Breaking New Ground: Ultra-Low Carbon Housing in Vancouver

Explore Vienna House, an ultra-low-carbon multi-family housing project in Vancouver, in this in-depth session. The video dives into the strategies used to reduce both embodied and operational carbon, offering valuable insights into creating highly energy-efficient and sustainable buildings. Gain a deeper understanding of embodied carbon, how it differs from operational carbon, and its significant role in the overall carbon footprint of buildings. Learn how to evaluate and select materials that contribute to a low whole-life carbon story, balancing upfront embodied carbon with long-term operational emissions for sustainable building practices. Vienna House serves as a case study of low-carbon residential development, showcasing the application of whole-life cycle thinking and climate-resilient strategies. As an international research project, it demonstrates successful applications of low-carbon methods in multi-family housing, designed to achieve Passive House certification and the highest tier of the Canada Green Building Council’s Zero Carbon Standard. This project illustrates how sustainable, energy-efficient housing can be realized through collaboration and a commitment to stringent sustainability targets, providing valuable lessons for architects, engineers, and sustainability professionals. Featuring three project team members with extensive expertise, the session includes Jamie Harte, the Project Architect and Certified Passive House Designer, who shares insights on low-carbon, energy-efficient design. Jeremy Field, an energy modeller and building life cycle assessment expert, discusses cost-effective embodied carbon reduction strategies. Stuart Hood, a leader in building engineering with over 30 years of global experience, explains how cutting-edge sustainability trends are being applied to North American projects. Together, they provide a comprehensive look at the complexities of ultra-low-carbon building design and how these principles are applied in real-world projects like Vienna House.