Passive Houses: Energy Efficient Homes

From the contents: Maison Passive in Bessancourt, France (Karawitz Architecture) Minergie Family Home in Zollikon, Switzerland (Schwarz & Schwarz Architekten) The Skinny in Philadelphia, USA (Interface Studio Architects) Orange Grove House in Melbourne, Australia (Fiona Winzar Architects) JustK in Tübingen, Germany (Amunt Architekten) The trend towards environmental awareness is decisively influencing the way we live our lives. As Passive Houses have been conceptualized and became part of our collective consciousness, architecture stands at the forefront of an emerging modern eco-friendly lifestyle. Aside from national requirements and optional certificates, a general consensus of "passive architecture"has emerged and has become widely spread. Taken back to basics, passive house architecture satisfies the desire to reduce the use of external primary energy. Depending on the climatic conditions, the utilization of different technologies, methods, and interventions is required, presenting a variety of challenges to the architects. This monograph portrays about 60 single family homes from across the world that showcase the great variety of exciting and at the same time sustainable architectural solutions.