How Low Can We Go – Historic Preservation and Carbon Reduction: Applied Trades

The third annual “How Low Can We Go” event will focus on applied trades and will feature a panel discussion with architects, uniquely positioned tradespeople, and educators.

Retrofitting existing buildings to attain higher energy performance and to increase carbon reduction is often the direct result of not just exemplary design or detailing but also skills-based knowledge and training at the level of the individual tradesperson. This is particularly the case with traditional craftsmanship and within the recently meteoric Passive House movement. At this panel, experts from different fields will come together to discuss the complications of preservation in the age of sustainability.

Panelists:
Kevin Brennan, Contractor, Brennan and Brennan Insulation and Airtightness
Peter Cox, FRSA, Managing Director, Carrig (Ireland)
Milan Jordan, Director of the HOPE Crew, National Trust for Historic Preservation
Chris Magwood, Director, The Endeavor Centre Sustainable Building School
Nick Redding, President and CEO, Preservation Maryland

Moderator:
Scott Henson, FAIA, CPHD, Principal, Henson Architecture

Speaker Bios:

Kevin Brennan is a contractor, Certified Passive House Tradesperson, and co-owner of Brennan and Brennan Insulation and Airtightness. Brennan and his team provide high quality-installation of insulation and air barrier systems to meet Passive House Standards. BB I&A makes Passive House simple with their years of experience in construction and sustainability trades.

Peter Cox is an architect and founding member of Carrig Conservation in Ireland. As one of Ireland’s leading conservation and stone experts, Cox has the vision and experience to bring about unique concepts, such as an emphasis on traditional trades, to improve and protect both new and historic buildings in Ireland and the UK. He is instrumental in advising and implementing national conservation and heritage policies on behalf of government bodies and local authorities.

Milan Jordan is currently the Director of the HOPE Crew at the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which brings hands-on preservation experience to the next wave of preservation tradespeople. Since 2014, HOPE Crew has completed 165 projects and trained more than 750 young people – including veterans – and engaged over 3,700 volunteers in historic preservation trades.

Chris Magwood is a designer and consultant with 20+ years of experience in sustainable building design. Magwood is also a founder of The Endeavour Centre, an innovative, sustainable building school based in Peterborough, Ontario, where he teaches in the Sustainable Building & Design program. The Endeavor Center offers full-time programs and workshops featuring natural and sustainable building materials and strategies, as well as renewable energy and efficiency techniques and technologies.

Nick Redding has served as the President and CEO of Preservation Maryland since 2014. In that capacity he oversees the organization's operations, programs, and growing professional staff. Outside of his work with Preservation Maryland, he serves as the vice-chair of the National Preservation Partners Network, the national network of statewide and local preservation organizations. Additionally, he has worked in partnership with the National Park Service’s Historic Preservation Training Center to establish the Campaign for Historic Trades, a new program dedicated to developing the next generation of traditional tradespeople.

Scott Henson is the founding Principal of Henson Architecture. Scott advances the field of preservation, elevating traditional building practices to globally conscious, sustainable design. Henson’s crafted approach embodies building stewardship and advocates adaptive reuse to the profession. Henson’s groundwork in traditional craftsmanship led him to the preservation and adaptive re-use of historic buildings, a practice critical in the development of sustainable building practices.