Ever Green Winter Open House

For directions or questions, you can best reach me by text at 509-828-0331

      For directions or questions, you can best reach me by text at 509-828-0331
Winter in the ancient world was a time of family and community, feasts and celebrations. In our modern world, however, the idea of getting together with a bunch of people we hardly know isn't very appealing. Take a look at that second statement and see how far we have deviated from the first. The modern world connects us electronically to literally everyone on the planet, yet it seems the more connected we are the more isolated we feel. How is that possible? All but gone are the days of small towns where everyone knows everyone else. These days most people don't even know their next door neighbor! It really hits hard, like a freight train, when we realize how isolated we really are, when we have lost one (or more) of the few people in our tiny circle of real friends and family. 

Kids grow up and move away. Death can take someone. Divorce can feel every bit as hard as death. 

Parental Alienation- This plague of revenge, seemingly supported by the justice system, not only torments the targeted ex, but devastates the lives of innocent children. Don't be alone this holiday season!  Come join with others who are feeling the same and together we can create an extended family of camaraderie! We understand completely because we are right there with you! We want to share our love and holiday spirit and our home with somebody, so we decided to invite the whole community by having our first Holiday Open House! 

For the entire month of December, every Saturday from noon till midnight our home is open to anyone who needs a hug or someone to talk to. But this is far from a pity party! It's about sharing ideas and inspiration and getting our lives back on track to rise above and go farther than we ever imagined! We are grateful for the tremendous support we have received from our community and we want to give back. So we are offering a sample of our services for free all month, no strings whatsoever! We want to help make our community stronger and more successful and sustainable. Our house is your house, come stop by and say hello! 

    •Free Reiki Healing Massage with Delilah- chronic pain, back pain, muscle tension, infections, bruises, broken bones, nerve damage, and more

    •Free dream house or dream business consultation with Chuck- quick brainstorming session to light a fire of inspiration to get your energy flowing toward what you really want in life. 

    •Free list of money-saving tips that could save you big bucks every month! Plus a reading list of the books the tips came from to save even more! ;)

    •Free Food for Life!! Learn how to grow your own healthful real food, right in your own yard, for absolutely Nothing!  As weather permits, we will be working on the foundation of our new food forest. This brand new ancient gardening method takes us back to total food freedom. Old fashioned gardening is not as hard as you think! You only need 4 things: air, water, soil, and sun. It really is that simple!

•Free ....house?! We will have a stack of info on making bricks, cob, and simple wood fired clay tiles, as well as designs for a yurt, earthship, cob houses and more!

•Free demo on how to build a rocket stove from 4 cinder blocks! Plus more information on rocket stove uses and designs. 

Feel free to bring your own ideas to share! Do you have a great gardening tip? How about a new construction innovation or greener product? We love to learn! And then we can share that too!

 For directions or questions, you can best reach me by text at 509-828-0331

Everyone who visits Hawanasa says there is something magical about this place. We feel privileged to live here as caretakers, but we feel the need to share this revitalizing tranquility with others. Come experience the healing energy that flows down the river and through the trees. Watch for deer, turkeys, herons, geese, ducks, and maybe spot our bald eagles soaring overhead or sitting atop one of our towering ponderosas. Escape the holiday rush for a while and come relax in nature. 

Hawanasa reminds us to Return To Eden.... why did we ever leave? 

 https://youtu.be/biIcdSKIFDQ

Advances in Architectural Geometry - MIT

This inspirational video is a visual treat to watch. It really speaks for itself. Enjoy, but also ponder the following as you view it!

I love to see exploration in design.  Design is continually building, re-thinking, re-learning.  Like inventors, you find yourself going "back to the drawing board" repeatedly.  Some people see that as negative...oh, a failure...back to the drawing board.  I see it as a challenge!!!  Oh, a hiccup, not a failure...how can I do this a little better.

Take for instance the concrete beams researchers are developing with foam cores...the idea is to displace an expensive and exhaustable resource like concrete with a foam core to reduce weight, waste and materials.  You start with an idea and have to weigh all the pros and cons while on the brainstorming journey.  At times the brainstorm becomes so intense, something gets blown over in the process.  Pick up the pieces and reassemble them different and you may come to a more phenominal solution.  The foam core of a beam works, because the work of the beam is being done one the outer dimensions of the beam.  There is a zone you can bore carefully spaced holes in, or in this case, replace it with another material.  You have to carefully balance expansion, contraction and other physical properties of a material. 

You also have to question whether the idea is a valid idea at all?  The material may stand up to the effects of a common earthquake, but how about one that is more severe?  Other questions arise.  Will the core of the beam melt in a building fire?  What effect will that have on the beams integrity?  You explore, you test, you go back to the drawing board...in the end, the core material might change, but you've created something new, something meaningful.  This is the joy and essence of true design!

Book Review

I would like to share two book titles with you.  I am starting to re-read Jason F. McLennan’s book, The Philosophy of Sustainable Design.  I gain so much insight every time I open it.  I collaborated with Jason as the Co-Chairman of the Spokane Chapter of the group called Cascadia Inland Branch Collaborative.  Jason is CEO of Cascadia Green Building Council, a Chapter of both the US and Canadian Green Building Councils, which is the Pacific Northwest’s leading organization in the field of green building and sustainable design.  He has brought many wonderful ideas to the non-profit group.  I purchased the book at Greenbuild Chicago 2010 from Jason himself and want all of you to know what a fantastic book it is!  The book is described as “a journey to learn how” the building industry “can build more responsibly”.  Jason created The Living Building Challenge which is an international sustainable building certification program that goes beyond LEED Platinum.  You can learn more about The Living Building Challenge at the following Back to Terra link http://www.backtoterra.com/services.html .

I am just starting Green to Gold, co-authored by Daniel C. Esty and Andrew S. Winston.  The book is targeting business owners and encouraging them to join the green movement not only for the good of the planet, but also for the success of their companies.  They use examples like Toyota, IKEA and others, companies that are taking the “eco-advantage” in the marketplace.  Their thoughts include “how companies generate lasting value” by “building environmental thinking into their business strategies”. 

At Back to Terra we encourage this type of thinking, as good promotion of environmental values work in an educate and share it forward mindset.  Good sustainable design should not be held under ones hat as their own company’s tricks of the trade, but shared.  Ownership of an idea doesn’t accomplish anything.  Good sustainable design should be out in the open to educate the public and other designers.  When an idea is shared it can then be added upon, improved and networked.  Good design should go VIRAL.  It’s only when you share it that it becomes more valuable.

While on the topic of sharing, please post your favorite book or books related to sustainable design.  We are always looking to expand the knowledge base.

Happiness is Green

Tony Hsieh (pronounced Shay) is a brilliant young entrepreneur who gets the meaning of life. Life is not about slaving yourself away for the almighty dollar. Life is about finding joy and happiness in all that you do, letting money flow as a side effect. This guy turned the daily grunge paradigm upside down and inside out at his company, Zappos.  His free-thinking mindset turned his company's workspace into a playground. Happy employees are healthier, more alert and .... guess what? MORE PRODUCTIVE!  Healthy = Wealthy.  Health means more than simply being able to exist for 80 years behind a desk. How can one be truly healthy if one is not happy? Just imagine if all workplaces were like this! What if this was the norm? What if we were ALL happy? How much more could we accomplish? If you are a business owner.... how much could your business grow and expand if you stopped working so hard on the bottom line and started focusing on quality and productivity? -The TOP line? Trees grow from the top, building on solid foundation below. If your business has a solid foundation, stop stressing over the "bottom" line. It will take care of itself as long as your branches (products or services) and leaves (employees) are growing and healthy.  Happiness is Green!  Happiness makes more money-green, yes. But that's not the kind of green I am talking about. Happiness sustains your employees. What if you hire someone who will work for you forever because they are perfectly happy? Happiness goes hand in hand with a green sustainable workplace. Be green! Create a Happy working environment! 

The Daily Giggle:

Subject: Architorture

  YOU KNOW YOU'RE IN ARCHITECTURE WHEN...

> 1. ...the alarm clock tells you when to go to sleep.

> 2. ...when someone offers you a Bic pen, you feel offended.

> 3. ...you know what UHU glue stick tastes like.

> 4. ...you CELEBRATE space

> 5. ...coffee and cokes are tools, not treats.

> 6. ...people get nauseous just by smelling your caffeine breath.

> 7. ...you buy 50 dollar magazines that you haven't read yet.

> 8. ...you think it's possible to CREATE space.

> 9. ...you've slept more than 20 hours non-stop in a single weekend.

> 10. ...you fight with inanimate objects.

> 11. ...you've fallen asleep in the restroom.

> 12. ...your brother or sister thinks he or she is an only child.

> 13. ...you've listened to all your cds in less than 48 hours.

> 14. ...you're not seen in public.

> 15. ...you lose your house keys for a week and you don't even notice.

> 16. ...you've brushed your teeth and washed your hair in the office restroom.

> 17. ...you've discovered the benefits of having none or very short hair.

                or you've started to appreciate inheriting baldness.

> 18. ...you've used an entire role of film to photograph the sidewalk.

> 19. ...you know the exact time the vending machines are refilled.

> 20. ...you always carry your deodorant.

> 21. ...you become excellent at recycling when making models.

> 22. ...when you try to communicate, you make a continuous and monotonous whine.

> 23. ...you've danced YMCA with excellent choreography at 3 am and without a

                single drop of alcohol in your body.

> 24. ...you take notes and messages with a rapidograph and color markers.

> 25. ...you combine breakfast, lunch and dinner into one single meal.

> 26. ...you see holidays only as extra sleeping time.

> 27. ...you've got more photographs of buildings than of actual people.

> 28. ...you've taken your girlfriend (boyfriend) on a date to a construction site.

> 29. ...you've realised that french curves are not that exciting.

> 30. ...you can live without human contact, food or daylight, but if you can't make prints, it's chaos.

> 31 ....when youre being shown pictures of a trip, you ask what the human scale is.

> 32. ...you can use Photoshop, Illustrator and make a web page, but you don't know how to use

                 Excel.

> 33. ...You refer to great architects (dead or alive) by their first name as if you knew them. 

                 (Frank,  Corbu, Mies, Norman...)

The Mighty Dandelion

We would like to share the story of why the 'lowly' dandelion became the logo of  the
International Living Future Institute:
https://ilbi.org/about/logo%20story

"People often wonder why a common dandelion features prominently in the logo of the International Living Future Institute (the Institute).  “Isn’t that a weed?” some have asked.  “And what does a lawn menace have to do with green building?”
We are glad you asked and we are happy to explain.
"We carefully and intentionally chose the dandelion¹ –Taraxacum officinale – as the symbol of the Institute because it stands for many of the same things we do. It is a perfect metaphor. The Institute is committed to creating truly restorative structures and communities, generating global discussion about the need for transformative change in our built environment and flipping conventional wisdom on its head.  Our logo’s beautifully stubborn flower helps us convey all that and more.  Think it’s a weed?  Think again.
"The dandelion symbolizes strength.  Derived from the French words meaning “lion’s tooth” (used to describe the shape of the leaves), the dandelion’s very name implies natural leadership.   Just as the proud lion symbolically leads the animal kingdom, the Institute seeks to guide the human effort toward a restorative future.
"The dandelion is collaborative.  People think that the dandelion is merely an opportunistic invader. Quite the contrary. With its deep taproot, it has the ability to break up hard earth and bring nutrients up from below the reach of other plants. It literally creates future opportunities for other plants to benefit by growing first where other plants cannot initially grow. It is a good companion for shallower-rooted crops and also attracts pollinating insects, which benefit many other species.
"The dandelion endures.  This little marvel is a true survivor, challenging our notions of what is and is not desirable in the natural world.  We devote incredible amounts of water and energy and petrochemical fertilizer to irrigate the typical American lawn in climates where it would never grow naturally, and then attack the thriving Taraxacum genus with toxic chemicals to rid our landscape of so-called weeds.  This is another metaphor for many things in our civilization that we covet, which are actually hurting us and degrading our environment. We need to rethink what we value and the dandelion is a powerful symbol of that paradox.

"The dandelion is simple.  In the name of progress, humans have a habit of developing complicated technologies that end up being harmful to the planet and its inhabitants.  Yet the simplest solutions – such as vegetated roofs, rainwater collection systems or composting toilets – usually deliver the most powerful results.  The straightforward nature of the dandelion is similarly commanding: a small flower that can grow just about anywhere.

"The dandelion is curative.  How could something so packed with vitamins, calcium, potassium, iron, magnesium and zinc be considered a nuisance?  The dandelion has been used for a source of nourishment in the form of salads, wine and tea. It has also been shown to have healing properties in the treatment of many medical conditions and has been used as a medicinal plant by many cultures for hundreds of years. Anything with such restorative potential, whether it is a plant or a revolutionary approach to green design, deserves our attention and respect.

"The dandelion generates no waste.  All parts of the plant may be put to service, just as all systems in a Living Building Challenge project should be models of integrated systems. Whether used for medicinal or culinary purposes, the dandelion’s roots, leaves and buds all offer distinct and often delicious advantages. 

"The dandelion spreads elegantly.  A gentle breeze is all that is needed for the seeds of the dandelion to take flight before settling in nearby soil and beginning a new phase of growth.  In the entire natural world there are few methods of spreading the gene pool that are as elegant. Why are there so many delightful photographs of children blowing dandelion seeds? We think there is something primal and beautiful about blowing the seeds off a dandelion – just like we want spreading the word about Living Buildings, Sites and Communities to be so enthralling.
"The dandelion is a weed to some people, but to us it represents the possibilities of a restorative future.  What, after all, could be more naturally beautiful than a reproductive cycle that relies on the winds of change? "

Our Shared Challenge

http://architecture2030.org

Just a reminder to continue to review your Architecture 2030 Challenge plans as we progress to that year.  Follow the links below for an example plan.  Use the link to the right to learn more about the 2030 Challenge, subscribe to their Newsletter, or to Adopt the Challenge now.

Residential example (Las Vegas, NV):
http://www.architecture2030.org/index.php?id=229&proj_id=129 and http://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy09osti/44535.pdf

Commercial Example:
http://www.architecture2030.org/index.php?id=229&proj_id=101 and
http://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy02osti/32157.pdf and http://www.nrel.gov/news/press/2000/2100zion.html

Campus example (Central Washington University, Ellensburg, WA):
http://www.cwu.edu/~facility/sustainability/docs/Carbon%20Reduction%20Report.pdf
and http://www.cwu.edu/sites/cts.cwu.edu.admissions/files/centralmap.html

An excerpt from the Architecture 2030 Challenge site:

"As of 2010, the total U.S. building stock is approximately 275 billion square feet.  During normal economic times, we tear down approximately 1.75 billion square feet of buildings each year.  Every year, we renovate approximately 5 billion square feet. Every year, we build new approximately 5 billion square feet.

Herein lies the hope.  By the year 2035, approximately three-quarters (75%) of the built environment will be either new or renovated.  This transformation over the next [23] years represents a historic opportunity for the architecture and building community to avoid dangerous climate change." 

As a Sustainable Building Adviser and Owner of Back to Terra, my goal is to help educate not only the clients I work with, be it building owners, developers, contractors and design teams, but the public in general, to realize the vital role each of them play in reaching the goal of change and turning over this building stock, without being detrimental to the planet and our future generations.  Buildings use nearly 49% of the energy produced in the United States to be constructed and operated and 75% of the electricity produced in the US just to operate.  Those percentages are even higher globally.  

My personal vision is that there will be more renovation of existing buildings than new construction and that both building transitions will include a greater amount of reused or renewable materials, products with greater recycled content and nearly exclusive use of local materials.

Here is a great example of a city community doing great things toward the 2030 Challenge goals:  http://2030district.org/seattle/district-member-resources