A superefficient, all-electric house is not only better for the environment but also a much better environment to live in, which is why it’s a great time to renovate or build. Leading architects Susan Jones of Atelier Jones and EHDD’s Scott Shell join Alta Journal contributor Lydia Lee for a conversation around sustainable architecture, the future of the construction industry and residential design, and what we can do right now to make our homes more efficient.
About the guests:
Susan Jones is a Seattle architect and the founder of Atelier Jones. She is driving new pathways within architecture, advancing new lower-carbon, mass-timber systems by designing and building prototypes at multiple scales, girded by her leadership in multiple international collaborations to create change at scale and ensure rigor on multiple levels. Her woman-owned architectural firm handles everything from prefabricated single-family houses; to prefabricated urban infill residential spaces; to large, middle-income residential buildings that feature updated codes and correlative design details, which Jones helped craft and guide through the necessary regulatory processes. Her prolific work over the past nine years to advance and restructure the carbon-intensive construction industry toward lower-carbon materials is an exemplary example of the role architects can play in innovating at all scales and urgently lowering our carbon footprint. She also manages her family's 140-acre forest and regularly partakes in rich, cross-disciplinary dialogues, both locally and internationally, to help promote sustainable forest practices.
Scott Shell is a nationally recognized expert on high-performance buildings. For the past decade he has led the design of EHDD’s university buildings for science, ranging from the advanced biomedical sciences research labs to new facilities for entire departments designed to encourage interdisciplinary collaboration. He brings a strong integrated design approach to each project, partnering with clients, researchers, and the broader design and construction team to create facilities that excel in all aspects of their performance.
About the moderator:
Lydia Lee writes about sustainability and design for architecture publications and is in the process of reconfiguring her home to accommodate two domestic rabbits.•
Check out these links to some of the articles, resources, and organizations Jones, Shell, and Lee touched on:
- Read “Tackling Climate Change on the Home Front” by Lydia Lee for Alta Journal.
- Read “Power to the People” by Beth Spotswood for Alta Journal.
- Visit Atelier Jones website.
- Visit EHDD’s website.
- Visit the California Energy Commission’s website.
- Watch California Energy Commissioner Andrew McAllister’s passive house video tour.
- Read the Pocket Guide to all Electric Retrofits.
- Learn more about Resnet, a home energy auditor.
