[Greenbuilding] our solution to the ecological problem

[Clarke Olsen]

    We should also consider the urge to remodel, which can make  
permanent constructions vulnerable.
For instance, though standing seam should long outlast screw-down  
panels, the latter is much easier to alter,
perhaps even to reuse. This aspect has made me see timber framing  
favorably: 2x4's don't easily recycle,
especially after having sheathing put up with nail guns.
    I don't see science as the enemy of ecology, rather it's our  
rejection of science that will hasten our end.
Not the science of gadgets, of which everyone has a favorite, from  
photovoltaics to AK-47's, but the more
demanding science of seeking to understand the reality of our universe.
Clarke Olsen
373 route 203
Spencertown, NY 12165
USA
518-392-4640
colsen at fairpoint.net




On Jan 23, 2011, at 9:31 AM, Gennaro Brooks-Church wrote:

> Hi,
> I think the concept of building so that it lasts a very long time  
> is good. But too many cultures use sacrificial materials for me to  
> overlook that option too. For example in Spain the traditional  
> stone buildings are white washed with lime that doesn't last very  
> long. Once a year the family and a couple friends come together for  
> a weekend of exercise in the sun with a big meal to paint the house.
>
> It doesn't pay if you have to hire somebody once a year to do it.  
> So this is where green building becomes cultural. Our western  
> culture for the most part doesn't paint their own home. It is paid  
> for. But if you turn it into a social event for bonding with the  
> family maybe painting the home isn't actually the main point. Maybe  
> being together with friends and family is.
>
> For me green building is more about strengthening our community and  
> our social bonds with nature than any BTU counting. If you have a  
> strong society that is connected to nature the rest comes naturally.
>
> This was the point I was trying to make before with my point of  
> there being two ways of looking at green building - techie or  
> cultural - and my opinion that most people on this list and in  
> green building in general are tackling it with a techie view point.
>
> The techie approach in my opinion is what got us in our current  
> ecological problem in the first place. It makes a damn if we have  
> Uber efficient homes if the people in them are dysfunctional and  
> allienated. Green builders for the most part see their job as  
> building efficient homes. That won't solve our problem in my  
> opinion. Building homes that connect us to our community and nature  
> has a much better chance.
>
> For me that means focusing more closely at how the building  
> process, the sourcing, the materials used, the upkeep, and the  
> relationship of buildings to each other strengthen our love of  
> community and nature. You may counter that it is not either or -  
> either techie or cultural - and that is absolutely true. But right  
> now it is pretty much only techie. If you stream through our  
> conversations it is mostly about efficient materials and BTUs.
>
> I think our love of science destroyed our ecology. I conclude this  
> because most older non-scientific cultures have done significantly  
> better than newer scientific cultures in being custodians of our  
> planet. And if Einstein is right then science should not be the  
> tool we use to get us out of our ecological problems. We need a  
> different tool.
>
> I think we need to veer significantly more in the direction of  
> cultural and natural related issues to solve our ecological issues.
> Gennaro Brooks-Church
>
> Cell: 1 347 244 3016 USA
> www.EcoBrooklyn.com
> 22 2nd St; Brooklyn, NY 11231
>
>
>
>
> Sender: greenbuilding-bounces at lists.bioenergylists.org
> Date: Sat, 22 Jan 2011 12:36:32
> To: 'Green Building'<greenbuilding at lists.bioenergylists.org>
> Reply-to: Green Building <greenbuilding at lists.bioenergylists.org>
> Subject: Re: [Greenbuilding] Nansulate Insulation
>
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