ShareThisCAPACES: Green Building Brings Groups Together
Join CAPACES Saturday, Nov. 12, to help build the first Passivhaus Office Building!
‘Capaces’ means capable, and we’re not talking about a singular entity, but a group of capable organizations and people. The CAPACES Leadership Institute in Woodburn will be the first Passivhaus commercial building in the United States, and it is being built with volunteer help, and debt free. Nine sister organizations, including Piñeros y Campesinos Unidos del Noroeste (PCUN), are working together to build this community center which will focus on leadership development – helping to make sure they stay capaces.
This challenging and exciting project was designed with the help of Green Hammer, Communitecture, and Conlee Engineers. To achieve Passivhaus status they have included many energy efficiency features to keep the building warm in the winter and cool in the summer, including: passive solar design, with very few north-facing windows and window overhangs that prevent excessive summer sun on the south-facing windows; and insulation levels far beyond code, including R-45 in the walls and R-120 in the ceiling.
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Image courtesy of Communitecture, Inc. |
If you’d like to learn more, here is an interesting article from El Hispanic News. As for me, I’m planning on volunteering there this Saturday so I can see for myself. Below is the CAPACES Leadership Institute Special Bulletin with more information:
In ‘Larsen’ we Truss!
Come to the Institute construction site this Saturday, November 12th from 9 AM to 3 PM and learn howto fabricate and install “Larsen” trusses, the exterior “curtain” wall holding all the insulation around theInstitute building’s exterior!
Gene Wixson of Green Hammer—our lead construction consultant—will direct the training alongwith José Márquez, Erubiel Valladares, Javier Lara and other core members of the construction team.Gene describes Larson Truss building as “volunteer-friendly”, meaning that you don’t need seriousconstruction skills to take part. However, if you have a strong tablesaw that you could bring down forthe day, please let us know.
How does a Larsen Truss work? Who was Larsen? Why do we need his trusses in our building? All great questions that we’ll answer this Saturday!
If you can join us, please contact Javier Lara at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or 503-997-4387.
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for me, I’m planning on volunteering there this Saturday so I can see for myself. Below is the CAPACES Leadership Institute Special Bulletin with more information