We all know the RE trilogy by now – Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. There is a reason they are listed in this order – Reducing our consumption is the most important of the three. If we Reduce the amount of stuff we bring into our homes, there is less to Reuse and Recycle later. In a consumer society Reducing is often the most difficult to accommodate – the other two are easier.

Recycling has gotten quite popular since the process is so familiar – you can still buy just as much stuff but by separating your trash you can now clear your conscience!  However, we’re still contributing to the extraction of limited resources and almost everything that is Recycled is downgraded in the process.  Sorry.

Lately, I’ve been noticing more emphasis on Reuse, and I like it. My recent fascination started with a trip to the Earthship headquarters in Taos, where this whirlygig beacon stands. Masters of Reuse, they incorporate tires, bottles, cans, wood and steel to build homes.  More commonly used building materials are available at places like Second Use, Earthwise, and the RE-Store, in Seattle and Bellingham, and the ReBuilding Center in Portland.  This is not just a Pacific Northwest phenomenon either – there are organizations around the country like Building Materials Reuse Association in South Carolina and online exchanges such as Build.Recycle.net.

Reclaimed building materials have a history that appeals to me on a visceral level. Where else can you find Douglas fir beams with grain so tight you nearly need a magnifying glass to count the rings? From French doors to pedestal sinks, maple flooring to carved frame mirrors, treasures await around every corner. Most of the stores also provide deconstruction services, mining the industrial forest for the materials they sell.

Different from Recycling, Reuse keeps what is still serviceable in its current form but perhaps with another purpose or in another location. Clothing swaps are another example of Reuse – some of my favorite pieces have come from these exchanges. Garden clubs have plant and tool exchanges every year. Two interior designers in Seattle even started a Home Accessories swap a few years ago with great success.

Our parents and grandparents that lived through the Great Depression knew how to Reuse and Repurpose everything. Reduction was forced on them, and they made do with what they had. Ingenuity kicks in at amazing levels when no other choices are available! Our challenge is to tap this ingenuity while we still have options.

Straw bale homes aren’t for everyone around here, but there are places in the world where they are so much better than other available options.  Consider the legions of ramshackle metal and cardboard shelters, or even un-mortared concrete block and stone rubble, in a location that experiences earthquakes.  In the myriad of places around the world with no building codes, no money, and little infrastructure these strong, safe, and highly insulating homes are a gift and a blessing.

There are a few organizations scattered around the globe helping make this gift possible.  PAKSBAB, a small non-profit organization in Pakistan, is one such organization, teaching people who have lost their homes to rebuild with straw bales. For more information about them, please visit http://www.paksbab.org/html/.  You will see that like most of these groups, PAKSBAB relies on donations for their work.

To offset the need for donations, PAKSBAB recently entered the GISTech-I competition for innovative solutions to economic development problems.  There were lots of entries, and theirs was passed by this time around. We hope they enter again next year.

Whether the loss is from an earthquake, a typhoon, or the ravages of war, rebuilding their own homes brings people faith in their own resiliency.  Families help each other, and soon whole villages are restored.  That’s the kind of building we would like to see happen for people everywhere.

Made up mostly of very small business owners in the sustainable design and construction industry, this group’s kinship is rare and necessary. In clear contrast with the typical gathering of industry professionals, where competition and veiling of secret formulas for success is the norm, we seem to thrive on collaboration and inspiration. Numerous new alliances and several viable business ideas were cultivated over the weekend, and I’m excited to see how they blossom and grow over the next year.

The shared passion of this group is to advance a 200 year perspective for the residential built environment. Each of us is in some way pushing the envelope toward a vision of sustainability, yet much of our time is spent in isolation at our work. Because our means and methods are often not main stream, support from each other is essential for survival. And by collaborating with each other this vision can become reality much faster.

This is an excellent lesson in the power of numbers. A group of focused individuals can make exponential change in a short time where separately they might toil for years. We may crave seclusion from noise and activity, yet our lives are much richer when shared with others – balance is the key. Humans are tribal creatures, and in the tribe your unique knowledge can be woven into the collective fabric to create a whole that resonates out into the world.

Whatever work you do, consider how you might accomplish more through collaborating with others. It will be good practice – leaning on people in our own communities for food, services, and security may soon be just as important to us as it was for our ancestors. Together we’ll not only stand, but may just move forward making positive change that is tangible during our own lifetimes.

Welcome to our new blog, Eco-Notes. We’ve been talking about a blog for years and are excited to now be in the swim. We know there will be different strokes needed to move us through the waves; sometimes we’ll skim the surface, other times dive into oncoming breakers. There is something to be learned at every turn! We hope you’ll enjoy our musings and learn from our experiences. Onward Ho!

This covered deck addition and backyard cottage completely changed the character of this 1980′s suburban home. Note the “before” pictures of the back of the house on the upper right and lower drive on the lower right. The lower drive now leads to the shop below the new cottage.

Craftmanship and natural cedar are highlighted in the deck roof. A portion of this roof is covered with translucent panels to maintain natural light penetration to the interior. The guest cottage is elevated above a workshop, tucked into the previously unused slope of the backyard.  Not shown are new bookcases and a fireplace which covert an unused formal dining room into a library, and the addition of one small south-facing window in the master bedroom, balancing the light in the room.

Sustainable building still just getting a foothold in Yakima. Our clients wanted their new home to be a model for others and to start a movement there, and we were happy to oblige.  Energy efficiency was a major goal, and local, natural, and healthy materials were used throughout.  The home qualified for 5 star Built Green certification, but the site requirements for access to public transportation and tree preservation (there were no trees to preserve!) kept the  overall project at the 4 star level.

He wanted a log home, and she wanted something more finished – so we worked with them to find a solution that satisfied them both.  By combining traditional timber framing, with log trusses in the central great room with structural insulated panels and wood detailing throughout, the interior of the home has a relaxed elegance that lets the sun stream in.

The log timbers are Port Orford cedar, felled after a natural occurring organism destroyed the trees’ roots. The exterior, finished with stone and stucco, ties the home to its site in the hills west of Yakima. Milled timber framing was used at the angled entry porch for an open feeling, and as a reflection of the interior finish.

On the interior, the soaring ceiling in the great room is softened by the open log timber trusses, which create a comfortable setting for the natural stone fireplace.  Repetitive arches tie the kitchen to the den across the great room, while framing the log timbers that support open trusses above.