Roland Beinert

Regenerative Design for Sustainable Development by John Lyle, Permaculture Designers Manual by Bill Mollison (find a library copy if you can since it costs a lot to buy), Death and Life of Great American Cities by Jane Jacobs is one I reccommend, though it’s not focused on designing for sustainability (It always surprises me how few people have…[Read more]

Just wanted to post this link: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/06/us-smart-growth-sustainable-agenda.php

I figure there’s a lot LA’s can learn and apply to our work by observing nature, anyway.

I’m glad the nuclear industry is responding to the criticisms of the past and making a comeback. But even nuclear has drawbacks. You can reduce the waste, but it is still going to be there for ages. Uranium is not a renewable resource, and it is mined with machinery that uses fossil fuels. I also think it’s easier for certain other countries to…[Read more]

I’ve heard of restrictions like that in other parts of the country, as well. A lot of buildings don’t have the right orientation, either.
I see Nick’s point about there being proportionally less roof surface area in denser areas. There’s also a higher probability that an urban building with solar will shaded when taller buildings are built around…[Read more]

There’s impacts associated with the manufacturing of some types of photovoltaics. Some of the materials they use include heavy metals, I think. I’m not sure about the impacts of manufacturing for other types of solar, though.
I think one huge advantage solar (and to some extent wind power) has, though, is that it’s not limited to large power…[Read more]

I guess I’m ok with lawn as long as it really serves a purpose, is sized for that purpose and there’s an appropriate type of grass for whatever region. But I think sometimes lawn is used as an easy way out of finding a better solution. There’s plenty of alternatives out there. They don’t take quite as much foot traffic, but a lot of times lawns…[Read more]

Andrew is bringing up a good point about providing the right form of transportation in the right place. I think it was Raleigh, NC where they put in public transit a few years ago and it was actually extremely popular. This was mostly because the mayor knew what he was doing. They also built some very dense neighborhoods at the same time and…[Read more]

I just spent $1327.00 on car repairs.
I’m not saying that to support any either one of your points of view. I’m really just whining.

We are not allowed to tell you that. It is top secret. Sorry.

I think a good strategy might be to hike around natural areas some weekend. Look for natural drainage areas, especially small streams that will likely dry up later in the summer, and take notes on the plants you see. For example, here in the Boise foothills, drainage areas will usually have some sort of wild rose and syringa growing in them or…[Read more]

I really want to get my permaculture certification, but the courses have always been expensive and at the wrong time of year. I agree that it’s worth it, even if a lot of employers don’t know about it. But I’d be getting it more for my own satisfaction, I guess. I already have the manual and know plenty of very good permaculture designers.

What’s involved in getting certified? Would it be easier to get a job with the government? The government jobs seem to be the most stable ones at this point.

I haven’t read the article yet.
In the dry western states, it can sometimes be fairly easy to heat and cool a building passively. A lot depends on the design of the building, of course. In the first office I worked in, cooling the place was just a matter of opening doors and windows in the early morning and closing them before it got hot. There…[Read more]

I’ve heard of similar programs in San Francisco. It’s a great idea.

There’s a book called Planting Green Roofs and Living Walls by Nigel Dunnett that might be some help. I know there are companies that do indoor planting areas. If you could find one of them, try e-mailing someone.

It’s cool that Monrovia is doing that. What are some project examples? I remember at my first work place, my boss had a demonstration garden with some of those thronless blackberries. It was nice walking past on my way to the office and grabbing some, but, unfortunately, I usually didn’t get to them before other people or birds ate them.

All good points. Some of my responses:
1. I agree that landscape architecture is about far more than shrubbing things up. However, this discussion is specifically about edible plants. There’s nothing about discussing plants that means any of the posters think we deal only with plants. I’m a bit worried that I took a confrontational approach with…[Read more]

That’s a good suggestion, and I recently found a project. My new landlord asked me to help take care of the areas surrounding the building. Right now it’s pretty barren.

I hope the woonerf stuff helped.
In theory, I guess if a parking lot were used for more than one purpose, the design would depend on several things. What other uses the parking lot would have would probably be one of the most important. The surrounding land uses would be just as important, since that would determine who would be using the space…[Read more]