www.thedesignermagazine.com 45
‘Green building’ is often thought to come with a rather hefty price tag, but as many
of the initiatives are becoming more mainstream, eco-conscious alternatives are
ever more accessible to the masses, as Stacey Sheppard fi nds out
DEVELOPER
Tom Schey had a moment and Environmental Design (LEED). LEED provides a set of
of inspiration upon seeing standards for environmentally sustainable construction and is a
an interview with the actor Ian McKellen on US TV show Real nationally recognised benchmark for the design, construction and
Time with Bill Maher. “I just put solar panels on my house in operation of high performance green buildings.
London,” explained McKellen. “You wouldn’t think there was One of only a handful of LEED Platium certifi ed homes in the
enough sunshine would you? But there is enough sunshine to US, Project7Ten was developed by Schey, President of Minimal
provide my house with electricity. I sell electricity back to the Productions, and his business partner and environmentalist Kelly
National Grid that I get for free from my roof. Now shouldn’t Meyer, with the help of Architect Melinda Gray.
everybody be doing that?” According to Schey: “I realised long ago when architecturally
It was this acknowledgement in conjunction with the signifi cant homes are built they will most certainly outlast [our]
viewing of the documentary fi lm ‘An Inconvenient Truth’, in time on earth. They become permanent structures attached to the
which former US Vice President Al Gore attempts to educate the piece of earth they sit on.”
population about the severity of the climate crisis, which made Faced with the current global warming crisis, Schey believes
Schey start to consider ways he could help society to reach more that failing to take a ‘green’ approach and choosing not to use
environmentally-conscious decisions as part of their everyday lives. sustainable or recycled alternatives can no longer be an option.
Project7Ten in Venice, California was the venture Schey From its inception, the concept show house Project7Ten was
undertook. The environmentally conscious house, which is said created as a real life example of a functioning home, which uses
to emit no harmful gases into the atmosphere, was designed to as little energy as possible, conserves water and incorporates
achieve a Platinum designation from The Leadership in Energy sustainable and recycled materials. ➔
Project 710 p.indd 45 24/7/08 10:17:30
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