Energy Transformation for Self-Sufficiency

After waiting for 30 years for the country to appreciate the value of low tech energy sources for transformation into power, it appears the time has come to pick up the ball and run with it.

When I was in Pratt Institute School of Architecture, 1975 - 1980, energy alternatives were discussed briefly, and only offered as a subject of study in the Ecology class. I was part of a study, paid for by a Federal grant, in my last year of school, the goal of which was to develop a design for energy alternatives in affordable multi-family housing.

As the study progressed, it became apparent the the mentor of the project, who may have even intiated the grant process, and was a modular building manufacturer who steered the results of the study, not to solutions which provided the residents with self-sufficiency, but rather to solutions which became an add-on to the cost of his product.

Many good things came out of that study...

- siting of the building in relation to the sun and wind
- building forms and materials which conserved energy
- construction processes which had less damage to the site and used less energy to construct, etc.
- implementation in local building and energy codes
- influencing and equipping the designers and all who read the report to use these ideas in all future projects, myself included


While these results certainly advanced the progress of energy saving ideas and methods, I felt that it did not go far enough in addressing the needs of the residents

Since then, I have thought long and hard about the state of energy sources and technology, and believe there are more reasons than just that the US has had oil, gas, nulcear and hydro dams available at an affordable cost all thse years.

The reasons seem to have more with attitudes than technology:

The mental block of having to change presents an obstacle for many people...
"If it ain't broke, it don't need fixing".

The technological simpicity seems "too good to be true".

"Nothing in life is free", and so on...


Other countries have been developing viable alternates to fossil fuels, nuclear and hydro power in more long term, integrated ways than the USA has.

One reason may be the sheer scale difference between US and the smaller European countries. It is easier to have a consensus on converting energy sources for public utilities on that scale.

For the countries with much greater populations like India, Japan and China, the difference may be that the US has a much more diverse population with multiple states having control over legislation and initiatives, and a less centrist federal government.

This blog was formed to explore these attitudes and provide solutions and explain technolgy which just about anyone can understand and use.

Ultimately, I would like to provide a "blueprint" for a small business model which would promote, educate, install or help homeowners themselves install incrementalized systems, at very little cost, with the goal of part or entire energy self-sufficiency.

I see these times as an energy winter, a season where we all have to hunker down and find a way to keep the fire going (or electricity, hot water, running water), for the have nots, who are suffering terribly right now.


Would love to hear thoughts on this subject...