Name
Building Climate Resilience in Practice: Integrating Passive House, Prefabrication, and Multi-Hazard Design
Date & Time
Thursday, May 28, 2026, 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM
Description
As climate risks intensify across California and the western United States, communities face growing pressure to rebuild and construct housing that is both low-carbon and resilient to wildfire, earthquakes, and extreme weather. This session presents a practical case study of how integrated design and delivery approaches can translate climate goals into buildable, repeatable solutions.
Drawing from two active residential projects—a post-wildfire rebuild in California and a high-risk prototype home in the western U.S.—the session explores how Passive House design principles, prefabricated magnesium oxide (MgO) structural insulated panels, and multi-hazard design strategies can be combined to create durable, energy-efficient, and rapidly constructed homes. Rather than focusing on theory alone, the presentation emphasizes implementation: what worked, what required adaptation, and what lessons emerged through collaboration among architects, builders, engineers, manufacturers, and homeowners.
Presenters will discuss how prefabrication and high-performance envelopes can shorten construction timelines, reduce material waste, and lower both embodied and operational carbon, while improving fire resistance and long-term durability. The session also addresses seismic resilience as part of a holistic approach to climate adaptation, demonstrating how energy efficiency and life-safety goals can be addressed together.
A central theme of the session is partnership. Attendees will gain insight into how cross-disciplinary collaboration and homeowner participation can strengthen outcomes, surface risks earlier, and improve decision-making in complex projects. Designed for architects, builders, developers, sustainability professionals, and public-sector stakeholders, this session offers actionable lessons that can be applied from individual homes to repeatable community models—supporting a more resilient, connected built environment.
Session Type
Session