Can We Afford Today's Housing?
Shelter is a fundamental human need. Unfortunately, our buildings are expensive - costly to build, costly to operate, and costly to the health of our environment. Globally, commercial and residential buildings consume 40% of all raw materials used by societies each year. In developed economies, buildings can account for up to 40% of the energy consumed, 70% of electricity use, and 30% of greenhouse gas emissions..
Renewable energy resources are well-matched to building needs. Solar heating technologies are clearly understood and have been used for decades, around the world, to heat buildings and to provide hot water. Wind power and solar photovoltaic (PV) technologies are also readily available to directly generate electricity from the sun. These energy sources are clean, reliable, and widely distributed. And yet, the energy from renewable resources barely registers on the global energy production meter. In the US, wind and solar resources combined account for only 0.2% of total energy use. In fact, solar energy production in the US has actually decreased over the past 10 years.
Our current housing practices are unsustainable. Too many people can't afford decent housing. Too many people who can afford to build their dreams waste valuable resources that cost money, damage our global life support system, and compromise our security. We offer a solution for housing that we can affort to live with.