By Orienting panels to the west to catch the setting sun—at the time usage peaks—might make solar power more valuable even if less total electricity would be generated.
Municipal Governments Working to Make Their Cities More Resilient
I came away optimistic that the attendees in the room weren’t going to simply sit by and wait for action; they were going to make it happen.
An Awesome New Tool for Mapping Coastal Flood Risk
In my opinion, there’s no more useful resource out there to help us understand flood hazards in coastal locations.
Fundamentals of Resilient Design: Wet Floodproofing
Letting floodwaters into a building is an important resilience measure, but it has to be done in a way that prevents damage.
How California Can Model Dramatic Change
America will watch California respond to the drought, and I’m hoping that that can be a model for response to the even bigger—far bigger—challenge we all face with climate change.
Proposing a Resilient America Service Corps
Along with outdoors-focused initiatives, a Resilient America Service Corps could provide the labor needed for weatherization, installing window treatments, and carrying out deep-energy retrofits.
California’s Continuing Water Woes Call for Creative Solutions
“Right now the state has only about one year of water supply left in its reservoirs, and our strategic backup supply, groundwater, is rapidly disappearing.” -Jay Famiglietti, Ph.D., NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
My Resilient Design course at BAC starts up soon
For the past two years, I’ve been teaching the online course, Resilient Design, through Boston Architectural College (BAC). The eight-week course runs from March 23 to May 16, 2015 and is limited to 15 students. It’s a great opportunity to dig into the issue of resilience at both a building
Engineering Our Way Out of Global Warming: Is Climate Intervention a Global Warming Solution That Republicans Will Get Behind?
I am all for carbon-capture—both the research needed to better understand it and the implementation of strategies that employ it. But albedo modification (enhanced solar reflectivity) is a different story.
It’s Snowing Again in Boston…and Time to Focus on Resilience
Coastal New England has run out of places to dump the snow. Roofs are collapsing. Tempers are flaring. Schools have been cancelled so many days that students may be in classes into July.
Adapting to Climate Change: Does Nature Need a Helping Hand?
On our farm I want to do the right thing for the land, and I think that includes not only working to get rid of invasive species but also introducing some more southern species that are not yet common in this area.
How to Make a Hospital Resilient: A Tour of Spaulding Rehab
Spaulding Rehab hospital in Charlestown, MA is designed and built to provide for sheltering in place. A key part of this strategy is the inclusion of screened, operable windows in patient rooms, lounges, offices, and other spaces.
Musing About Food Security as the Snow Swirls Outside
We are reminded, from time to time, just how quickly store shelves can be depleted.
The Most Resilient House in North America
When his house burned down in 2012, Alain Hamel he set out to build a home that would keep his family safe no matter what nature threw at it.
Searching for Optimism in an Age of Climate Change
What inspired me to launch an organization to promote these and other aspects of resilient design, was the recognition that the safety aspects of these strategies might be a stronger motivation to get mainstream America on-board in achieving more sustainable, lower-carbon buildings and communities than simply “doing the right thing.”
