At the end of May the 14th International Passive House Conference was held in Dresden, Germany. More than 1000 delegates from around the globe participated in the conference and got up to date with the latest developments in the Passive House standard. Furthermore the Architecture Award 2010 for Passive Houses was presented by the Passive House Institute in Darmstadt.
“Passive Houses” are buildings with an excellent thermal insulation quality, and are equipped with a ventilation system that is able to re-extract thermal energy from the discharged air. Therefore theses buildings work without a conventional heating system, as they take their heat energy from inhabitants (about 70W per person!), solar radiation and a minimal backup system for long cold periods in wintertime.
Passive House Explained; Heat Emissions from a Passive House and a normal house (left side)
In times of a global economic crisis climate protection is often seen of secondary importance, even though considerable revenues can be generated with environmentally-friendly techniques. This ranges from investments in renewable energies usage to the implementation of efficiency measures, which decrease the demand for fossil resources.
The Passive House standard can make a considerable contribution to overcoming the economic crisis. Above all, using this highly efficient standard will strengthen the regional economy. Local investments and generated turnovers will cause a boom independently from the global economic situation but with a sustainable effect on the worldwide climate.
Energy Union advocates increased energy efficiency and considers the Passive House standard as an important step towards a sustainable way of living.
