‘This is a wonderful book that should be on the desk of every architect and planner. It shows how

Resource minimization
: A bias towards ‘standard’ passive solar design templates with
minimalist use of natural systems can limit design experimentation and eco-innovation, and
lead to design approaches that are not responsive to local ecosystems or cultures.
• 
Single function spaces
: A priority on space minimization can lead to the single function use 
of space enclosed by rigid boxes that reduce the opportunity for biological landscaping,
ecological functions and eco-services to be integrated with the structure itself.
• 
Durability
: The belief that permanence is always a virtue, even in relatively temporary
residential construction, can lead to reduced adaptability and reversibility (eg concrete slab
and steel instead of compostable, organic, easily modified materials or composites).
• 
Densification
: Contemporary approaches to infill development and land-use planning tend
to privatize and alienate urban space, and de-nature the urban environment. Cities and
buildings could (figuratively) serve as oases, rather than deserts.
We noted above that eco-logical design would, on a level playing field, be more eco-efficient than 
standard construction. This is because it utilizes ‘free’ natural systems and reduces the social and 
environmental costs of development. Nonetheless, there is little use of passive solar design, let alone 
design for eco-services, in contemporary building design. At best, we aim for only ‘optimal’ (ie 
minimal) use of passive solar design. 
Wouldn’t ‘minimal’ passive solar design be cheaper and more ‘efficient’?
No. Most ‘green’ buildings are 
under-designed
for passive solar energy. Consequently, such buildings 
need backup equipment, which makes green design seem more expensive. Yet we have seen that there 
is a 
surplus
of sunlight hitting the Earth (thousands of times more than humans need). A surplus 
means that, to a reasonable extent, solar energy can be exploited for human use without harming 
natural systems [Chapter 4]. But instead, we are using fossil fuels many thousands of times faster than 
they are produced. Operating the existing built environment constitutes about 20 per cent of fossil 
fuel use, much of which could be avoided by eco-retrofitting. From a systems perspective, therefore, 

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Design Methods
it makes no sense to use fossil fuels in heating, cooling and ventilating buildings [Box 22]. Passive 
solar design can fulfil these functions more cheaply and efficiently. Thus, for example, once installed, 
light shelves, light wells and shade cloths can avoid glare while bouncing natural light deep into space 
without any electricity. Solar stacks, Solar Cores and reverse Trombe walls provide heating, cooling 
and ventilating at little or no operating cost. In short, minimalist ‘optimizing’ of solar design can 
create sub-optimal results and make solar design appear more expensive than it need be.