Love + Regeneration Volume 4, Issue 3

A Quarterly Journal from McLennan Design.

Rediscovering our relationship to the natural world.

Volume 4 Issue 3

TRIBUTE E.O. Wilson

CELEBRATE Silver Rock Living Building Home

INTRODUCE World’s Greenest Couch and Chair

UPDATE HMTX World HQ Construction

MCLENNAN DESIGN

Cautious optimism for 2022 It turned out to be a white Christmas in the end for us, with snow falling as day turned to night on the 25th – and the snow stuck around for a solid week, unusual for us on Bainbridge Island. It was a good close to a crazy year, allowing for sledding, walks in the snow, and a beautiful backdrop of white on our giant trees – a quiet time allowing for rest and recovery. 2021 was a wild ride with the ups and downs of the pandemic and the uncertainties it brought. Despite it all, it was a great year for our firm and our practice, and I continue to be humbled by the talent and drive of our amazing, yet small team. We had some big milestones this year – including the opening of the Climate Pledge Arena, which was a game changer for the sports and entertainment industry. We started some amazing projects, including our work at Western Washington and in Chicago in Bronzeville – as well as the construction of HMTX which continues on pace.

This issue is dedicated to one environmental champion that for decades tried to help turn the tide – and did for so many people – E.O. Wilson. One of my favorite authors and a scientist who helped make the world better, we honor him on our cover and in a small tribute. Included in this issue is a focus on Silver Rock – a wonderful LBC house we designed and built, but only recently had a chance to professionally photograph. There is also an update on HMTX and two contributing articles – the first a reprint of a recent interview I did with Future Arc in Singapore, and the second an op-ed by our friend Bill Browning on the failings of Munger Hall in California.

With Omicron spreading rapidly, the uncertainty of 2021 continues into 2022 as we now plan our year while living in the third year of a global pandemic. I remain cautiously optimistic that we’ll turn a corner on that and hope that the world will finally begin to take seriously the much bigger threat of Climate Change. Each year we do what we can to focus our clients and partners – and really anyone who will listen, on what we can do differently to live within our planetary means. That’s my ultimate New Year’s Resolution.

Jason F. McLennan CEO, McLennan Design Founder, Living Building Challenge

WINTER 2021

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

JASON F. MCLENNAN

GRAPHIC DESIGN

MICHELLE HENRY

CONTRIBUTORS

BILL BROWNING, FUTURARC, GALEN CARLSON, CATHY RIDLEY

SOCIAL MEDIA

McLennan Design respectfully acknowledges the Suquamish and Duwamish peoples, who, throughout the generations, stewarded and thrived on the land where we live and work.

January 2022, Volume 4, Issue 3 LOVE + REGENERATION is a quarterly publication of McLennan Design, LLC. © 2022 by McLennan Design. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Content may not be reproduced in whole or in part without written permission and is intended for informational purposes only.

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Cover Photo/wikimedia

NAVIGATE

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CELEBRATE

Silver Rock Living Building

TRIBUTE

E.O. Wilson A Champion for the Planet and for All of Life

CONTRIBUTE

FuturArc Interview Jason F. McLennan

UPDATE

HMTX World Headquarters Under Construction

CONTRIBUTE

Munger Hall Meets Hans Christian Anderson

by Bill Browning of Terrapin Bright Green

ELEVATE

Trees at Leisure Anna Botsford Comstock

INTRODUCING: WORLD’S GREENEST COUCH PG. 38 5

SUMMER 2021

Silver Rock A Living Building on Bainbridge Island Photos by Emily Hagopian

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SUMMER 2021

Entry approach to Silver Rock

Silver Rock McLennan Design’s Jason F. McLennan led the design on Silver Rock, with important contributions from Steven Christian, Brad Benke, Josh Fisher and Dale Duncan.

Completed in 2020, the home is a Living Building Challenge project on Bainbridge Island pursuing all Petals of the program. Named by the homeowners for large stones found on the property with silvery veins running through them, Silver Rock is now home to an engaged, nature-loving family of four who hope to create a multi-generational haven on five wooded acres on the North End of the Island.

The family’s vision for the development of their property includes a careful restoration of the land and an active role in the food chain through the promotion of permaculture, the attraction of bees and other wildlife, the remediation of invasive species, the addition of farmland and an orchard, with most of their site to be left as a nature preserve. This vision and the family’s unique living needs are reflected in the design.

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Overview showing solar on garage and two pavilions

Entry to Silver Rock with featured rammed earth wall

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SUMMER 2021

‘Hallway of Life’ with rammed earth thermal mass wall

View to office nook from ‘Hallway of Life’ 10

Great Room

View of kitchen from Great Room

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CELEBRATE

SUMMER2021 WINTER 2021

Aerial view of property looking south 12

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TRIBUTE

WINTER 2021

Remembering

E.O. Wilson

(June 10, 1929 – December 26, 2021) The world lost one of its best thinkers at the end of 2021. E.O Wilson – the scientist and two-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize – was a giant in the environmental and scientific worlds. His ideas crossed over into so many fields – including my own – as the individual who coined the term ‘biophilia’ and helped to make it accepted as a new field of inquiry while giving it instant scientific credibility. He published the book ‘Biophilia’ in 1984. All of us in green building owe him a debt of gratitude.

Wilson was a prolific writer and champion for the planet and for all of life, showing us how beautiful and amazing even the world’s smallest creatures are – like ants for example, a collection of species he was one of the planet’s leading scientists on and clearly loved. He turned his love of creatures small and large into a decades-long crusade to convince people to save and honor biodiversity on the planet.

The Diversity of Life (1992), Half Earth (2016), and the Future of Life (2001) are notable for their breadth of vision and passion for all living things. Everyone should read these books.

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He made science and biology accessible and interesting to thousands of people all over the world – and in my mind was also a poet, philosopher, and observer of humanity nearly without equal. His books – On Human Nature (1978), The Meaning of Human Existence (2014), Consilience (1998), and Creation (2006) to name a few – greatly influenced my thinking and shaped how I see the world. I believe he made the world a better place because of his spirit and the force of his ideas.

Photo/wikimedia

We should preserve every scrap of biodiversity as priceless while we learn to use it and come to understand what it means to humanity.

– E. O. Wilson 15

WINTER 2021

While I saw E.O Wilson speak in person, I never had a chance to meet and talk with him. I don’t have any personal stories of chance encounters and it was strange that we never crossed paths over the years – yet I, like so many in our field, walk in his huge shadow. I don’t know what he was like in person, and don’t need to. It is a wonderful thing that he left us so many amazing books and ideas to read, re-read and uncover, and with my highest recommendation I encourage all who read this to read his books and carry forward his ideas of the importance of saving life on planet earth. E.O Wilson was a true Green Warrior.

As the days get longer and the climate and biodiversity crisis becomes more clear, I hope that more and more of us take up his cause and learn to love the natural world – from the humble ant to the giant brained apes that we are.

Just like he did.

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JASON F. McLENNAN is a highly sought out designer, consultant and thought leader. Prior to founding McLennan Design, Jason authored the Living Building Challenge – the most stringent and progressive green building program in existence, and founded the International Living Future Institute. He is the author of seven books on Sustainability and Design including the Philosophy of Sustainable Design, “the bible for green building.”

You are capable of more than you know. Choose a goal that seems right for you and strive to be the best, however hard the path.

Aim high. Behave honorably.

Prepare to be alone at times, and to endure failure. Persist! The world needs all you can give.

– E. O. Wilson

REPRINTED FROM FUTURARC / 4TH QUARTER 2021

The FuturArc Interview JASON F. MCLENNAN CEO, McLennan Design

by Candice Lim & Dinda Mundakir

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Photo by Dan Banko

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Love + Green Building: You and Me and the Beautiful Planet—the title of Jason F. McLennan’s children’s book encapsulates well the essence of what his work and passion are all about. after individuals in architecture and the Green building movement today, the multi-hyphenate recipient of the prestigious Buckminster Fuller Prize (the planet’s top prize for socially responsible design) comes across as grounded and sincere in wanting as many people to understand what being Green is truly about. So, he teaches and writes extensively to share this wisdom. McLennan is also the creator of the Living Building Challenge (LBC)—the most stringent and progressive Green building programme in existence, as well as a primary author of the WELL Building Standard. As Founder of the International Living Future Institute and CEO of McLennan Design—his own architectural and planning practice—he is continuously seeking to put into practice what he preaches by designing some of the world’s most advanced Green buildings.

We caught up with him after his presentation at the International Building Environment Week (IBEW) 2021 virtual conference.

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CATCHING UP

We’re going to be opening the Climate Pledge Arena, which will be the Greenest sports and entertainment venue in the world… It’s a 100 per cent renewably powered arena. And every ounce of carbon for operations has been offset.

CL: What are the major milestones for you since our last chat in 2014?

JM: In 2014, I was still CEO of the International Living Future Institute. And as you guys know, I created the Living Building Challenge and a whole host of programmes that the industry still uses in many different places around the world. I’m now on the board of the Institute—I’m kind of the emeritus [CEO]; grey hair and all—helping to still provide some inspiration and guidance, but I’m not involved with the entity on a day-to-day basis.

That year marked a transformation for me professionally, where I went back into practice after having led the not-for-profit, the NGO, for 10 years. And so, I started McLennan Design, which is my own design and planning practice based in the Seattle area. And we now design Living Buildings and net zero energy projects, as you have heard about in the conference. We’re really trying to bring to life a lot of the types of thinking and the philosophy that I was pioneering. And that work continues. So, we’re involved in all kinds of projects. That was really the big shift since 2014.

1 External perspective of HMTX World Headquarters

Image by McLennan Design

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HMTX World Headquarters and Materials Innovation Center The HMTX World Headquarters is a mixed-use, net zero energy office, research and design testing facility. This innovation centre for a leading manufacturing company includes a variety of elements that requires specific indoor and outdoor spaces as part of an overall sensitive ecological campus integration. McLennan Design worked with the client to secure rezoning permits with the city to build this HQ in what had previously been a residentially zoned area and is now approved for mixed commercial and residential uses. The programme includes collaborative research and development spaces; art and design archives; live/work artist-in-residence units; offices, conference rooms; and open workspaces. With a focus on new product designs and next generation materials and fabrication, the facility will house state-of-the-art digital printing and fabrication technologies, alongside curated art galleries and artist-inresidence programmes. Passive design strategies and biophilic interventions support the project’s pursuit of 5 Living Building Challenge Petals and will ultimately provide a place of inspiration, design, convening and curation.

FOREST BOARDWALK ADA accessible boardwalk with benches provides universal access to the building and opportunities for forest bathing and bird watching

PROJECT DATA Project Name HMTX World Headquarters and Materials Innovation Center Location Norwalk, CT Status Under construction Expected Completion 2022 Site Area 76,302 square feet Gross Floor Area 21,000 square feet Number of Rooms 15 Building Height 4 storeys Client/Owner Harlan Stone, HMTX Industries

Architecture Firm McLennan Design Principal Architect Jason F. McLennan Main Contractor Shawmut Design and Construction Mechanical & Electrical Engineer Integral Group Civil & Structural Engineer McChord Engineering Structural Engineer Silman Images/Photos McLennan Design

2 Illustrated section 3 Exterior perspective 4 & 5 Interior perspectives

PHOTOVOLTAIC CELLS On-site energy demand is met by photovoltaic cells isolated on the roof and on shading canopies that help reduce solar heat gain

GREEN ROOFS Green roofs reduce storm water run-off, provide pollinator and migratory habitat, clean the air and create a pleasant biophilic space

NORTH

STORM WATER RAIN GARDENS Storm water run-off is transmission to the local watershed, recharging the water table, and creating a beautiful landscape area for animals and humans alike

SOLAR ORIENTATION Minimizing the E-W exposure reduces overall heat gain and provides ideal seasonal views to the N-S

SOUTH

NATIVE LANDSCAPING 15,000 sf of the site is dedicated to urban agriculture with native plant species, providing on-site food production and protected habitat for local pollinators and migratory species

GREY WATER RECYCLING Separating grey water use reduces potable water use

RAINWATER COLLECTION Rainwater is collected in an underground cistern, treated, and used on-site as grey water for

VERTICAL CIRCULATION ‘Irresistible’ stair towers provide dramatic views of the surrounding tree canopies and encourage active movement among buildings users

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Images by McLennan Design

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DM: Are there any recent projects that you’re working on that you can share with us?

JM: In the next couple of weeks, we’re going to be opening the Climate Pledge Arena, which will be the Greenest sports and entertainment venue in the world. We’re kicking off with a big concert by Coldplay and the Foo Fighters as well, and then a big hockey game in the arena the next night. So that’s going to be exciting. It’s a 100 per cent renewably powered arena. And every ounce of carbon for operations has been offset. So that’s a real big thing in my mind right now.

And another very different project. We’re doing a world headquarters for a company in Connecticut called HMTX, on the east coast of the United States. It’s under construction, and I’m going to visit the site next week, to see progress and check up on how it’s coming together. So, that’s really on my mind and I’m excited to see it. Two very different projects that we’re working on right now are coming to fruition.

DM: That’s awesome.

CL: Yes, we mostly want to capture your recent projects, like you mentioned, the Climate Pledge Arena is really interesting because it’s so hard to do, making sure that everything gets processed and the operations are running according to your goals. That itself is a mammoth thing.

DM: What are your favourite projects to work on?

JM: All the projects I like to work on have to have this regenerative outlook, but it’s also a lot of fun when the people are really nice, and it’s going to make a difference in their lives. So, it’s always fun to work with kids; it’s always fun to work with people who take me out of my comfort zone; with different experiences as well. So, yeah, I like to have fun too because it’s a hard job. It’s a lot of work.

CHILDREN’S BOOK

I’m always trying to reach people of any generation and from all backgrounds… I reach a younger audience, but also to help people like us, who care about these issues, to explain why we do it to our families and to our kids, students.

CL: How did your children’s book come about? Does it have a greater link with your philosophy of sustainability, perhaps to engage the younger generation?

JM: I wrote an article for another magazine that described why I care about Green building, and I wrote it to be very simple and easy to understand for anybody who isn’t an architect, etc. And I got a lot of good feedback from it. So, it occurred to me that it would make a good kid’s book if it was illustrated. I reached out to a friend of mine, another architect in Mexico City, who has really wonderful and unique illustrations, and I sent him the manuscript and said, “Look, draw me a picture for every line in the book”. And that’s what he did—he did all these great illustrations. And it’s really just a series of essays on why we care about sustainability and so on. Since 2016, this book [Transformational Thought II] came out. So that’s the sequel to Transformational Thought. And it’s a series of articles on sustainability and futurism, the future of cities. And so that was my previous book that came out since 2014.

CL: The children’s book looks great. Not many people would do that. Going back to your hope for the future generation, how does it contribute to that?

JM: Well, I’m always trying to reach people of any generation and from all backgrounds. We need to change minds wherever we can. And so, I figured the children’s book was one way to reach a younger audience, but also to help people like us, who care about these issues, to explain why we do it to our families and to our kids, students—why we do what we do. So that’s part of the purpose: it’s a story that explains why we should care about these issues to anyone of any age.

I continue to teach people of all ages—I just taught a lecture last week at Rice University in Texas, and a couple of weeks before I spoke at the conference in Singapore [IBEW 2021; see Special Focus in this issue’s Happenings section]. I wish I could have come to Singapore. I continue to reach people in every demographic that I can.

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Climate Pledge Arena PROJECT DATA Project Name Climate Pledge Arena Location Seattle, WA Completion Date October 2021 Site Area 490,352 square feet Gross Floor Area 800,000 square feet Client/Owner Oak View Group (OVG) Architecture Firm Populous

Climate Pledge Arena is on track to become the first net zero carbon-certified arena in the world by the International Living Future Institute. McLennan Design provided strategic sustainability and regenerative design consulting to set this facility on the path to become arguably the most sustainable sports venue ever.

The arena will host the new NHL Seattle team and be completely carbon neutral for both operations and events. As the project progresses through construction and operations, McLennan Design will continue to coordinate, advise and improve the performance of the facility.

6 West aerial view 7 & 8 Cistern bench study diagrams

Principal Architect Geoff Cheong (from Populous) Main Contractor Mortenson Mechanical & Electrical Engineer ME Engineers Civil & Structural Engineer DCI Engineers Landscape Consultants Swift Company Images/Photos Climate Pledge Arena

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CISTERN INTEGRATED IN PLAZA BENCH

6”

WOOD SLAT BENCH TOP

1. Rooftop rainwater collection 2. Drains to planter cistern

STORM WATER COLLECTED FROM ROOF

APPROXIMATELY 12,000-GALLON TANK 4”

STORM WATER STORED IN PLANTER CISTERN TANK

3. Collected in bench cistern and pumped back to building for use WATER COLLECTED FROM ROOF CONVEYED TO PLANTER CISTERN

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Images by Climate Pledge Arena

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GREEN CERTIFICATIONS

We don’t have time for people to be ‘light green’—they need to be ‘Deep Green’, and to be pushing towards regenerative outcomes as fast as they can.

CL: Let’s talk about LBC. Dinda and I were talking about the chart that you showed at the conference in Singapore, a spectrum between LBC and LEED. Why do you think we need so many certification programmes rather than sticking to the most rigorous one, which I think LBC is?

JM: Well, I would love everyone to do LBC. And it certainly is time to move to that far in the spectrum.

But there’re a lot of people who have trouble imagining how they can change so quickly, so, I think that’s why there are different standards, as people are entering this world, if you will, at different places. But the problem is that we don’t have the luxury of a lot of time to make change anymore. We’re learning about, as you guys know, the incredible impacts of climate change all over the planet. And we don’t have time for people to be ‘light green’—they need to be ‘Deep Green’, and to be pushing towards regenerative outcomes as fast as they can. But that’s not what’s happening in most places.

9 Infographics on Climate Pledge Arena: it will be completely carbon neutral for both operations and events

CL: How do you think we can make that better? Or expedite the process towards Deep Green?

JM: Thankfully, the economics around certain things are getting better, especially renewable energy, and electric cars, batteries and LED lighting, etc. There’s a real technological boom that is driving change in some areas very rapidly. And that’s encouraging. But that’s only part of the story. So, the other part of the story really continues to have to be a mindset shift for people where they understand that their livelihoods and the future of their children really depend on making a significant change. But, that’s a really hard thing for people to get their heads around. I think we’re going to see a greater adoption of these ideas out of sheer necessity. We’re starting to see that already in certain places where you can no longer deny the existence of climate change when it’s so evident. And so, we’re starting to see policies and shifts that are bigger. For example, in the tech sector, companies such as Apple, Microsoft, Google, Amazon, are really getting much more serious about all these issues, and changing the way they build their facilities and trying to change their supply chains. That’s another driver for this, and that’s really encouraging. But really, ultimately, we have to start to care more about other people—these are social justice issues and environmental issues.

Our societies have been very selfish and very consumer oriented, very much about the present moment, not caring about the future. So that’s a bigger psychological change that has to happen.

100%

Building

Decarbonization

ENTIRE electricity use of building matched by renewable energy

Renewable Electricity +OFFSITE renewables ONSITE solar to

LOW-CARBON ALL-ELECTRIC converting ALL combustion powered systems

source - even the zambonis

Low Embodied Carbon

Achieving REUSING

materials to avoid construction impacts

PRESERVING

historic glass walls

PRESERVING historic roof

Net Zero Embodied Carbon

through REFORESTATION and renewable energy investments

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ASHRAE World Headquarters McLennan Design, in partnership with Houser Walker Architecture and in collaboration with Integral Group, led the design of a new headquarters for ASHRAE, the professional association of heating, ventilation, air-conditioning, and refrigerating (HVAC&R) engineers, based in Atlanta, Georgia. The design team is tasked with renovating to net zero energy performance levels an office building built in the 1970s. ASHRAE, founded in 1894, is a not-for-profit global society advancing human well-being through sustainable technology for the built environment. It funds research projects, provides continuing education programmes, and develops technical standards for the advancement of HVAC&R systems design and construction with over 56,000 members worldwide. The renovation will serve as a benchmark for deep energy efficiency retrofits and provide a healthy, biophilic and productive work environment for ASHRAE’s employees and the volunteer committees that serve the industry.

PROJECT DATA Project Name ASHRAE World Headquarters Location Peachtree Corners, GA Completion Date 2020 Site Area 11 acres Gross Floor Area 69,000 square feet (building) Number of Rooms 130 Building Height 30 feet without the basement (10 feet) Client/Owner ASHRAE

Design Architect McLennan Design (Jason F. McLennan, Design Lead Architect) Architect of Record Houser Walker Architecture (Greg Walker, Partner-in-Charge/Interior Designer) Main Contractor Skanska Mechanical & Electrical Engineer Integral Group Structural Engineer Shear Structural Images/Photos Jonathan Hillyer 10 & 11 Exterior views of ASHRAE World Headquarters 12 Interior view

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Images by Jonathan Hillyer

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LOVE

We try to heal what we love, and we love what we heal… We’ve been very unloving as a society. And so, opening our hearts to other people and other life is really what I’m after.

CL: Is that why love is a main thing that you’ve talked about sometimes? I like that. I mean it’s hard to flesh it out or explain it. But I like that it’s part of your conversation about the issues.

JM: Yes, if you look on my website, I have a newsletter that I publish called Love and Regeneration (http://mclennan-design.com). And to me, those things are inseparable, because we try to heal what we love, and we love what we heal.

And there’s been a real lack of love and lack of care for other people—people who don’t look like us; people who are from different places; people who have different cultures; and there’s a lack of love for other species as well. That’s really at the heart of this—we’ve been very unloving as a society. And so, opening our hearts to other people and other life is really what I’m after. And that’s an exciting thing.

DM: Jason, was there a moment in your practice where you’ve encountered a situation where people were mostly, for example, motivated by greed, not out of love for sustainability? I think those kinds of situations happen quite often. So, was there a memorable moment in your practice where that kind of thing happened, and then there was a mindset shift due to some realisation or something like that?

JM: Certainly, in my career, I’ve been involved with lots of projects where we had to help educate people as to why this was important. And in some ways, you want to convince them intellectually, but you also have to win them over emotionally, and help them expand their thinking, because they start to realise that this is better for them, better for the world.

For a lot of the projects I do now, people are seeking me out, because they want to do this. So, they’re already there emotionally, and they just need help to figure out how to build a Living Building. But, they’re there already. I’m lucky that I get to work with people who are already that motivated; I don’t have to convince them so hard. But certainly, there’ve been lots of times where you run into people on projects who have different motivations, and then you try to find a pathway to get them to understand and open their hearts to a different way of building. And for some people, you can do it; for others, it’s futile. So, it depends.

BEAUTY

Nobody wants to emulate an ugly building, and so, that’s very real. There’s a real dimension to environmental performance from beauty…

You need to have beauty and sustainability together. They’re not separate; they should really be one. And if you can do that, then you’re going to be successful.

CL: In our interview in 2014, you were talking more about beauty in buildings. Has your concept of beauty changed? Does it still pose a subjective argument between you and clients or the people you work with?

JM: I don’t think it has changed a whole lot since then. I still think beauty is an important way to get at people’s hearts. And that’s really the point. It’s not about a particular style. So, I’m not talking about style; I’m not talking about fashion. I’m talking about beauty as a deeper word that is something that stirs our imaginations and stirs our emotions, and compels us to respond in some way, because of the quality of the design. So, that’s something that I’ve always been interested in. And we still talk about beauty with all of 27

Heron Hall Heron Hall is the home of Jason F. McLennan and his family. As a Petalcertified LBC project (Water, Place, Health, Happiness), it embodies the philosophy of sustainable architecture through high performance systems and elegant design. It is the fourth residence in the world to achieve the Water Petal of the Living Building Challenge, and collects, stores, treats and reutilises rainwater on-site in a 15,000-gallon cistern for 100 per cent of its water needs. Serving as a teaching tool and laboratory as well as a private residence, the project is raising the bar for future homes. The structure uses salvaged, reclaimed and repurposed materials alongside cutting-edge products—the vast majority of which are sourced from within a tight radius of the project site. Extensive use of insulated rammed earth walls form interior and exterior surfaces, while other exterior walls utilise shou sugi ban (charred wood finish).

PROJECT DATA Project Name Heron Hall Location Bainbridge Island, WA Completion Date 2017 Gross Floor Area 3,700 square feet Number of Rooms 12 Building Height 2 storeys Client/Owner Jason F. McLennan

Architecture Firm McLennan Design Principal Architect Jason F. McLennan Main Contractor Smallwood Construction Mechanical & Electrical Engineer Integral Group Civil & Structural Engineer Mark Porter Images/Photos Emily Hagopian

13 Petal of LBC diagrams

HERON HALL NET ZERO WATER Heron Hall demonstrates a full Net Zero Water design for the collection, storage, treatment and use of water for household needs.

HERON HALL NET ZERO WATERHVHH

We fully anticipate meeting our water budget through our innovative

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WATER BUDGET 6

Toilets

Laundry

Other Faucets Showers & Baths Dishwasher

Kitchen Faucets 2

WATER RESOURCES 3

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Water Storage 15,000 Gallons LEGEND 1. Rooftop water collection 2. Rainwater cistern 3. Water treatment 4. Household use 5. Water for landscape 6. Rooftop water collection for landscaping and pond 7. Water feature

Image by Emily Hagopian

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Household Needs 5,000 Gallons/Month

Surplus Cistern for Landscaping 8,000 Gallons

WATER SYSTEM 4

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Rooftop Collection

Cistern Storage

Filtration

Household Uses

Surplus for Landscaping 13 Uses

our projects, and what it means. It does mean, at some level, different things to different people. But at a fundamental level, it often is the same for everyone. And we’re also talking more now about biophilia—the love of nature and the need for nature, and how that is tied up in our conceptions of beauty, and where we derive our inspirations for beauty, often from the natural world. So that has maybe evolved a bit as well.

CL: Because Asia is so diverse, we get a lot of projects that check all the right boxes for Green building strategies, like energy saving, etc. But then sometimes the building is not aesthetically appealing. So, it’s tough to explain why certain projects, which are highly Green-rated, but unattractive in design, are not inspiring as a whole.

JM: That’s really why we talk about beauty because that’s exactly what you’re saying—if we don’t have beautiful designs, it turns people off. It doesn’t get people to want to do the right things.

Nobody wants to emulate an ugly building, and so, that’s very real. There’s a real dimension to environmental performance from beauty—the building that’s ugly is also not going to be maintained as well. It’s going to start to use more energy over time, and then, it’s more likely to get torn down early, and all that embodied carbon, all those materials would be wasted. So, there is this real dimension with beauty and good design that I try to help people understand. You need to have beauty and sustainability together. They’re not separate; they should really be one. And if you can do that, then you’re going to be successful. Who doesn’t want a beautiful building that’s sustainable?

CL: In Asia, the definitions of beauty are so wide. There are some projects that the majority can agree that they are beautiful. And like you’ve said, biophilia plays a big role in this. Because they see how it’s incorporated with nature-based ideas, they’re emulating nature and so on. Here, it’s hard to come to terms with a common concept of beautiful buildings. One could think a building looks awesome, yet the next person could disagree, but then we have to recognise that this building is doing something useful to the environment, ultimately. So, it is a hard balance to strike. Yes, definitely a challenge till today, when we talk about beauty and architecture.

DM: Our definition of beauty is very different between regions, and it also has something to do with the vernacular architecture in the different regions. Jason, have you ever encountered or taken inspiration from vernacular architecture? Perhaps in Australia where they tend to be very inspirational from that aspect. Is there anything like that in your practice?

JM: We try to learn from vernacular architecture in terms of the principles or the physics, like the different ways to passively ventilate and naturally cool, etc. And so, there are a lot of things we try to draw inspiration from vernacular architecture, in terms of how it was integrated into a site or what it’s made of sometimes, the natural materials, but we don’t try to emulate it stylistically. We don’t want to appropriate other cultures. In our work, we try to do something as unique to this time, in this moment, but we learn from the principles of vernacular architecture. Sometimes we learn from the materiality, and we certainly learn from the climate responsiveness of the design work, if that makes sense.

CARBON WASHING

It is just another form of greenwashing, but focusing on the shiny penny of carbon CL: Jason, my last question to you has to do with something I’ve read about more and more recently, which is carbon washing. I mean, 20 years ago, we were talking about greenwashing and that has brought about changes over time. What’s your take on carbon washing? And has it got to do with confusion over terminology?

JM: It is just another form of greenwashing, but focusing on the shiny penny of carbon emissions. I definitely see a lot of that; people talking about carbon all the time in their designs with very questionable analysis behind it, or no analysis behind it. We see that all the time for sure.

CL: Do you come across that in your work and how do you overcome the confusion?

JM: That’s why we like third-party standards like LBC where there are clear definitions, clear requirements and metrics, and then you have to prove that you’ve met them. That’s why I like certifications to get around this issue and to have everyone speaking a similar language, and having accountability and transparency in claims that are made, and that’s really important.

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UPDATE

WINTER 2021

HMTX WORLD HQ CONSTRUCTION UPDATE Construction progress on the HMTX HQ building in Norwalk, CT is continuing apace, with exciting developments emerging daily.

Designed to become the first Living Building Challenge Petal Certified project in the state, the building exterior is quickly taking shape, with the first installations of glazing and exterior stucco applications occurring over the past month. Once completed, the living building will be largely self-sufficient, with an ultra-efficient envelope and mechanical systems, on-site PV panels providing over 100% of the building’s power needs, and rainwater capture for irrigation. The fourstory, 24,000 square-foot project is on track to become the greenest building in Connecticut, with completion slated for May of 2022.

“This facility will be groundbreaking, not only for its design, but for the pioneering product development work taking place inside.”

Jason F. McLennan

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A Center for Art + Innovation

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CONTRIBUTE

WINTER 2021

MUNGER HALL MEETS HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSON

BY BILL BROWNING OF TERRAPIN BRIGHT GREEN

Over the years I have noticed that while good ideas come and go, truly bad ideas take on a life of their own.

Some ideas even move into the realm of what Amory Lovins calls ‘spherically stupid’—stupid from any direction you look.

Billionaire Charlie Munger is giving the University of California Santa Barbara $200 million to fund less than 20% of the cost for building a dorm to house over 4,500 students, with the requirement that it be built to his design. Likened to the formidable Borg cube, Munger Hall is an 11 story, 1.8 million square foot shoebox with fewer than 10% of the spaces having windows. In many places, building codes require operable windows in every bedroom, but through a quirk of historical land ownership transfer, UCSB is not subject to local building codes.

Students will be sentenced to windowless cells arranged in clusters of eight, sharing a kitchen and one

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toilet and shower. Each cell will have a bed, chair, desk/bookshelf and closet. On the wall above the bed, renderings show a ‘artificial window’ panel that mimics daylight. In an interview with CNN Business, Munger says these windows will feature the “exact spectrum as daylight”,1 and that students can dial that light up and down any time. This free and easy mentality indicates a total lack of understanding of the biological circadian cycle and the negative health impact of having a certain spectrum mix at the wrong time of day, or night. The prefabricated modular room units are said to be inspired by the windowless interior cabins found on cruise ships; it’s worth noting that the average cruise trip is 7 nights in duration,2 not 9 months. To top it off, with eight people to a bathroom, a (Borg-like) collective consciousness or, more likely, isolationism seems necessary to achieve peaceable living.

Original illustration by Thomas Vilhelm Pedersen / Wikimedia Commons

On the energy efficiency side, I would be hard pressed to think of a more perfect place in the United States to site a passive building.

UCSB is located on the shore of the Pacific Ocean in Goleta, in Santa Barbara County. With one of the most benign climates in the entire country, (to geek out for a moment) the upper design temperature at the 0.4% condition is 82.9°F. There are 1,902 heating degree days and 470 cooling degree days, meaning this building typology could easily be designed for passive daylighting, heating and ventilation to yield a low carbon footprint and passive survivability. Yet, Munger Hall is entirely dependent on electrical lighting and mechanical ventilation; when the power goes off, this facility will be uninhabitable.

Windows with views to nature have a number of documented health and psychological benefits. From

the research of Peter Kahn and his colleagues, we know that an artificial window broadcasting (in real time) a view of nature is more beneficial than no window, but does not match the health benefits of experiencing a real window.3 Staring at a view of nature, even for just 40 seconds, quiets down the prefrontal cortex and restores cognitive capacity4— critical for students continually confronted with academic and social stressors. A panel mimicking daylight, even if its design utilizes circadian effective lighting, does not give the eyes a chance to focus on a distant view, which allows the lens to flatten and the eye muscles to relax and, ultimately, mitigate eye strain and headaches. Additionally, as a substitute for a window, a light panel will never capture the fleeting variability of light that helps keep our attention, allow us to see and hear the birds chirping in the trees, or connect us to the weather and the time of day.

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WINTER 2021

An enormously better model for dense housing, that also uses modular construction from the shipbuilding industry, are the citizenM hotels. Like Munger Hall, the underlying concept is small individual rooms and generous shared common spaces. The width of a citizen guest room is narrow – determined by the length of the bed, which is set up against an enormous window – and includes a sink, desk, closet, storage under the bed, and partitioned shower and toilet. The space is beautifully designed and thoughtfully detailed.

As we documented in Human Spaces 2.0, the lobby of a citizenM hotel is a great example of biophilic design that encourages people to gather and socialize. This hotel chain’s design is an example of what could have been done at Munger Hall.

A typical guest room at citizenM Boston, MA. Photo © Bill Browning 34

I want to applaud Mr. Munger for his charitable intention, as UCSB desperately needs more housing, and for the stated intention to be a ‘green building.’ It is unfortunate that in his effort to be spatially efficient and energy efficient he has created a building that is unfit for humans. To reference another of Amory’s expressions, Mr. Munger has ‘optimized for one component and pessimized the entire system’.

The Munger Hall project is an unfortunate lost opportunity that draws on poor precedents, as chronicled by Charles Bethea in the Nov 13th New Yorker article.5 Why didn’t UCSB’s administration stand up to stupid design—design that goes against everything we know about sustainability and healthy living environments? Blinded by the billionaire’s bucks, I suspect they all forgot the lesson from the classic children’s parable of ‘The Emperor’s New Clothes’.

A typical dorm room at Munger Hall, UCSB. Rendering courtesy UCSB / Santa Barbara Independent

REFERENCES (1) CNN Business’ Matt Egan interview with Charlie Munger on Nov 2, 2021. https://www.cnn.com/ videos (2) 97% of all cruise trips are 4–14 nights, and the remaining 3% of the total are for 15+ nights, only a handful of which are up to 100 or 120 nights in duration. CLIA 2018 Global Passenger Report.

(3) Peter Kahn, Batya Friedman, Brian Gill..., & Anna Stolyar (2008). A plasma display window?—The shifting baseline problem in a technologically mediated natural world. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 28(2), 192-199. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2007.10.008 (4) Kate E. Lee, Kathryn J.H. Williams, Leisa D. Sargent, Nicholas S.G. Williams, & Katherine A. Johnson (2015). 40-second green roof views sustain attention: The role of micro-breaks in attention restoration. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 42, 182-189. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. jenvp.2015.04.003 (5) Charles Bethea (November 13, 2021). Nightmare of the Windowless Dorm Room. The New Yorker, issue November 22, 2021. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/11/22/nightmare-of-thewindowless-dorm-room

BILL BROWNING, BED Colorado University, MSRED MIT, Hon. AIA, LEED AP., is one of the green building industry’s foremost thinkers. Terrapin Bright Green is an environmental strategies research and consulting firm. Browning’s clients include Disney, New Songdo City, Lucasfilm, Google, Bank of America, Marriott, the White House, Interface, and the Sydney 2000 Olympics. Browning is a founding board member of the USGBC. One of his areas of research is biophilic design. He is a coauthor of the Economics of Biophilia, 14 Patterns of Biophilic Design, and Nature Inside: A Biophilic Design Guide.

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ELEVATE

SUMMER 2021

Trees at Leisure Anna Botsford Comstock

In winter, we are prone to regard our trees as cold, bare, and dreary; and we bid them wait until they are again clothed in verdure before we may accord to them comradeship.

However, it is during this winter resting time that the tree stands revealed to the uttermost, ready to give its most intimate confidences to those who love it. It is indeed a superficial acquaintance that depends upon the garb worn for half the year; and to those who know them, the trees display even more individuality in the winter than in the summer. The summer is the tree’s period of reticence, when, behind its mysterious veil of green, it is so busy with its own life processes that it has no time for confidences, and may only now and then fling us a friendly greeting.

Anna Botsford Comstock circa 1900

excerpt from Anna Botsford Comstock, “Trees at Leisure”. 1916.

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WINTER 2021

Introducing Living Deep and The World’s Greenest Couch People spend a great deal of time on their couches. Most don’t realize that they are sitting on and breathing in toxic chemicals from flame retardants and fabric protectors and that inside their couch are petrochemical based foams and glues that take thousands of years to break down. Further inside, wood frames are made of cheap wood that was harvested from clear cut forests and has a terrible ecological footprint. We are literally destroying life to sit down. And, while lots of couches may look good, they are no longer made to last – with most thrown in the landfill in less than ten years and many after only half of that. When you dig deeper, you often find out that your sofas, chairs, and other furniture were all made in a far off location by people barely earning a living wage and then shipped thousands of miles.

Does this support your values?

• Made from 100% organic fabrics and fair trade ethically sourced leathers • Structure built from 100% FSC wood (the most stringent forestry protocol in the world) • Completely hand-stitcked cushions contain only natural latex, optional dust mite covers • White Glove shipped, without plastic wraps and only recyclable or returnable wrapping • Near Zero Waste construction • Designed and built using traditional methods to last decades if properly cared for • Constructed and assembled entirely in Seattle, WA by workers paid a Living Wage • Net Zero Carbon, through carbon offsets for manufacturing energy and estimated shipping • Fully compostable at end of life

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Imagine instead a luxurious, locally - and ethically-sourced sofa made entirely from natural materials and designed for sustained human health. Imagine a furniture solution that is crafted with care, completely hand-stitched and free of any toxic chemicals. Imagine a piece that is as durable as it is beautiful, able to become complete luxury, that will become a future family heirloom that can be handed down from one generation to the next – all aligning with values of social and environmental responsibility.

This is Built for Life.

Built for Life.

QUALITY. BEAUTY. ENVIRONMENTAL PERFORMANCE.

livingdeep.com 39

SUMMER 2021

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SUMMER 2021

ABOUT MCLENNAN DESIGN McLennan Design, one of the world’s leading multi-disciplinary regenerative design practices, focuses on deep green outcomes in the fields of architecture, planning, consulting, and product design. The firm uses an ecological perspective to drive design creativity and innovation, reimagining and redesigning for positive environmental and social impact.

Founded in 2013 by global sustainability leader and green design pioneer Jason F. McLennan and joined by partner Dale Duncan, the firm dedicates its practice to the creation of living buildings, net-zero, and regenerative projects all over the world. As the founder and creator of many of the building industry’s leading programs including the Living Building Challenge and its related programs, McLennan and his design team bring substantial knowledge and unmatched expertise to the A/E industry. The firm’s diverse and interdisciplinary set of services makes for a culture of holistic solutions and big picture thinking.

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ABOUT JASON F. MCLENNAN Considered one of the world’s most influential individuals in the field of architecture and green building movement today, Jason is a highly sought out designer, consultant and thought leader.

The recipient of the prestigious Buckminster Fuller Prize, the planet’s top prize for socially responsible design, he has been called the Steve Jobs of the green building industry, and a World Changer by GreenBiz magazine. In 2016, Jason was selected as the Award of Excellence winner for Engineering News Recordone of the only individuals in the architecture profession to have won the award in its 52-year history.

McLennan is the creator of the Living Building Challenge – the most stringent and progressive green building program in existence, as well as a primary author of the WELL Building Standard. He is the author of seven books on Sustainability and Design used by thousands of practitioners each year, including The Philosophy of Sustainable Design. McLennan is both an Ashoka Fellow and Senior Fellow of the Design Future’s Council.

He has been selected by Yes! Magazine as one of 15 People Shaping the World and works closely with world leaders, Fortune 500 companies, leading NGOs, major universities, celebrities and development companies – all in the pursuit of a world that is socially just, culturally rich and ecologically restorative. He serves as the Chairman of the International Living Future Institute and is the CEO of McLennan Design – his architectural and planning practice designing some of the world’s most advanced green buildings. McLennan’s work has been published in dozens of journals, magazines and newspapers around the world.

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mclennan-design.com