There is an expression, “green from the ground up,” which is often used to describe a home that is thoroughly green. However, many homes have a substantial portion that is below the ground, and it is here that many buildings do not carry through on their green promise. Basement foundations have typically used large amounts [...]
Haiti Team Returns!
Port au Prince February 29, 2912 Here we are… departure day for the Endeavour group. I’ve had such fun with these guys – I’ll miss them. I feel really blessed with the group who came on this excursion. They are resourceful, hard working, talented, and a lot of fun to boot. Going into this endeavour [...]
First Report from Endeavour in Haiti
by Tina Therrien, Program Coordinator The first ever Endeavour group has arrived safely in Port au Prince, where we are based at Haiti Communitère (www.haiti.communitere.org) for our first few days. Haiti Communitère (HC) has been working in Haiti since the earthquake in 2010, specialising in post disaster relief. A combination of international volunteers plus some [...]
How to Rate Canada’s Greenest Home
Canada’s Greenest Home Blog #2 One of the key underlying questions about green and sustainable building is: How does one know if a building is really any greener or more sustainable than a typical home? Quite a number of ratings systems have developed over the past decade to try and help both builders and prospective [...]
Canada’s Greenest Home… The Adventure Begins!
Canada’s Greenest Home: What and Why? Endeavour is excited to announce the Canada’s Greenest Home project, a residential build in Peterborough, Ontario we will undertake with the students in our five-month, Sustainable New Construction certificate program. We expect the design and building process for this urban infill home will challenge us, our students and the [...]
Ontario Building Code Courses
General Legal/Process February 4-5 & 11-12, 2012 Small Buildings March 10-11 & 17-18, 2012 Instructors: Ian McKinlay In Ontario, all building design practitioners must obtain a Building Code Identification Number (BCIN) to ensure familiarity with the Ontario Building Code and to be eligible to obtain the insurance necessary to practice professionally. For designers of [...]
Designing Your Own Sustainable Home: A Realistic Challenge
In my fifteen years of being involved with sustainable building, I have seen many motivated owner-builders get into home building projects that spin out of control. Costs and timelines expand well beyond expectations and final performance and finish of the building doesn’t always match expectations. This shouldn’t be too surprising. I began my building adventure [...]
Clay Plaster Workshop Wrap-Up
Endeavour’s first clay finish plasters workshop achieved its goal: to infect more people with the urge to cover walls with clay! The workshop participants spent a full day learning about mixes and application techniques and playing with a wide range of natural colours. Then we spent a day plastering a room in a home to [...]
Straw Bale Construction in China and Ontario
On Thursday, December 1st, we are excited to join the Ontario Straw Bale Building Coalition in sponsoring Three Presentations on Straw Bale Construction at Ryerson University, Room ARC 300E, 325 Church Street in Toronto. 7:30 pm Shi Yi, Wang Li and Tong Yu from the China Academy of Building Research will present on their lab [...]
Endeavour in Haiti Details
An information meeting and Q&A session was held on November 20th for people interested in participating in the natural rebuilding program in Haiti organized by the Endeavour Centre. Program coordinator and team leader, Tina Therrien, gave an overview of the itinerary and a frank description of the conditions and requirements of working in Haiti. She [...]