Join Us at SOLAR 2013

The Solar Buildings Division has been busy preparing for SOLAR 2013, the ASES National Solar Conference, to be held in Baltimore, Md., April 16–20. At the conference we will host the 38th National Passive Solar Conference, which is a “conference within a conference,” as it has been for many years.
Our Emerging Architecture keynote speaker, Travis Price, FAIA, will present on “The Mythic Modern: mythology, ecology and technology … the spirit of place.”

Price is an award-winning architect, philosopher, adventurer and environmental pioneer. His visionary works demonstrate that culturally diverse inspirations and green designs are leading determinants in today’s global architecture. He is widely respected for his innovations in environmentally sound architecture and coined the term passive solar.

This year the Passive Conference will be divided into two tracks: Emerging Architecture and Passive Building Technology, and Daylighting, Modeling and Building Automation. Emerging Architecture and Passive Building Technology sessions will address topics such as passive house design; design tools for passive solar and sustainability; materials, assemblies and building elements; building science, passive design and climate. The Daylighting, Modeling and Building Automation track includes sessions on modeling and monitoring; daylighting design; solar access and zoning; daylight from above; and controls, building automation and user interface.

The Solar Buildings Division has participated on SOLAR 2013’s Technical Review Committee and accepted more than 60 forums, technical papers, posters and Ignite presentations to make each track an interesting and educational experience for conference attendees.

Our goal for the Solar Buildings Division is to expand our role within ASES as we move into 2013. This role will become more important as our society struggles to balance the energy, economic and environmental impacts of the built environment. According to Architecture 2030, buildings represent about half the energy consumed in the United States. Clearly, solar buildings are a large part of our energy future and the Solar Buildings Division of ASES is an important part of the future of ASES.

Membership in the Solar Buildings Division is focused on the needs of:

• Design professionals (architects, engineers and LEED aps),
• Building/construction professionals (builders, contractors, developers and building owners), and
• Educators and students (faculty, researchers and students in the above disciplines).

If you are interested in becoming involved in the Solar Buildings Division or have ideas for how to make the division more responsive to the needs of its members, consider applying for our openings for vice-chair and secretary of the division. To participate, please contact me at david@panicharchitecture.com.

David Panich is chair of the ASES Solar Buildings Division.