Lenny Antonelli is deputy editor of Passive House Plus. He also writes regularly for the Irish Times, and has contributed to a variety of other publications including the Sunday Times, the CS Monitor, Village, the Sunday Tribune amd the Dubliner. He is currently working on a radio documentary on Ireland's oceans.
A passive house inspired by the sun
The Equinox House house near Kavarna, Bulgaria is a passive building that "delicately interacts with natural phenomena on all levels from embracing local views to tracing universal solar motions," according to its designers, Ignatov Architects.
An 'active house' built from shipping containers
The worldFLEXhome is a factory-manufactured house constructed from old shipping containers that uses less energy than it produces.
LEED silver home graces Utah canyon
Located in Emigration Canyon above Salt Lake City, Utah, this contemporary family home of 232 square metres was built for a couple with young children, and was designed to maximise views of the canyon.
Passive house pioneer Wolfgang Feist honoured with UK architectural award
Professor Wolfgang Feist has been awarded an honorary fellowship by the Royal Institute of British Architects. The award ceremony took place on 6 February.
Record number of products get passive house certification
The Passive House Institute has announced that it certified 134 products last year, a new record. These components included everything from sliding doors and dome lights to balcony systems.
Timber house in Scottish Borders built without nails or glue
The new issue of Passive House Plus includes our first ever Brettstapel building, a type of massive timber construction that uses no glues or nails, and that makes use of low grade timber otherwise unsuitable for construction.
China plans world's tallest building, but do green claims stack up?
Perhaps not surprisingly, Dubai's 828 metre Burj Khalifa might soon be overtaken as the world's tallest building. What's more, construction firm Broad Sustainable Building plans to build the 838 metre Sky City tower in Changsha, China in just 90 days.
Treehouses for grown-ups
Who wouldn't love a treehouse to escape to, whatever your age? Seen as a way to combine modern living with design that fits neatly in its landscape, architect-designed treehouses seem to be all the rage right now - whether as secluded escapes or permanent residences.
Tiny homes: a documentary
Hey everyone, check out this trailer for Tiny, a documentary about "one man’s attempt to build a tiny house from scratch in the mountains of Colorado". According to its website, the film is a "a meditation on the relationship of home to environment". It's set to be released later this summer. I blogged about the small house movement before here.