as Sustainable Design

The act of capturing embodied materials, energy, and resources in an existing structure is in itself the ultimate recycling project. Preservation, which historically has been driven by an effort to preserve patriotism and links to times past, can, in the reality of depleting natural resources, be viewed as a strategy of sustainable design. Historic preservation is part of a larger consciousness, one which now includes efforts to preserve the environment. There are inherent synergies between preservation and sustainable design. Reusing what has already been previously extracted from the environment, banking off of sound structural design of original buildings, and introducing new, beneficial technologies can culminate in a structure that outperforms and outlasts its conventional neighbor. Preservation efforts can be cost effective and increase the commercial value of a structure. [More…]