Presenter: John Spears, AIA, CEM, LEED AP, President and Founder, Sustainable Design Group

About Presentation: 

The advancement in building technology has been dramatic in the past 50 years. Over the same period, we have seen a dramatic shift in the public awareness of human rights and the role of humans on the wellbeing of the planet and on people's health. 

In this presentation, we will look at the origins of this movement and some of the thought leaders of the time like Buckminster Fuller (credited with development of the of the geodesic dome), who taught us that all things are connected and that we can create systems that are better than the sum of their parts. He called it "Synergy.”

Stewart Brand who published the Whole Earth Catalogue, which was the "Google search engine" of the time for alternatives and access to tools for transformational change. 

We will look at how the thought leaders of the 70s ideas are relevant today and moving forward, what the homes of the future could look like.

We will look at some of the technologies of the day such as passive solar heating and cooling and their application today. We will look at trends in current technology like healthy homes, Passive House, solar power and net zero. We will then look at the direction the trends are taking us and what the homes of the near future can be. Some of the topics will be net zero carbon, human-centric design, grid interactive, grid independent and off-grid homes, rain water use and healthier homes. 

Access information will be sent to our Conversation Group members (register on website below).