The Tao of Cob is a how-to book on earthen-house building, written as a memoir in Dorethy's pithy, homespun philosophical voice. A retired librarian, the author has studied a wide range of subjects which are evident in her descriptions of her building project. Sections include the joy of using hand tools, gathering manure and stomping in mud to mix the building materials, and communicating with wildlife in the woods, as well as the hazards of a 60-year-old grandmother driving a '72 dump tr...

This year's fifth issue of A+BE outlines the relevance of the building substance as factor for the overall sustainable performance of the built environment. It wants to sensibilize the designer for the ecological dimension of planning decisions and to show how to optimize them. Design and construction of buildings include harvesting resources and producing emissions and stating a burden to nature. This can be perceived equivalent to a financial investment where the monetary value has to ex...

A House of Pomegranates is a collection of fairy tales, written by Oscar Wilde.

In this provocative collection of essays, renowned architect Daniel Solomon delves into the complexities of what makes a city vibrant. Acknowledging that a city is not a static thing, he argues we need to pay more attention to nurturing what he calls “continuous cities.” In such a city, he says, “new buildings, new institutions, and new technologies don’t rip apart the old and wreck it. They accommodate, they act with respect, and they add vibrant new chapters to history without eradicatin...

A visionary yet practical guide to building a more sustainable future, by one of the most important voices in environmentally aware designAre there practical solutions to the many global challenges—climate change, poverty, insufficient healthcare—that threaten our way of life? Author John Thackara has spent a lifetime roving the globe in search of design that serves human needs. In this clear-eyed but ultimately optimistic book, he argues that, in our eagerness to ...

A how to book for those interested in building a Timber Frame Home . When you are ready to look at the most important aspects of a project, this is the book for you. I discuss budget, needs, and design. Using the included exercises and worksheets you move through the process. Then I guide you step by step through estimation, design, and ultimately the construction process. This literature is a proven way to develop a workable project, design, and budget for only the cost of the book. This ...

During his three terms as mayor of Curitiba, Brazil in the 1970s and ‘80s, architect and urbanist Jaime Lerner transformed his city into a global model of the sustainable and livable community. From the pioneering Bus Rapid Transit system to parks designed to catch runoff and reduce flooding and the creation of pedestrian-only zones, Lerner has been the driving force behind a host of innovative urban projects. In more than forty years of work in cities around the globe, Lerner has found th...

Sustainable design is booming, but the men and women dedicated to reducing their carbon impact have lost sight of what they are trying to save: the natural world. Author Neil Chambers has been at the forefront of cutting-edge, sustainable architecture for years, and Urban Green is his revolutionary vision for bringing the power of the conservation and design movements together. He advocates looking to nature for the missing components of the green revolution: oysters that can clea...

Summarizes the main issues and strategies of the forceful and fast-paced green building movement.Many professions are increasingly producing tools to assist clients in breaking down and understanding the different elements that reside under the umbrella of the sustainability movement. For the design and construction professions, this unpacking often takes the form of green building guidelines and rating systems.This book aims to look at a selection of both ...

Compact Living: how to design small interior space, opens our eyes to the possibilities of living a compact and low impact urban life.It is about learning how to live happily with less clutter, and to embrace the joys in life. Most of our society is struggling to pay the bills, whilst chasing the ideal of a ‘bigger’ lifestyle. Compact Living: how to design small interior space is the perfect antidote to this; teaching us how to make the most of what we already have through assessing and des...

It's time to think differently about cities and nature. Understanding how to better connect our cities with the benefits nature provides will be increasingly important as people migrate to cities and flourish in them. All this urban growth, along with challenges of adapting to climate change, will require a new approach to infrastructure if we're going to be successful. Yet guidance on how to plan and implement projects to protect or restore natural infrastructure is often hard to come by....

Smart city development has emerged a major issue over the past 5 years. Since the launch of IBM’s Smart Planet and CISCO’s Smart Cities and Communities programmes, their potential to deliver on global sustainable development targets have captured the public’s attention. However, despite this growing interest in the development of smart cities, little has as yet been published that either sets out the state-of-the-art, or which offers a less than subjective, arm’s length and dispassionate a...