[GSBN] Our new building project

Tue Jan 24 14:13:11 UTC 2012

Hi everyone,

I wanted to write in to let you all know about the first major project 
we're undertaking with The Endeavour Centre, our new not-for-profit 
sustainable building school here in Ontario. It's an urban infill 
project in Peterborough, Ontario, and it's going to use prefabricated 
straw bale walls as the exterior, load-bearing walls for a two-story 
home. We're also designing and building to meet the Living Building 
Challenge, so it's an all-round exciting project.

I'm sending it to this list for two reasons. First, it's a cool project 
and I thought you might want to know. Secondly, and more importantly, 
Endeavour was started in part because our program at Fleming College was 
not able to accept students from outside Canada. We are keen to open our 
program to students from around the world, and are hoping that you might 
direct anybody you know who's looking for a well-rounded sustainable 
building education to the program and this project.

I hope that's not too "promote-y" for this list!

The announcement for the project is below...

Cheers,

Chris

January 18, 2012

*/Canada's Greenest Home/ to Be Built by Students*

CGH image for release medium with text.jpgWhat does it take to build the 
greenest, most sustainable home in Canada? That is what 20 students 
enrolled in The Endeavour Centre's /Sustainable New Construction: 
Building a New Future/ program will learn this summer, as they take on 
the role of lead builders on a single family residence in downtown 
Peterborough, Ontario.

Interest in green building has been increasing exponentially over the 
past decade, but the training of new builders to design, contract and 
build highly sustainable homes has not kept pace. The 5-month, full-time 
certificate program offered at the not-for-profit Endeavour Centre is 
one of the few offerings in the world that allow students a thorough, 
hands-on opportunity to learn what goes into meeting and exceeding the 
highest standards of green building.

The 2,000 square foot, two-story home will be built on an infill lot in 
an older neighbourhood in central Peterborough. It will meet LEED 
Platinum requirements and go beyond this high standard by attempting to 
become the first Canadian home to fully meet the Living Building Challenge.

Chris Magwood, Executive Director of The Endeavour Centre, says the 
Living Building Challenge is the most thorough sustainable building 
standard in the world. "We're excited to be able to undertake the Living 
Building Challenge," he says. "It represents the meeting of high ideals 
with practical, achievable solutions that the whole staff at Endeavour 
have always tried to realize."

When completed, the home will use a fraction of the energy of a 
conventional home and have met stringent requirements for sustainable 
building materials, indoor air quality and construction waste 
management. "Simply put," says Magwood, "our goal with Canada's Greenest 
Home is to make substantial improvements in every measurable aspect of 
this home's performance, including net zero energy use, while keeping it 
affordable, accessible and beautiful."

Students at Endeavour work with a team of instructors who are experts in 
the use of natural building materials, renewable energy systems, water 
collection and treatment, healthy finishes and all aspects creating a 
truly green home. Students are

*/Canada's Greenest Home/ to Be Built by Students, cont'd*

on site each day throughout the construction and perform the majority of 
the work on the home. In class, they learn the building science theory 
and construction business know-how that will allow them to reproduce the 
level of performance achieved on this project.

Their five month experience will include experience installing energy 
efficient foundations, prefabricated straw bale walls, grid-tied 
photovoltaics, solar hot water, rainwater collection, composting 
toilets, natural paints and finishes and much more.

The home built by the students will be put on the market at the end of 
the program, and proceeds from the sale of the home will help to offset 
tuition costs. Privately funded with no government grants or public 
assistance, Magwood hopes "that the sale of this house on the open 
market will be an indication to other builders that there are buyers 
hungry for this level of environmental performance in a new home purchase."

During construction, the students will contribute to the Canada's 
Greenest Home blog, where they will document the complete construction 
process online. Part of the educational component of the project will be 
tracking and documenting the real environmental impacts of the 
construction of this home, and making the findings public. This 
transparency will make Canada's Greenest Home a unique project, with 
clear environmental goals established at the onset of the building and 
accurate accounting of how the finished house measures up to the targets.

"We hope to generate a lot of interest in Canada's Greenest Home," 
Magwood enthuses. "A lot of people think we're far from being able to 
live lightly, and comfortably, on the planet. We'd like this project to 
show that it's a goal well within reach."

The Canada's Greenest Home blog can be followed at 
www.endeavourcentre.org <http://www.endeavourcentre.org>.

For more information, contact Chris Magwood at 705-876-0569 or 
chris at endeavourcentre.org <mailto:chris at endeavourcentre.org>.

-- 
www.chrismagwood.ca
www.endeavourcentre.org

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