[Greenbuilding] Solutions (to the ecological problem)

Sun Jan 23 13:40:02 CST 2011

There are so many issues here that I find it difficult to read one liners
that end up being dismissive. That is counterproductive to the community
building that is being talked about. I started my education in planning and
architecture with what was then termed 'appropriate technology' which was
subservient to social needs as well as environmental conditions. I then
moved into antipoverty and social housing work when I lived in an urban
environment and subsequently into environmental building as I now live
rurally. 

As design is about 'problem solving' or simply providing for needs each
context has its own set of priorities and exigencies. Personally I think
inviting 'friends' over to paint my house is exploitative. Formalizing it in
terms of paid 'workshops' or 'volunteer' type experiences I think is also
potentially exploitative unless the balance of the goals are on providing
developable skills to the individuals as opposed to completing a 'project'.
I feel pretty strongly about this as there is a growing tendency in the
natural building movement to exploit young peoples energy and enthusiasm not
to mention their safety and well being. I know this firsthand having been
approached to 'lead workshops' or training programs where the goal was to
get a frame or wall built as opposed to providing a well prepared lesson
plan.

I think there is a real responsibility in a community for everyone to
recognize work and provide fair compensation for it. If I go to a restaurant
the tip is part of the cost of the meal that I plan for - if I cannot afford
the tip I cannot afford the meal. Similarly if I hire or train people for a
building project that labour is part of the cost of that project and if the
project cannot afford it then that project has no value in the community.
You can extend this to choice of materials and their cost and value to the
local community. I could choose cheap wooden flooring from the Russian targa
or I could use something locally where I can track the social and
environmental costs and benefits.

JOHN SALMEN ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN

4465 UPHILL RD,. DUNCAN, B.C.  CANADA, V9L 6M7

PH 250 748 7672 FAX 250 748 7612 CELL 250 246 8541

terrain at shaw.ca

  _____  

From: greenbuilding-bounces at lists.bioenergylists.org
[mailto:greenbuilding-bounces at lists.bioenergylists.org] On Behalf Of Gennaro
Brooks-Church
Sent: January 23, 2011 10:04 AM
To: Green Building
Subject: Re: [Greenbuilding] Solutions (to the ecological problem)

I've lived a lot in old european homes, some of them over 500 years old, and
it makes this modern obsession with btus look pretty silly. 

Gennaro
347 244 3016

On Jan 23, 2011 12:21 PM, "natural building" <naturalbuilding at shaw.ca>
wrote:
> Bravo Gennaro, I applaud your championing the 'cultural' aspect of 
> green building on this site.
> 
> In North America (as distinct from Europe and many other parts of the 
> world) we have developed this '5-year resell' culture that, I propose, 
> is in large part because most home-owners have little or no connection 
> to their homes or community. To them a house is just a short-term 
> investment opportunity.
> 
> Science has its place - of course - but the pursuit of ever-decreasing 
> Btus must integrate successfully with and, IMO, be subservient to the 
> need to create homes that people truly feel 'at home' in. 
> Sustainability is also about making homes that last (with a little TLC 
> and maintenance) rather than get torn down and replaced every 50 years 
> - which is another catastrophic NA trend.
> 
> Regards.
> Steve Satow
> 
> www.naturalbuildingsite.net
> naturalbuilding at shaw.ca
> 
>> 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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>>
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