Session · Carbon and electrification · Designers and consultants

Don’t Judge a House by Its Cover: Natural Materials in Residential Design

September 16, 2025 · Chapter · PHGC (Passive House Gulf Coast)

The Cross Cabin, a case study in starting residential design from renewable, recyclable, low-embodied-energy materials such as hemp, cork, and cross-laminated timber, and in working through the cost, sourcing, installer, and client hurdles of materials not yet mainstream.

Key points

• The health, environmental, and performance benefits of plant-based materials such as hemp, cork, and cross-laminated timber.
• How the AIA Framework for Design Excellence and the Architecture 2030 Challenge inform low-embodied-carbon material choices.
• The challenges of specifying non-mainstream materials: budget, procurement, design integration, installers, and client communication.
• Strategies from the Cross Cabin project for bringing low-carbon, renewable materials into future residential work.

Topics: Embodied carbon, Insulation and assemblies