How do we expand the positive impacts of our buildings? Now is the time. The building sector is looking at a once-in-a-generation opportunity to flip from being a major contributor to both chronic disease and climate disruption to becoming one of the primary solutions. The key is provide training and perspective to the professionals involved. Why is it that so few architects base design decisions on the known health impacts of buildings at both the personal and community levels? Similarly, why i...
Jul 07, 2025•1 hr 17 min•Season 10Ep. 146
“It’s time to rethink the idea that architecture does not sully itself with social or ecological ills.” Jonathan Feldman (in conversation w/ KI) The practice of architecture is a place where ethics and aesthetics converge. We make decisions and lead our lives based on ethics . As such ethics is concerned with what is good for individuals and society. Aesthetics is a set of principles that are involved with the nature and appreciation of beauty - the aspect of an object that makes it pleasurable ...
May 29, 2025•1 hr 4 min•Season 10Ep. 145
Risk is real in the AEC. True risk management isn't about avoidance, but about informed engagement. Homes and buildings today measure success in many ways, each of these represent a potential failure mode. Managing risk means recognizing and embracing it, this is a core message from our guest today. Joe Basham is a seasoned construction industry attorney with decades of experience, a keen mind, clever wit and the ability to cut to the heart of the matter. Join Kristof and Joe as they delve into ...
Apr 30, 2025•1 hr 7 min•Season 10Ep. 144
In this special episode of the Building Science Podcast Kristof is joined by Ilka Cassidy of Passive House at NESEA's BuildingEnergy Boston '25. Ilka and Kristof are joined by the following inspiring speakers and organizers of NESEA 25: Jacob Deva Racusin, New Frameworks Natural Design/Build Andrew Himes, Carbon Leadership Forum Laura Bailey, Vermont Council On Rural Development Heather Ferrell, Prism Design Lab They dive in to the conferences main take aways, lessons learned, and calls to actio...
Apr 10, 2025•1 hr 1 min•Season 10Ep. 143
Understanding climate action through the words we use Keep an ear out for an easter egg after the outro on this one. The words we use matter. Terms like "sustainability”, “net zero” and “resilience” signify our industry's evolving priorities and concerns. These “buzzwords” reflect current cultural circumstances within the AEC industry and larger society while also actively shaping how we approach and address these issues. In this episode will be exploring the meanings and relationships between m...
Mar 20, 2025•1 hr 29 min•Season 10Ep. 146
“The world is not made of atoms, the world is made of stories” Muriel Rukeyser “Where do buildings come from?” is a question that comes with a story. Less often asked, “Where do buildings go?” . The evolving story human society tells itself in answer to those questions is worth unpacking thoughtfully. That’s what happens in this episode. Join Kristof as he shares a conversation with Greg Esparza on the power of storytelling and the connection between stories and the materiality of buildings. The...
Feb 26, 2025•1 hr 16 min•Season 10Ep. 145
The tension between aesthetics and performance in architecture is a critical and complex issue in contemporary design. Architects are increasingly and appropriately being tasked with designing buildings that are not only beautiful but also functional in terms of impacts on owners, occupants, resources, and planetary ecosystems. The contrasting view, one where architecture is principally form-making comes at its peril. As Juhani Pallasmaa cautions, following this path “The world becomes a hedonis...
Dec 07, 2024•1 hr 15 min•Season 10Ep. 144
Join Kristof and Corey Squire in this third and final installment of their interview series discussing Corey’s book People Planet Design . In Part 1 , they opened the discussion at the logical starting place of the important Why questions. Why design matters to society and Why architecture is the place to address so many important issues we face today. Part 2 addressed How to make good design happen by focusing on often overlooked dimensions of the design process. These include company culture, ...
Nov 19, 2024•1 hr 15 min•Season 10Ep. 142
What is the future of dehumidification? Turns out this simple question opens up an exciting view of the future of IAQ generally. The goal of a low energy method for removing water molecules from a flowing airstream boils down to some way of identifying, grabbing and holding onto them. Essentially we are talking about a designer desiccant or molecular filter that lets the air pass through while it filters out water molecules. If we can do this, the next logical question is “Why stop there?” Why n...
Nov 04, 2024•1 hr 6 min•Season 10Ep. 141
Passive house has become synonymous with the rapidly arriving new normal for our homes and buildings and offers layers of positive outcomes. Thermal comfort, IAQ/IEQ, durability, and low energy use are typically the incentives for owners, architects, builders and trades. As it turns out, there may be broader societal benefits tied to thoughtfully managing heat flows in and out of a building as well. Good ol’ thermodynamics isn’t getting the flashy attention of solar PV, wind turbines and batteri...
Oct 09, 2024•1 hr 15 min•Season 10Ep. 140
Empowering the practice of architecture to achieve consistent, predictable, positive impacts on human well-being and planetary health is perhaps one of the most pressing topics in the AEC today. Starting with a review of the history of the search for Bioclimatic Law , this conversation with Dr Bill Braham, FAIA is an invitation to architects to reclaim their power. Bioclimatic Law is the relationship between architecture and life. In practice “life” is more narrowly defined by architecture as “c...
Sep 08, 2024•1 hr 25 min•Season 10Ep. 139
The work of the AEC is broader than buildings. On a daily basis we, collectively and individually, make decisions that have broad and lasting impacts on our lives, our health, and our world. These impacts can be either positive or negative; the choice is ours. This is the perspective of Gina Ciganik and her brilliant and motivated team at Habitable. Armed with powerful minds and compelling data, they are working to help society rethink material supply chains altogether. Formerly the Healthy Buil...
Aug 16, 2024•1 hr 20 min•Season 10Ep. 136
How can we build better supply chains for the built world? When it comes to the inconceivably vast amount of wood we use in our buildings, one “simple” way is to use less virgin material and use more wood that would otherwise not make it to market. Instead it would be destined to decompose and emit its carbon into the sky. What if, instead, the forgotten trees were salvaged and turned into valuable, usable lumber? This is a big idea whose time has come. Still, having a powerful idea is only the ...
Jul 29, 2024•48 min•Season 10Ep. 134
Today we’re continuing the conversation on modular construction w/ Rommel Sulit and Chris Krager . Buckle up for some quotable quotes and impactful ideas in this episode. A recurring theme from part 1 is present here. Could it be the case that because modular delivery must rethink basic assumptions, it may be the first area of the AEC to do what the rest of the AEC is not. At core, the role of architecture is to create the link between design intent and what is actually built. This is not easy, ...
Jul 09, 2024•47 min•Season 10Ep. 133
How often do you think about modular construction? Is it an idea whose time has come? There are those who view it as the only path forward that realistically checks all the boxes - are they right? The potential is clear, modular project delivery can save time, save money, and positively impact our current and looming labor and skills crunch on the construction side of the AEC. There is no doubt that relative to the current norm, the “holy triumvirate” of owner, architect builder*, modular delive...
Jul 02, 2024•52 min•Season 10Ep. 132
Who knew that an indoor pickleball facility could become a touchstone for high performance construction based on passive house principles? The backstory here is worth unpacking as it relates to a powerful force that is not often discussed - money. Return on investment is the aim of the game in the realm of real estate investment and this fact typically filters out high performance passive buildings - but not this time, and it is important to understand why. Our guest today is adept in both the f...
Jun 11, 2024•58 min•Season 10Ep. 131
At a fundamental level, passive house practitioners are engaged in a rebellion against poor quality design and construction. It’s becoming quite clear that this rebellion has legs and will endure. Given this, a question worth unpacking is whether the durability of the passive house movement is emerging as an architectural style. What are the defining principles behind architectural aesthetic decisions in the context of high performance homes and buildings? What will the history books say about o...
May 23, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Season 10Ep. 130
Big news! The Humid Climate Conference is coming back to ATX and it’s time for some appropriate FOMO. We’re just two weeks out. You will be so glad you made the decision to come to HCC in ATX. Both the technical knowledge and perspectives you’ll hear, as well as the realization and experience of the power, vitality and unstoppability of the growing community of folks in the AEC that are stepping up to move our industry and our society forward. The theme for HCC’24 is Transitions. The work we do ...
May 01, 2024•11 min•Season 10Ep. 129
Today’s episode opens up the system of systems that delivers the materials, equipment and tools we use to deliver high quality homes and buildings to ourselves. The focus is on an novel ultrasonic leak detection system. This is potentially game-changing technology that impacts the ability to confidently deliver Passive House quality air control layers. Along the way you’ll learn about the importance of the air barrier and get a glimpse of the vastness of the AEC. This is an expansive episode tha...
Apr 22, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Season 10Ep. 128
What if it’s true that “ We can not solve our problems using the same level of thinking that created them”? - Attributed to Albert Einstein Could it be that our building science understanding is limited? Could it be that even the clarity of understanding we gain by viewing homes and buildings as a systems of systems, assemblies, materials and products interacting according to the laws of science and nature - is necessary but not sufficient to cause us to build that way? Building science is a nec...
Apr 10, 2024•59 min•Season 10Ep. 127
Josh Salinger Joshua Salinger is CEO and Founder of Birdsmouth Design Build, a residential Design Build company located in Portland OR. In 1999 Josh graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a double major in Zoology and Conservation. In 2007 he started Birdsmouth Design Build with the goal of designing and building beautiful, high performing homes that transform and improve the built environment. Josh has received certifications from Earth Advantage’s Sustainable Homes Professiona...
Mar 26, 2024•1 hr 17 min•Season 10Ep. 125
Luke Leung Luke is a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Fellow; He is also a Centennial Fellow from The Pennsylvania State University Architectural Engineering Department; Board of Directors for USGBC (United State Green Building Council), Illinois; Chairman of the ASHRAE (American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning) Committee on “Tall Buildings”; Chairman of the Building Pressure Committee, Chicago Committee on High Rise Buildings; Sustainable Committee wit...
Mar 12, 2024•1 hr 14 min•Season 10Ep. 124
Chris Magwood Chris works with the Embodied Carbon Team in the Carbon Free Buildings Program. He brings focus on carbon-storing material and the residential sector to the team, using his experience with LCA studies and policy development to support the team’s work. Chris has been designing and building zero-carbon buildings throughout his 25-year career. From 2005 to 2018, he was a lead instructor in a hands-on design/build program at Endeavour Centre and was responsible for many zero-carbon, ze...
Mar 01, 2024•1 hr 25 min•Season 10Ep. 123
How do we design and build affordable net-zero, carbon-negative homes? That important goal is the subject of today’s episode and is the focus of a multidisciplinary team that includes PNNL , Virginia Tech, and Green Canopy NODE . On the podcast today you’ll hear from Patti Gunderson with PNNL who is working with a talented team who are taking a thoughtful approach to this ambitious goal. One that focuses on modular design, carbon sequestering materials, thermal/energy efficiency, and a forward-l...
Feb 13, 2024•1 hr 17 min•Season 10Ep. 122
You don’t have to be a building nerd or an engineer for a question like this to be relevant and important to consider. There are many reasons why AWHP systems make an attractive alternative to our batch of current “normal” heat pumps that rely on refrigerant for thermal distribution. Some of the reasons AWHP are appealing include: (1) reduced refrigerant volumes, thus reduced refrigerant leakage into the atmosphere; (2) larger selection of indoor unit options relative to refrigerant based system...
Jan 24, 2024•1 hr 19 min•Season 10Ep. 121
We spend the vast majority of our time inside yet we actually know very little about what it means to live indoors. This is the case even though what happens indoors impacts us in nearly every way. Our comfort, health and overall well-being all are deeply impacted by what's in the air we breathe and what’s happening in and on the surfaces all around us. Enter Corbett and Grace Lunsford. Knowing that what we don’t know about our homes matters a lot, they took on the challenge of creating a TV sho...
Jan 16, 2024•51 min•Season 10Ep. 120
Moving heat with a heat pump is an unsung superhero in the global energy transition. Chances are nearly 100% that you’re using a heat pump right now - to heat or cool yourself, refrigerate your food, or keep your car comfortable while you drive. The vapor compression process may be the thermodynamic engine of a heat pump, but where the rubber meets the road is the heat exchanger, aka “the coil”. Getting heat exchanger coils right is a balancing act. On one hand we want the coils wall material to...
Dec 18, 2023•1 hr 20 min•Season 9Ep. 119
As a society we are learning, slowly but surely, how to design and build healthy indoor spaces for ourselves and our loved ones. Seeing the need to both guide and accelerate this learning process, Paula Baker LaPorte and her wingman John Banta and Erica Elliot MD dedicated themselves to write a book. This happened 35 years ago with the 1st Edition of Prescriptions for a Healthy Homes, last year (in 2022) the 4th Edition was published and it is a richly updated treasure trove of motivation, guida...
Dec 01, 2023•1 hr 4 min•Season 9Ep. 118
Designing and building a sustainable passive house is a powerful moment for all involved - the client, the architect, and the planet. For the owners the process is deeply personal and emotional, with layers of financial impacts and the significant time investment involved. For architects the key is to talk in a way that clients can hear them, and listen in a way that they can hear their clients*. For both the architect and the client the first few conversations set the stage for what comes next....
Nov 27, 2023•1 hr 5 min•Season 9Ep. 117
Stated another way: Why is it that some firms produce a consistent stream of high-performing buildings, while others have trouble crafting a single project that moves beyond traditional practice? The answer is Practice; the environment and practices within which each particular firm carries out or exercises its professional role in the society. Join us in this episode as Corey and Kristof enjoy a thoughtful and lively discussion of architectural practice along the dimensions of Vision, Culture, ...
Nov 21, 2023•1 hr 20 min•Season 9Ep. 116
