Executive Summary_Books: Beth Hawkins

Comprehending Sustainable Design
Executive Summary
By Beth Hawkins

The goal of this project was to produce a compendium of the available resources on Sustainable Design in order to gain insight and knowledge of this topic. A present understanding of how sustainable design is defined and the principles used to “achieve” it are necessary to be able to make decisions on what the building environment needs to focus on. With this information one should be able to evaluate current projects with regard to their claims of sustainability. The exclusive resource chosen to be included in this compendium is books with the phrase “sustainable design” in the title. Upon researching the books available from only the University of Tennessee library, thirteen showed up from the search (see appendix for list). Excluding books that were too specific or too technical, seven books were reviewed.
Although each book shares the same topic of sustainable design, the authors address this trendy term in different ways. There are five basic recurring themes throughout this collection: the philosophical approach to sustainable design; current perceptions of what sustainable design is; discussions about the current state of our environment; identifying obstacles to sustainable design; and sustainable design strategies or principles.
The current philosophical approaches to sustainable design are discussed in these three books:

United States Department of the Interior, National Park Service, Denver Service Center 1993, Guiding Principles of Sustainable Design.
Jonathan Chapman and Nick Gant 2007, Designers, Visionaries + Other Stories: A Collection of Sustainable Design Essays, Earthscan, London.
McLennan, Jason 2004, The Philosophy of Sustainable Design: The Future of Architecture, Ecoton, Kansas City, Missouri.

McLennan (2004,18), says that sustainable design is the philosophical basis of a growing movement seeking to redefine how buildings are designed, built and operated to be more responsive to people. This book establishes sustainable design as a philosophy, in an architectural context, which is an approach not just an extra set of issues to be checked off a list. Chapman and Gant (2007, 43) also believe that sustainable design is typically considered an extra set of issues that is used when developing, planning and producing a design. They subscribe to the philosophy that sustainable design is the interrelation between things, the cause and effect and the linkages that connect seemingly disconnected elements. The U.S. Dept. of the Interior (1993, 6) documented that sustainable design is a philosophy that requires a change in values toward less consumptive ways of living and requires a change in mind-set.
Jason McLennan (2004), also attempts to reach people on a much deeper level by discussing morals and ethics; an internal rather than an external understanding. In addition, it includes a chapter on the evolution of sustainable design which is quite interesting and a topic not addressed in the other books. The previous two books mentioned in this paragraph concentrate solely on the present and the future in sustainable design, not how the architectural profession got to where it is now. For these reasons, this book stands out among the others.

Definitions of sustainable design derived from the following three books are provided:

A state of being unplugged, which is “a life that functions well without exploitation of nonrenewable resources and increases renewable capacities for present and future generations.” (Williams, Daniel E. 2007, Sustainable Design: Ecology, Architecture, and Planning, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, N.J.)
“A design approach that seeks to maximize the quality of the built environment, while minimizing or eliminating negative impact to the natural environment”. The author believes that one reason sustainable design is misunderstood is that people are trying to define and explain a movement that is still actively defining itself, its principles, components, and philosophy. (McLennan, Jason 2004, The Philosophy of Sustainable Design: The Future of Architecture, Ecoton, Kansas City, Missouri.)
The well-being and quality of life of the inhabitants of a building are as important to sustainable design as are reducing waste, energy consumption and environmental impacts. This book is unique from the other two in that it defines sustainable design with a holistic view. The “vision of sustainable design is incomplete and that there is a need to expand the scope of sustainable design to include humans and their physiological, psychological, and spiritual needs through daylighting design”. (Guzowski, Mary 2000, Daylighting for Sustainable Design, McGraw Hill.)

Three books address the current state of the environment in regards to the climate changes and the energy crisis, as well as future predictions:

Smith, Peter 2001, Architecture in a Climate of Change: A Guide to Sustainable Design, Architectural Press, Oxford
St. John, Andrew (ed.) 1992, The Sourcebook for Sustainable Design: A Guide to Environmentally Responsible Building Materials and Processes, Boston Society of Architects, Boston, MA.
Williams, Daniel E. 2007,Sustainable Design: Ecology, Architecture, and Planning, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, N.J.

Smith (2001, 1) discusses the human effects on fossil fuel consumption. “The world consumes 74 million barrels of oil a day to keep it running presently. Buildings in use or in the course of their construction are the biggest single indirect source of carbon emissions generated by burning fossil fuels, accounting for over 50% of total emissions. Adding the transport costs…(of materials used and equipment utilized)…generated by the construction of buildings it is 75%.” (Smith, 2001, 17)
Williams (2007) provides scientific data in his book as well and supports the claims made by Smith (2001). “Buildings and their construction account for nearly half of all the greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumed in this country each year. This includes energy used in the production and transportation of materials to building constructions sites, as well as the energy used to operate buildings.” “The United States will add 22 million buildings over the next 20 years that will not only consume electricity produced at a central power plant, but also directly burn oil, natural gas and/or propane in boilers, furnaces, and hot water heaters. In fact, 58% of end-use energy needed to operate a building is consumed by the burning of fuel on-site.” (Williams, 2007, xvi)
St. John (1992) focuses on the effects the construction industry has on natural resource expenditure by not utilizing sustainable materials and processes. The present criteria for selecting materials used in construction are aesthetics and cost, rather than, the embodied energy of a specific material. Embodied energy includes “the level of its CO2 and toxic emissions in production, use and disposal; its durability; its recyclability and level of waste generation.” (1992, 1.3)
Smith (2001, 11) makes predictions regarding the effects of these climate changes, due to the greenhouse effect and global warming, as well as the outlook for our current energy sources. Some of the predictions he made were as follows. It is estimated that all the glaciers in the central and eastern Himalayas will disappear by 2035. The rise in sea levels due to melting of ice sheets and glaciers is frightening: 20 feet rise in 25 years. Millions of people live less than three feet above sea level. Salination of agricultural land following storm surges would cause the land to become infertile. Pests and pathogens causing fatal diseases are already migrating to more temperate areas.
Although, these three books present factual data in their text, Smith (2001) provides excessive information about global warming, climate changes and grim predictions for the future. Therefore, one might get more out of this book in regards to data and information on these specific topics than any of the other books in this compendium.

Key facts that may have the most direct impact on local landscape/urban design are:

Jonathan Chapman and Nick Gant 2007, Designers, Visionaries + Other Stories: A Collection of Sustainable Design Essays, Earthscan, London.
McLennan, Jason 2004, The Philosophy of Sustainable Design: The Future of Architecture, Ecoton, Kansas City, Missouri.
One of the obstacles for stepping out of the box to design sustainable is the fear of criticism. This seems to have discouraged designers to engage in more sustainable practice; therefore, there is a tendency to just imitate trends that are already in practice. (Chapman and Gant, 2007, 9) Another barrier to change is that the terms sustainable design and green architecture have come to mean so many different things to so many different people that, despite the growing interest, most have little true understanding on the subject. (McLennan, 2004, 15)

Out of the seven books researched, six provide their own set of strategies, techniques or principles for sustainable design:
Sustainable Design: Ecology, Architecture, and Planning by Daniel E. Williams, (2007) introduces the question of how do we provide safe water for communities that exist now as well as in the future because so much of it is polluted. He recommends that if we depend on the rainfall conditions of a specific site, the water goals of a project can be established so that the roofs and landscape can serve to store, clean, recycle and reuse water. “A region that is solely reliant on the precipitation that falls on its land area is self-sufficient.” (2007, 18)
Architecture in a Climate of Change: A Guide to Sustainable Design, Peter F. Smith (2001) outlined eleven chapters to sustainable design techniques. Each of these chapters is dedicated to one topic, and are as follows: renewable technologies, energy from water, solar, biomass, wind, photovoltaics, geothermal, hydrogen, and nuclear; low energy techniques for housing and non-domestic buildings; examples of advanced and ultra-low-energy houses; insulation; ventilation; lighting design; lighting; life cycle assessment and recycling.
Sustainable Design: Ecology, Architecture, and Planning, Daniel E. Williams (2007, 18-19) lists three elements that should be considered in the initial design process:
1.Connectivity: Design to reinforce the relationship between the project, the site, the community, and the ecology. Make minimal changes to the natural system.
2.Indigenous: Design with and for what has been resident and sustainable on the site for centuries.
3.Long life, loose fit: Design for future generations while reflecting past generations.
Guiding Principles of Sustainable Design, United States Department of the Interior (1993, 5) lists design principles necessary for sustainability:
1.Insist on the right of humanity and nature to co-exist in a healthy, supportive, diverse, and sustainable condition.
2.Recognize interdependence.
3.Respect relationships between spirit and matter.
4.Accept responsibility for the consequences of design decisions upon human well-being, the viability of natural systems, and their right to co-exist.
5.Create safe objects of long term value.
6.Eliminate the concept of waste.
7.Rely on natural energy flows.
8.Understand the limitations of change. No human creation lasts forever and design does not solve all problems. Those who create and plan should practice humility in the face of nature.
9.Seek constant improvements by sharing knowledge.
Daylighting for Sustainable Design, Mary Guzowski, (2000) dedicated eight chapters to present sustainable design principles in terms of daylighting design:
1.Take a bioregional approach.
2.Do more with less.
3.Design for evolution.
4.Shape form to guide flow.
5.Use appropriate technology-A variety of technological approaches are discussed, such as; light pipes, heliostats, high-tech glazing, photovoltaic cladding, and environmental control systems.
6.Address health and well-being.
7.Consider quality of life.
8.Learn from nature.
The Sourcebook for Sustainable Design: a Guide to Environmentally Responsible Building Materials and Processes, Andrew St. John (1992), provides a sourcebook of sustainable products used in the construction industry. The sourcebook has twelve divisions of construction that lists in a catalog form one or more product names with the manufacturer/distributor and trade name. The construction divisions are: site work, concrete, masonry, metals, woods and plastics, thermal and moisture protection, doors and windows, finishes, specialties, equipment, special construction, mechanical and electrical. This book is different than the others with its narrow approach to sustainable design. It is extremely useful to the building environment because it provides specific materials and the information required to locate them.

In my opinion, these seven books provided clear information regarding these emergent problems and introduced opportunities for advancement by providing principles and techniques of sustainable design. There was a common element throughout them all that sustainability is not actually a state that can be achieved because everything has an impact of some sort. The term sustainability is an absolute, which has the implication that it can only be accomplished if it is 100% sustainable. In addition, the definitions and philosophies give the reader an understanding of what sustainability truly means. The fact that three books provide definitions shows that at this point in time, the majority are still uncertain about what sustainable design actually is. Without this information we are in danger of turning sustainability into nothing more than a passing trend rather than a deep cultural shift that makes sustainability sustainable. Creating an illusion of progress and a false sense of security because of a lack of understanding, could in many cases put us further away from meaningful progression. In my opinion, each book seemed to address a broad demographic; therefore, providing the opportunity for the public to learn and embrace sustainability. Sustainable design cannot continue to be a marginal activity that is exclusive to a niche of like-minded “tree-huggers”.