Sustainable Design
For us and for many architects, “green” design (or sustainable architecture) is not a new idea. It is integral with our traditional best practices, whether siting a building to best environmental advantage, deciding to adapt an existing structure, or opting to reuse materials. What may be new is the expanded definition of “environmental impact.” In addition to well understood principles like incorporating sustainable materials, we now consider controlling the subtler impacts such as minor emissions released from materials and finishes, and negative factors like the carbon footprint of transporting materials over long distances.
