March | 2013 | What's in a home?

What about Green Living?

Posted by benwall1965 in Home Designs on March 15, 2013

Most home design bloggers and even friends of mine have been wondering, “What’s up with green living?” A lot of people are into it and some are left to wonder what the fuss is all about. Even veganism is often called a “hipster” thing. Whether it’s all fad, hype, or a trend, understanding how green living can be beneficial to you and the environment is worth 5-minutes of your time. It might take you shorter than that to finish reading this bit of my mind about green living.
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Well, if you care about the environment and how it affects the world as a whole and you as a person and consumer, then it’s pretty practical and useful to take it into consideration. However, changing lifestyles towards green living is not as easy as an overnight process. You can probably start recycling and practicing waste management as soon as you’re done reading this post, but there’s more to green living that we fail to notice and appreciate.

Yes we all know and we’ve been informed about how bad high energy consumption can be for the environment. We try to take part on Earth Hour and shut off electricity to contribute to this advocacy. But in a bigger effort towards green living, we must find comfort in the physical green, the natural environment that surrounds us, and the beauty of nature in itself.

Lately, I’ve been quite nostalgic about nature. There’s a big tree facing my bedroom window and I was surprised to actually hear birds singing this morning. I live in the city and birds are not always a common sight or sound we encounter. I’m hoping that these small pleasures and nature’s gift will be there for years to come and for future generations. Working on finding a way to sustain our resources will benefit us as well.

If you’ve noticed on the Internet, pictures of green homes are typically small. Why? Since green living requires as little energy consumption as possible, heating and cooling a bigger home requires more energy than smaller spaces. Green structures will always have bigger windows to welcome the sunlight for natural illumination. In cold seasons, the heat of the sun will also work to warm up indoor spaces. During the heat of the summer, having a natural landscape, trees, and plants in your property and surroundings can provide a shade and source of breeze and good air. That are some things you can consider to improve your health and way of living as well.

If you are planning to build a new home, consider hiring a professional who is experienced and knowledgeable on designing a green home. The investment in such type of home would be worth all the energy savings you can gain for years to come. You can check out green house designs at PeterDownes website.