Eco-Friendly Homes That Embrace The Earth Day Spirit

Stuck at home on Earth Day? That shouldn’t preclude you from figuring out ways to increase the energy efficiency of your home and create a healthy living environment. You will save energy and money, and your home will be more comfortable and durable. 

Homes are increasingly being designed and constructed toward the greener end of the construction spectrum. 

“Between catastrophic weather events and global pandemics, green buildings are more important now than ever before,” said Jane Frederick, president of the American Institute of Architects. “Not only can green homes lower utilities, they can operate independently of public utilities, offering homeowners resilience and peace of mind.” 

She added, “Building green is a key element of architects’ mission to protect the health, safety and welfare of the public. Earth Day is a good opportunity to both celebrate progress in green building and sustainable design and to recognize the growing need for green homes.”

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, here’s a sampling of residential designs with eco-friendly features.

Dvele 

“Our vision is to create homes that address a lot more than the essential, basic needs of homeowners, a concept which has been sorely lacking in homes over the last two centuries,” said Kurt Goodjohn, CEO and co-founder of San Diego-based prefab home builder Dvele. “When you think about the multi-dimensional depth and breadth that a well-designed, energy-efficient and healthy home can have on the world, people will come to realize, as we do, that better homes are the best and most meaningful way we can change the world for years to come.”

In areas that were severely affected by California wildfires, Dvele overcame commonly encountered obstacles such as permit approvals and a shortage of construction workers with its customizable modular homes, which require fewer building permits and inspections, are eco-friendly and can be completed in six months.

“If our homes allowed us to passively improve our environment just by living in them, we can nurture the mindset that making the right decision once, like the type of home we live in, can have profound impacts on the future of our planet,” said Goodjohn. “That kind of collective mind shift can literally change the world. And like most great movements, they are born at home.”

Optima Inc.

A cornerstone of community design at Optima Inc. is including green space to seamlessly connect residents to nature. Numerous studies suggest that contact to nature has positive effects for human physical and psychological well-being.

At Optima Kierland Center in Scottsdale, Arizona, a development of luxury rental and for-sale residences, residents have access to lush rooftop landscaping, an outdoor Zen garden and 5.5 acres of lushly landscaped courtyards with fountains. 

A multiphase development project, each building within Optima Kierland Center is connected to the others through aesthetic structure and physical pathways amid lush gardens. Within the building, an innovative vertical planting system features self-containing irrigation and drainage, including vibrant and colorful planters at the edge of each floor. The system ultimately culminates into a beautiful rooftop garden.

At Optima Sonoran Village in Arizona, 60 percent of its grounds are open space that not only mediate the harsh desert climate but also create visually stunning landscaped areas to be enjoyed by residents and the community. A Kaleidoscope Juice Bar with patio seating is also on site.

In Chicago, luxury rental tower Optima Signature offers residents and the surrounding Streeterville neighborhood access to a tree-lined public plaza near its front entrance with a short walk to the lakefront and the Riverwalk.

Palisades

Committed to creating balance between humanity, the city and the environment, Gardenhouse in Beverly Hills, California, is the first project in the United States by renowned architect Ma Yansong, founder of the global architecture firm MAD Architects. Yansong is known for his core design philosophy of creating a building that can re-establish the emotional connection between humanity and nature through organic design. 

The sculptural facade of Gardenhouse is home to the largest living art wall in the country. A natural evolution from outside the walls to inside, the wall is composed of native plants and succulents that transform with the seasons, creating a living, ever-evolving art piece that blocks out the sounds of the city while drawing in and filtering the warm California sunlight.

Sotheby’s International Realty

Down a quiet tree-lined country lane, a rustic country home in Santa Rosa, California, projects a mellow, natural style. The energy-efficient home features a green roof, solar panels, double-pane windows and doors, and a workshop made from straw bales and adobe clay plaster. The workshop is primed for radiant heat and solar panels.

A self-sustaining private island in New York’s Long Island Sound is nestled on nearly 5 acres of land, including an open beach with lush indigenous plants. Accessed via boat, the eco-friendly four-bedroom residence on Columbia Island includes a great room that is ideal for entertaining with views from every angle. 

Be inspired by nature, enjoy the solitude or enjoy one of the most distinctive entertainment spaces in the area. Pea Island is a brief paddle board or dinghy ride from Columbia Island.

At first glance, an estate in Water Mill Green, New York, looks like any other upscale home in the area on a double-wide property with lush lawns. But a closer look reveals this home is green, featuring high-performance lighting, geothermal heating, solar energy systems and foam insulation. Outside, the property is enclosed with 1,000 feet of landscaping and features a 50-foot saline pool with a hot tub, solar cover and pool house. The property offers not one but three generous lawns.

Three hyper-sustainable townhomes are available at Fort House in the historic Roxbury neighborhood of Boston. Developer Placetailor’s passive house design means that Fort House is essentially built like a Thermos, air-tight and insulated to the extreme. But more than just triple-glazed windows and 14-inch double-insulated walls, the design element of the inner walls maximizes the thermal efficiency. Once the desired ambient interior temperature is reached in a townhome, it takes very little energy by heating or cooling to maintain it. 

Fort House homes also use a cutting-edge whole-house energy recovery ventilation system that drastically reduces utility costs. The homes can remain comfortable year-round without having a traditional HVAC system.

Nestled on 1.7 wooded acres, the private compound known as Casa de Lavanda (House of Lavender) at 208 Camino Del Norte in Santa Fe, New Mexico, incorporates extensive water harvesting, drip irrigation, xeriscaping, which prove this home is not only beautiful but smart too. Southwest touches include reclaimed barn doors. 

The sophisticated compound stands boldly in its own category of refined rustic elegance, an architecturally significant blend of authentic, traditional elements and upscale conveniences such as a wireless lighting control system.

This post first appeared on Forbes.com. To see the original, click here.