Solar design and energy efficiency have been a passion of mine since the late 60’s while studying engineering. When I was a kid I was taught “waste not want not”.  This has stuck with me and formed a filter through which I see the world.  Nearly half of the energy consumed on the planet is used in buildings and over 5% of the electricity is wasted on standby losses (electricity used by devices that are turned off). There are many areas of energy use that could be inexpensively changed to reduce energy consumption by half or more.  My house gets more than 90% of its energy from the sun. It was built in 1999 at $100/square foot: an average cost for that time.

I have a three-year associate degree in Engineering with a specialty in heating and cooling and a five-year professional degree in Architecture with a focus on energy-efficiency and solar design.  My first solar house was built in 1979.  Since then I have continued to evolve these qualities in my work.

I’ve also had an interest in low cost housing.  I think efficient small spaces can be built that provide comfortable living with a small carbon footprint and at a low price. One could live in an apartment in a big city with no need for a car. The apartment may have only one exterior wall. The floor, ceiling and other walls with heated spaces on the other side,would then have no heat loss. 

 Insulation is an important consideration in designing efficient buildings.  The three most important things in real estate are location, location and location; my twist on that is insulation, insulation and insulation.  Combining this with appropriate design, comfortable temperatures can be maintained year round with little energy use.

-Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Temple University.

-Degree in Architecture from University of Oregon.

-35 + years of experience in green building and design.

-Instructor at Santa Fe Community College.

Nearly half of the energy consumed today is used in buildings...

We have allowed the byproducts of modern life to pollute the world. Now we have the opportunity to turn it around. With energy smart designs we can take care of our needs without wasting the resources of the planet. There are many areas of energy use in housing that could be inexpensively changed to reduce energy consumption by one half or more. Many technologies that proved very successful in the 1970s have expanded and are even better today.