David Komet and Nidhi Shah join The Passive House Network Board
Both members bring a steadfast dedication to healthy, sustainable buildings and a drive to realize a better built environment.
New York, N.Y. – The Passive House Network (PHN) is pleased to announce the addition of two new members to its Board of Directors: David Komet, Founder and Principal of Urban Earth LLC, and Nidhi Shah, Sustainability Lead & Architect from Retrofit Action for Tomorrow.
Based in San Antonio, Texas, David specializes in bridging the worlds of capital markets and high-performance construction. He has three decades of experience in managing private investment pools across long/short equities, direct lending, value-add real estate, and structured project finance for sustainable-development ventures. As a director of the San Antonio Area Foundation, he chaired both the Audit & Finance Committee and the Investment Committee.
David’s work with Urban Earth focuses on high-performance buildings and regenerative real-estate development. His projects include Texas Pickle Hall, an indoor Passive House pickleball court located in San Antonio. [Learn More about the Project]. He holds a B.A. in International Relations from Tufts University, a graduate certificate in Green Building & Community Sustainability from Harvard University, and is a graduate-certificate candidate in Sustainable Design at the Boston Architectural College.
“What drew me to Passive House was the economics,” said David. “Once you see that a better envelope can enable you to cut the mechanical system nearly in half, the conversation stops being about sustainability premiums and starts being about value engineering, and that argument works in a Texas boardroom as well as it does in New England. I’m looking forward to helping PHN carry that case into the hot-humid South and the Sun Belt, where the cooling loads are brutal, the grid is fragile, and the need is greatest. My hope is that we make Passive House the obvious answer for developers and lenders who care first about the numbers.”
Nidhi Shah is based in Atlanta, Georgia, and is an expert in Passive House, EnerPHit, integrating building physics, and whole life carbon analysis. She is experienced in leading large teams to deliver complex retrofit and new-build projects. Nidhi has taught Architecture and Design at the University level at the National Institute of Design in India and the Birmingham School of Architecture and Design in the United Kingdom.
Nidhi has worked on several school projects, including London Borough of Lewisham Schools, Salisbury Cathedral School, and Dalmain, Alverstoke, Myatt Garden & Downderry Primary School. She also worked on Action Builder, an online platform to allow schools to carry out their own self-audit, helping stakeholders understand their buildings and create a plan towards efficient, zero carbon retrofits. Nidhi holds a Diploma in Architecture from the Institute of Environmental Design in India, a Masters in Visual Communications from Birmingham City University in the UK, and a Masters in Architecture in Advanced Energy and Environmental Sustainability at the Centre for Alternative Technology in the UK.
“Building a sustainable future is about redefining how we live, breathe, and coexist with our environment,” Nidhi said. “I am thrilled to join the board of The Passive House Network to help accelerate a built environment that fundamentally prioritizes both human well-being and planetary health.”
David and Nidhi’s appointment to the PHN Board comes on the heels of a successful national Passive House conference in New Haven, Connecticut, where both presented on their recent projects. Their experience is a welcome addition to the community.
“Nidhi and David both bring deep Passive House experience that proves climate action goes hand-in-hand with value engineering,” said Darren Macri, Board Chair. “Their addition to our board reflects PHN’s commitment to letting the data lead.”
The Passive House Network looks forward to how David and Nidhi’s knowledge and experience will inform the ongoing effort to change the sustainable building status quo.
