chat: should be building new homes at all?

Heads up: it was an evening pod, some drink had been taken; apologies if the early reference to war in Ukraine sounds a bit glib, we aren't able to publish the pre-record chat was a little less centred on us; also Sara was on holiday, and Rachael dropped out at the last minute, so it's a bit of a boys-club episode.

There's a little mild profanity too.

Some links to things we mentioned
Passive House Plus magazine (soon to feature that article Jeff has been wrestling with)
Orson Welles getting drunk
Ronald Rovers: There is no ‘end of life' of a building…
Kwaijo Social Housing Twitter
Alex's French book: Construire ou rénover sa maison
Chicken in a can

Heating problems: systemic issues around design, accessibility, and economics
We talked about how poor system design inhibits accessibility (and optimisation), how the heating industry falls short in terms of diversity, and how difficult it is to find the right solutions, for all sorts of reasons.

Lisa is one of the most experienced building performance consultants working in the UK. She has extensive knowledge of in-use building operation and management, building physics, low-energy services, and fabric design for new build and retrofits domestic and non-domestic buildings. 

She takes an evidence-based approach to building performance and is an expert in built environment research, technical risk management and post-occupancy evaluation. 

We spoke to Lisa about PAS 2035, how it can be improved, and some of the projects she has been evaluating over the last few years. 

Through our discussion with Lisa, it’s clear that if we’re to meet our climate change objectives and decarbonise our homes, we need to understand the lessons of the past so as not to repeat them in the future. Evaluation is critical, and as a wise man once said, if you can’t measure it, you can’t improve it. 

Conversation with Sara, Dan, Jeff and Alex on the work that ACAN are doing and how we can look to a grassroots movement in promoting the retrofitting of our homes in a sustainable way to tackle climate change.

Discussion with Jeff, Alex and Dan from User Experience is Everything on CoP26 and how communication is critical to how we progress sustainability and radical change in the built environment.https://www.everythingisuserexperience.com/

The episode features lessons learnt from district heating and the work that West Dunbartonshire have been doing on developing heat networks.

Professor of Economics at Manchester Metropolitan University Kevin Albertson makes the point that we can't put off the change that is required now for future generations and that we need to change our socio-economic systems in a way that we use less energy and the energy we do use is done in a sustainable and equitable for everyone in society.

Dave Pearson from Star Renewables talks about district heating during CoP26

Professor of Economics at Manchester Metropolitan University Kevin Albertson makes the point that we can't put off the change that is required now for future generations and that we need to change our socio-economic systems in a way that we use less energy and the energy we do use is done in a sustainable and equitable for everyone in society.

Christina Gaiger is the current President of The Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS) and is committed to the creative reuse of buildings, alongside the construction of a supportive network for the profession, to give traction to the value of good design.Following graduation, Christina has worked on a wide variety of projects, including universities, education facilities, museum design and domestic architecture, for design-led practices Renzo Piano Building Workshop in Paris and Tsao & McKown Architects in New York.Christina returned to Edinburgh and joined Helen Lucas Architects Ltd at the end of 2014, being particularly interested in the practice’s attention to detail and work in architectural conservation.

This week Professor of Economics at Manchester Metropolitan University is giving us a concept or idea on economics the environment and climate change each day.

Dr Jan Rosenow joins us on the first day of CoP26 to talk about the decarbonisation of our buildings and how we transition to zero carbon heating. The conversation includes the electrification of heat and how we ensure a just transition.As the director of European programmes, Dr. Jan Rosenow leads RAP’s initiatives in Europe on power market design and Efficiency First. 

He is responsible for all aspects of leadership, management, and financial viability of RAP’s work in Europe.Dr. Rosenow serves on the Executive Committee of the International Energy Agency’s demand-side management program and sits on the board of the European Council for an Energy Efficient Economy. 

He has also advised the International Energy Agency, the European Commission, the European Parliament, the U.S. Agency for International Development, the German Corporation for International Cooperation (GIZ), government departments in a number of countries, and the UK’s Office of Gas and Electricity Markets, as well as serving as an expert witness on several occasions to the British Parliament. He was the lead author of the International Energy Agency’s global assessment of market-based instruments for energy efficiency.Dr. Rosenow also has a strong track record in energy research. He is an honorary research associate at Oxford University’s renowned Environmental Change Institute. 

He has authored more than 70 publications in the form of peer-reviewed papers, technical reports, and conference papers. He has also served as an expert witness to the House of Commons.In 2020, Dr. Rosenow was elected to be a fellow of the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA) in light of his “longstanding dedication to moving the UK towards a more sustainable and resilient energy future.”Prior to his engagement with RAP, he worked closely with the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Energy through his policy work for the global consultancy Ricardo. Dr. Rosenow earned several post-graduate qualifications, including a master’s degree in environmental policy and regulation from the London School of Economics and a doctorate from Oxford University.

Chris and Phil were not only lucky enough to attend a lecture by Jacob Racusin, but they were also able to record it! Our friends at PassivhausMAINE invited Jacob to share his insights on low-impact, high-performance building technologies and discuss some of the ground-breaking work he has been involved in lately regarding plant-based construction and carbon sequestration in our built environment. He's a wonderful speaker with contagious passion for combating climate change through better building. 

This is part one of his lecture, be sure to check out part two which will be released in about a week. Also be sure to visit our lame facebook page for cocktail recipes and links to Jacob's slide deck. Visuals help, but the the audio holds up on its own as well. 

Also, new theme song.

Cheers!  

The Green Architects' Lounge is BACK! After a long hiatus, Chris and Phil are reuniting for a fresh new season of the podcast! They're kicking it of with a LIVE recording at the PassivhausMAINE 2018 Fall Forum at the Mechanics' Hall in Portland Maine. The topic: Passive House Schools! They (and the hyperbollically massive) audience will sip cocktails and discuss the hows, whys, and why-nots of getting our schools to this high level of energy-efficiency.