sustainable architecture

"I have been rigorously and scientifically studying nature and its processes since 1976, when I first entered Columbia University’s School of Design. At that time, I was ridiculed for promulgating that architecture has a direct kinship to nature and that it would be of the greatest benefit for all architects to learn from and study the supreme architect—nature."

Eric Corey Freed is principal of organicARCHITECT, an architecture and consulting firm in San Francisco, with over 15 years of experience in green building. Eric teaches the Sustainable Design program he developed at the Academy of Art University and University of California Berkeley. He is on the boards of Architects, Designers & Planners for Social Responsibility (ADPSR), Green Home Guide and West Coast Green, as well as the advisory boards of nearly a dozen other organizations.

Solara is green residential community in Poway, CA and the first apartment complex in the US to be fully powered by the Sun. Energy efficiency is achieved through both passive design features, such as orientation on the site, balcony, and shade overhangs, as well as the selection of materials and systems, including the building envelope that has ENERGY STAR Low-E windows and radiant barrier

Green roofs reduce heating and cooling loads on a building, reduce stormwater run off, filter pollutants and heavy metals out of rainwater, and filter pollutants and CO2 out of the air. And they can be beautiful too! Check out these pictures of mega-greenroofs from around the world!