green-building-concepts-design / Green Building & Sustainable Home Renovation Information & Advice

Artistic rendition of the 2000 square foot sustainable home being buil
Living Building Challenge

Taking the Living Building Challenge

The Living Building challenge is one of the toughest green building certifications to complete, and has yet to be achieved in Canada. The Endeavour Centre, a not-for-profit trade school in Peterborough Ontario, is setting out to change that when they begin construction this spring on a 2,000 square foot three bedroom h...

Green homes climate change
Lifestyle and environment

Green buildings are better situated to handle climate extremes

The U.S. Green Building Council and the University of Michigan’s Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning released a landmark report Feb. 29 that describes how green buildings advance resiliency in disasters. “Green Building and Climate Resilience: Understanding Impacts and Preparing for Changing Conditions” ...

Resilient Homes, why they're important in dealing with Climate Change
Lifestyle and environment

Resilient Homes; Why we need to build to withstand climate change events

Future-proofing homes for Climate Change:  Anticipating future climatic challenges and constructing resilient buildings to withstand them should be an important consideration when building any new home - but we're often told that "a Green Home costs more", and too many people then decide in the face of resistance from ...

House built by Matthew Smith of Mapleridge Homes
LEED Homes

LEED comes to the gatineau hills

Developer Luc Bélisle will be partnering with Matthew Smith of Mapleridge Homes to build the first LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified housing project in the Gatineau Hills of Quebec. Phase 1 will have 12 lots available, but the developer has 470 acres total on which he hopes to build about 1...

Efficient green home design choices
Concept and design

Efficient home design, or how to design a home to use less energy

The  principles of green building: High performance, energy efficient homes may include features like geothermal heating, wind power and solar panels, but these are not the defining features of green living. They come in second, and some you can even do without. A green home starts with being well-designed, well-insula...

The Bubeneč Gardens Residence in Praque is an inspiring collection of
LEED Homes

Canada Green Building Council Leadership Awards

Each year the Canada Green Building Council (CaGBC) recognizes individuals and organizations who have made a significant contribution to the CaGBC’s mission and goals in advancing green building in Canada. The Leadership Awards categories are as follows:  The Academic Leadership Award The Emerging Green Builder Leader...

Concept and design

How to stay on budget when building a home

The following is an interview with Patrick Ranger, General Manager at Belvedair, a construction company specializing in the design and construction of green homes. Patrick is trained in business administration and information management, and is an experienced green building project manager. JP – Patrick, please tell us...

Ontario’s first LEED certified hospital
LEED Homes

Ontario’s First LEED Certified Hospital

Bluewater Health announced today that it has been selected as one of the first Canadian hospitals – and the first acute care hospital in Ontario – to achieve LEED® certification. Bluewater Health’s construction of a 588,000-square-foot complex at the hospital’s Sarnia location consisted of a new addition attached to th...

Canada one of the top 10 countries building LEED homes
LEED Homes

The top 10 countries outside the U.S. certifying buildings with the LEED rating system

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has released its list of the top 10 countries for LEED® outside of the United States, on which Canada ranked No. 1. The list demonstrates the global reach of the movement that is transforming the built environment into healthy, high-performing structures that benefit the planet a...

Built to ENDURE: the Net Zero Heat Kenogami House
Efficient home design

The Kenogami House: designed to ENDURE

Alex Wilson is the founder of the journal Environmental Building News, Green Building, GreenSpec and recently the Resilient Design Institute. The following is a brief description of his vision, and the steps our team took as designers, builders and homeowners to meet that criteria for the Kenogami House.  The acronym: ...

Artistic rendition of one of the pre-fab net zero energy homes, Alberta
Off-grid and Net-Zero Housing

Net Zero Energy Community in Calgary, Alberta

Landmark Homes Inc. In Calgary Alberta, In partnership with Brookfield Residential Properties, has just started construction on a community of 27 prefabricated net zero energy homes, the first of its kind in Alberta. A ‘Net Zero Energy’ home on an annual basis generates as much or more power than it consumes, and each ...