Description: The average homeowner is aware that energy efficiency is important in the fight against climate change. The people who are most passionate about energy conservation are making upgrades to their homes and setting a good example for their neighbors. But how can we get more homeowners excited about doing the work (and navigating the cost) to improve their home’s performance?

On this episode, Robb chats with Adam Stenftenagel and Christine Liaukus (a SWA alum!), two experts on improving existing buildings, about what it’ll take to reduce the energy consumption and carbon emissions of single-family homes on a much larger scale than we are today. They discuss data, strategies, technologies, and of course, financing that can help get millions of homeowners on the path to net zero energy.

Episode Guests: 

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Christine Liaukus, RA, CPHC

Christine Liaukus, RA, CPHC, is the Housing and Community Development Program Manager for the Center for Building Knowledge at the New Jersey Institute of Technology. At the Center, Christine’s research is focused on improving the energy performance of existing buildings during typical retrofit projects, most recently with Re-Side Right. Christine has developed training for various New Jersey Clean Energy programs through the NJ Clean Energy Learning Center and has taught high-performance building enclosure coursework at the Hillier College of Architecture and Design at NJIT. Prior to joining NJIT, Christine was a Project Architect with the New York firm Chris Benedict R.A. creating environmentally responsible affordable housing. Christine is a member of the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association and was the first Certified Passive House Consultant in New Jersey.

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Adam Stenftenagel 

Adam Stenftenagel has been working in the green building industry since 2004. He co-owns four Boulder, Colorado-based businesses that focus on helping new and existing homes use net-zero energy, including Snugg Home and Radiant Labs. He is also co-founder and CEO at both of these companies. Adam focuses on keeping the businesses running efficiently as well as business development and sales. He specializes in building science, energy modeling, and cost-benefit analysis. Adam’s passion is helping to prevent runaway climate change. He also enjoys live music, gardening, and hiking.

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Episode Sponsors:

ACADEMY-LOGO-300x73.png" alt="SWA Academy Logo" width="601" height="146">SWA Academy is the user-paced learning platform that gives organizations and project teams the technical knowledge they need to create energy efficient, sustainable, and accessible buildings.

Organizations enrolled in SWA Academy can build custom training programs with accredited courses on topics from building design and construction to operations and maintenance.

Watch the SWA Academy demo.

Sign up for new course announcements and more SWA Academy updates.

We Want to Hear From You!

Send your feedback and questions to podcast@swinter.com

About Buildings and Beyond

Buildings and Beyond is a production of Steven Winter Associates. We provide energy, green building, and accessibility consulting services to improve the built environment. For more information, visit www.swinter.com.

Hosts

Robb Aldrich | Kelly Westby

Production Team

Heather Breslin | Alex Mirabile | Dylan Martello

Interested in a career at Steven Winter Associates? View our open positions here.

Transcript coming soon!