20-40 years later…
There were boxes full of books and reports, even up to 40 years old. And since it was too hot to do anything outside, I finally cleared the attic. Going through the boxes one by one, its hard to avoid… Continue Reading
The world on fire (and BBQ)
The introduction to the Dutch version of my book was headed: the world on fire. ( after summer in English available!) “Well”, was often the reaction, “a bit exaggerated, isn’t it? Sounds like doomsday thinking right?” But it is not… Continue Reading
A 0-marginal resource society does not exist
Rifkin some time ago wrote about the 0-marginal cost society. The book had a lot of attention. But cost is a complete different measuring unit as energy or greenhouse gasses. A 0-marginal cost society is not the same as a… Continue Reading
Building without heating: more material or more installations?
Last month I finally visited the ‘2226’ office in Austria near Bregenz. The building, realized about 4 years ago, already won many prizes. What is special about this building: it has no heating system, and in fact no ventilation system,… Continue Reading
How (and why) to avoid high-rise buildings…
Architects love to be able to design and build an iconic tower. And a city counselor can leave his signature with it. Well, it happens that the world is urbanizing, and that we see a lot of high-rises in planning,… Continue Reading
How to win a discussion on materials
Many colleagues in the field feel frustrated when trying to improve the materials performance of buildings: the lobbying and framing of materials is huge, blurring a real discussion on what materials with best performance and lowest impact should be applied.… Continue Reading
From Energy transition via Materials transition to Welfare transition…
Currently we are deeply concerned with the energy transition. However, our main problem is not energy, but material. There is enough energy without us having to exhaust it or without having nasty side effects such as global warming. Think of… Continue Reading
transition is materials increase… (=energy)
Last month the OECD published its report with the latest figures on material consumption worldwide. [1] Currently that is 79 GigaTon of materials per year, and we are going to 167 Gt (!) in 2060. Every year. This includes a… Continue Reading
The Netherlands as cooperation, owned by its inhabitants?
Its a difficult thing, the much wanted energy transition. Last week the daily news broadcast showed an interesting example of that. The provinces have to build wind turbines and search for acceptable locations, but the residents around are revolting. Complaining… Continue Reading
7 pitfalls with climate measures
(letter send to party leaders in parliament) 1 The annual increased installation of solar panels makes CO2 emissions rise. This is because solar panels need about 3 years to compensate for their CO2 during production. So if more solar panels… Continue Reading