Why is it that the current largest climate activist is a 12-year-old who sacrificed her childhood and schooling to go on strike for climate change? The problems that we are observing in the world are tremendous and not going anywhere unless we act. When I learned that buildings contribute about 40% of the world’s carbon emissions, I was stunned and it hit home. I then was awakened by the fact that we as architects can significantly impact the world’s future.
So, where do we start when landfills are filling up, global warming is causing fires and floods, our carbon footprint is expanding, people’s health is declining because of chemicals, and plastic is killing off the ocean’s population? Many people do not realize that small eco changes in our homes can help with these environmental problems, and change is easier than we think. Many professionals are not aware or well versed in how to make these changes, or know what modifications need to be made, or the work is simply beyond their scope.
You can tell we are passionate about this and want to help. So, our company came up with the Eco-Revolution, a service which includes an all-encompassing assessment for both consumers and other architecture companies. After our oversight and coordination, we provide a full written report which includes a list of professional design and sustainable recommendations for a renovation or new construction building. We also partner with other architecture and design offices on new construction throughout the design phases to help architects on the creative end to envision a design savvy, eco-conscious project.
We still approach a project in mostly the same way, we meet our client to gain insight on a project, then we provide a design visualization package which includes imagery, renderings, pre-design plans, and elevations. Now, we also include energy-efficient and sustainable recommendations as well. We provide leadership on design planning, development, and make significant choices on items like materials, paint, finishes, products, lighting, landscape, and more to ensure and support our original aesthetic while strategizing with environmentally mindful intent.
As working parents of three, our lives are busy with juggling kids, work, activities, schedules, and more. Our family recently applied the Eco-Revolution to our own house shortly after moving to Connecticut, and it was extremely successful. We learned firsthand that our holistic approach yields economic savings, lower utility bills, energy-efficiency, a reduced carbon footprint on the planet, healthier air quality, and a happier way of living.
We love to see our 2.5, 6 and 7.5 year-old join in and compost their food waste, reuse materials for their storage or art supplies, and eliminate the need for single use plastic. We understand the meaning of waste and are teaching the value of consideration for our planet.
Our home offices have been more productive spaces for my husband and I, provided the changes we made to color, floors, paint, lighting, and window modifications. Our playroom basement level now has a healthier air quality given the replacement of molded insulation and the removal of dusty carpeting. Those are just a few specific examples of how the Eco-Revolution worked for us, but the list is long, and the bottom line is, we are all thrilled with the result on many levels. It really has improved our quality of life.
We want to share this process and help others with achieving this too. We are happy to provide this service to anyone interested. Please reach out to us and let us know how we can support you. Whether you: just moved here, have been here for a while and are thinking of renovating, want to build new, or need a consultant to discuss architectural and sustainable solutions. Think if we had more buildings being built or renovated with this application, then we would have a much healthier, sustainable and harmonious world.
