Go forward By Laura Piraino on 03/13/2013 Asheville is familiar with accolades. It’s been recognized as the best (or in the top 10) for its happiness quotient, beer, Southern charm, access […]
Laura Piraino: Go forward Read More
Growing a sustainable food system By Allison Perrett and Charlie Jackson on 03/13/2013 Food is the most basic of human necessities, but it’s easy in our current food system to make
Allison Perret: Growing a sustainable food system Read More
Photos courtesy of Hickory Nut Forest When we first walked the land that is now Hickory Nut Forest Eco-Community, we had to bushwhack our way through an overgrown forest that
At home in Hickory Nut Forest: Creating a net-zero eco-community Read More
Infill building often involves a lot of tree removal. The lots we have found to build on in town have usually been vacant for many years and have had some
Trees and infill building Read More
One of the most surprising and frustrating aspects of working in the “energy efficiency industry” is the sheer number and prevalence of myths about light bulbs. Buying a light bulb
Seeing the light: myths about light bulbs Read More
This is installment #5 for ecological, site-specific considerations for siting Green Built structures on undeveloped, forested land. This post highlights physical characteristics of the land that are essential to understand
Post #5: The Treasure Hunt Part II: Physical Conditions Survey Read More
Building a small house is almost always worth some points in a green building Program. Energy Star homes has a complex formula to calculate the size adjustment factor,SFA. (
If people can get 80 mpg in a car that’s EPA-rated to get 45, then it seems like it should be possible to get better than average performance out of
Hyper-mile your house Read More
This year we implemented several changes to reduce our consumption. I posted how we analyzed out energy use and targeted those heavy users for change. That was in Revenge of
End of Year Energy Accounting Read More
I often say that I wish everyone could live in my house for a week. The winter solstice seems like the perfect time to talk about why. I’ll give you
Celebrating the solstice with passive solar Read More
