Monthly Archives: July 2012

Part 1: Bill McKibben – Global Warming’s Terrifying New Math

30 Monday Jul 2012

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If they regulate it we will toe the line. If they don’t where will the line be?

I posted this link to Bill McKibben’s recent piece in Rolling Stone Magazine on our Associates III Facebook page a week or so ago. It’s a compelling read; and I truly hope everyone will read it, listen and discuss it, respond to it. I’m not saying I agree with every single word but enough of McKibben’s message strikes home for me to cause action. Why?

Climate change is a serious subject and the sobering stats speak for themselves.  But do we pay attention to them? If you read McKibben here, sadly too few of us do. Are we relying too heavily on those “in charge” to pave the way for us?  If they regulate it we will toe the line, so to speak. How sad and completely ignorant are we; that unless a law or code requires us to comply we choose NOT to use our own mind, common sense and compassion to do the right thing. And protecting mother earth from ourselves is the right thing.

Those of us in the design-build industry can relate to this notion, I am sure; the many building codes in place we’re asked to adhere to are really so that the minimums in health and safety are met. Many of us seek to go above and beyond them, realizing there is so much more to gain by adhering to some higher standards, whether written or of the heart. Can we apply that same logic to climate change?

We respond to other horrific incidents in life such as the shocking shooting in the Aurora movie theatre with rage and grief. I am not down playing that awful experience one bit, only questioning if we should consider notching the survival of our planet higher up on the list too. Losing your loved ones is beyond doubt one of the hardest, if not the worst, experience we can go through in life. Losing our planet? Where will that factor into our personal experience too?

— Debbie Hindman

Happy Trails from Denver to NYC

24 Tuesday Jul 2012

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Below is a farewell post from the lovely Agatha… while we know she’ll continue to fuel her passion for design wherever she goes, we sincerely miss her vibrant energy, exuberant fashion choices and infectious enthusiasm for life. Bon voyage and bon chance!!

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Driving down Colfax towards Colorado Boulevard at twilight on a Friday almost brought me to tears. The mountain range humbly waits its turn in my spectrum, looming behind a washed out neon pink and purple sky outlining the cash register building, a gothic cathedral, a silent biker; corridos pumped out of the car to the right. This is a modern city at the foot of another world, the Rocky Mountains. Steamboat, summertime, I laughed at friends floating down the Yampa on an inflatable mattress. Thawing from a ski in the mountains, wintertime, my family would play cards by the fireplace.

Truly, Denver is the Wild West. It has so much room to grow and so much freedom from the criticism and popular commentary of the journalists occupying larger cities. Denver is diverse yet familiar, large yet conquerable. Because of the more affordable living and gas prices, compared to New York City, many Denverites have money to spare, and money to spare for the hippest restaurants or the hippest concerts. This means more people can join in on a conversation about food and entertainment in the city. And for those who can not afford to fine dine, Denver has a spectacular array of self-serve restaurants. Free fun is always in reach. Tuesday nights I would go to a ping-pong club night in Five Points to make friends, eat great/cheap food, and listen to mainstream pop. Summer nights I watched free movies from the lawn in Cherry Creek North. The city truly belonged to everyone.

Of course, Denver is full of forward thinking, eco-conscious firms like Associates III. Totally unique in the industry, Associates III perfectly balances practical and sophisticated aesthetics with environmental and human conscious design solutions. It was inspiring working at a firm so devoted to its clients. Everyone supported one another and sought to work hard while maintaining a happy and healthy life. Indeed I will miss Kelley’s friendly smile and greeting at the reception. Amy handled my tech issues astutely and calmly. Debbie was always articulate, analytical, and very funny. Cassandra may be the sweetest person I know. Melissa and Marni have amazing patience and are both extremely loving and warm. Renee was always so much fun to talk to and is quite the multi-tasker. Michaela is thorough and amazing at thinking ahead. Rachel’s hair color changes a lot but she is incredibly consistent in her work and she truly loves to design. I miss sitting across from Jill; she’s super considerate, talented, and witty. Maggie could model for Ralph Lauren but instead she is an extremely graceful designer; without question, she is a master at detecting quality and communicating her ideas clearly in a drawing. Angie’s wonderful sense of style and sparkling disposition brightened up a lot of my days. Finally, Kari has made such a huge impression on my life. Her positive attitude and commitment to the Earth I commend. She lives to make her clients and team members satisfied; managing and designing beautifully. I will miss you all!

Last Day

In May I left my job at A3 for an opportunity to experience a new place, New York City, with my younger brother. I thank everyone that I met through Associates III!

Sending my love from a really small apartment  — Agatha

What’s Passive House?

10 Tuesday Jul 2012

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While Passive House standards have been around since the late 80s/early 90s in Europe, they’ve recently become a topic of conversation among our circle of influence. So much so, that we decided to host a seminar with one of the few Passivhaus certified architects we know just so we could learn more. Brian Fuentes of Fuentes Design graciously visited our office in June and promptly astonished us with his thorough understanding of Passivhaus standards and ecological building in general.

Touted as the world’s most stringent voluntary energy standard, Passive House is a comprehensive system that addresses primary energy, annual heat requirement and the building shell’s airtightness. According to Passivehouse.us:

A Passive House is a very well-insulated, virtually air-tight building that is primarily heated by passive solar gain and by internal gains from people, electrical equipment, etc… The result is an impressive system that not only saves up to 90% of space heating costs, but also provides a uniquely terrific indoor air quality.

While we won’t get into the nitty gritty details (if you want those, explore the links below), one important point Brian shared with our team is that a Passive House does NOT simply mean Passive Solar design, even though it harnesses this technology, but instead extends beyond passive solar principles to include the building’s space heating demand, primary energy consumption, insulation, airtightness, proper ventilation and indoor air quality.

Passive House Diagram

Thanks to Brian, we were able to recognize the depth of these standards and see how they fit into the broader context for those in the building industry that thought up The Living Building Challenge and have embraced USGBC’s LEED guidelines. Moving forward, we imagine we’ll see much more about Passive House — particularly because the North American Passive House Conference is coming to Denver this September 27th – 30th. See you there!

For more information:

Passive House, US

Passive House, UK

Passivhaus Institut (GERMAN)

7th Annual North American Passive House Conference

— Amy DePierre

State on Fire

03 Tuesday Jul 2012

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Even though the fourth of July signifies independence, this year I’ve been thinking more about our interdependence, or how interconnected we all are – coworkers, neighbors, family and friends. I think this connection has been glaringly apparent this year for anyone in Colorado. Our beautiful state has been and continues to be ravaged by wildfire. It’s taken an intricate network of emergency service personnel, fire fighters, neighbors and dedicated citizens to unite in the fight for containment of these fires.

At a time like this the question is simple — how can I help?

In a quick round-up of ways to lend a hand, here are a few sites to consider:

Help Colorado Now – this site provides links and contact information regarding how to make a financial gift, sign up to volunteer and/or provide material donations.

Wild Fire Tees – a group of designers, marketers and printers in Colorado came together to design t-shirts and donate 100% of the proceeds to the CO wildfire relief efforts.

American Red Cross Colorado – currently staffing shelters and aiding evacuated residents with basic needs.

Larimer Humane Society – coordinating animal rescue for High Park fire zone.

These are just a select few ways to aid the wildfire relief efforts. Please comment if you know of or have information for other ways to help.

— Amy DePierre