Mark Jacobson, a professor at Stanford University, California recently commissioned the Canadian firm Bone Structure to build him a prefab net-zero home. And the result is shaping up to be quite astounding. He chose the company because of their proven ability to minimize construction waste, dust and disruption to neighbors, as well as the flexibility and versatility of its steel frame construction method. (more…)
The Perennial, a restaurant that recently opened in San Francisco, truly is sustainable through and through. It’s the brainchild of husband and wife Anthony Myint and Karen Leibowitz and boast of it’s own aquaponic greenhouse, uses only responsibly-reared meat, and was decorated using recycled materials. The latter is only the tip of the iceberg as far as sustainable design goes though, and the restaurant is currently seeking a LEED Platinum certification. (more…)
Transforming disused shipping containers into comfortable houses has become quite a fashion in the last few years. The best thing about using them to build homes from is the fact that most can be made into a comfortable dwelling in a very short amount of time. They are also affordable and can be shipped to anywhere in the world. Here are the top five best shipping container homes, which require minimal amount of work to built, but which still make for very cozy and comfortable houses. (more…)
Silicon Valley, CA just might be getting a mall with the largest green roof in the world. The developer firm Sand Hill Property Company has recently acquired a 50 acre (20 hectare) plot of land, currently occupied by Cupertino’s Vallco Shopping Mall. (more…)
A team of students at the REALM Charter High School in Berkeley, CA built a solar-powered tiny house as a school project. The home doesn’t have a name and measures only 100 square feet (9.2 sq m). It also represents an excellent example of the type of project more schools should be engaging in. (more…)
The tiny home built by Shelley and Joshua is yet another example of how spacious a small home can be. They’ve equipped their 224-square-foot tiny home with a spacious kitchen, full bathroom, and a sleeping area that has adequate headroom.
