The Electrify Portland! Home Electrification Fair is a free, all-ages, festive event for homeowners and renters curious about transitioning their homes from gas (or old electric) to efficient electric.

Join us for an exciting event where we explore the innovative world of energy design! Discover how cutting-edge technologies are shaping the future of sustainable, energy efficient building design. From distributed energy resources, energy management solutions, and battery storage, experts will share their insights on the latest opportunities and trends. The event will be held at 151 Southwest 1st Avenue, Portland, OR, USA. Mark your calendars and get ready to dive into the fascinating world of energy design!

Speaker Bios-

Karina Hershberg, Senior Associate, PAE

Passionate about sustainability, Karina has 15 years of experience with systems modeling, data analysis and electrical engineering for high performance buildings and renewable energy systems. She brings a unique perspective to her dual roles in analysis and engineering at PAE. Through data-driven analytics and innovative design, Karina helps projects implement regenerative and resilient solutions. She leads the development of microgrid design, emissions analysis, and campus-scale solutions for the firm and is a regional leader for PAE’s Regenerative Design Group.

Isaac Barrow, Commercial Offerings Manager, PGE

Isaac is distinguished by his passion for implementing innovative and collaborative solutions to complex problems. Leading the Commercial Offerings team for Portland General Electric, Isaac works at the intersection of the built environment and the grid, advancing how PGE serves its customers in the development world and implementing solutions that help customers and the utility decarbonize and meet tomorrow's challenges. Fluent in French and having spent large portions of his life overseas and in the developing world, Isaac knows that sustainable and equitable growth is key to ensuring a prosperous and inclusive future for all. Having graduated from Portland State, and with one daughter at U of O and another at Grant High School, the Pacific Northwest is very much home.

Join us at Loyal Legion on the opening night of Sustainable Building Week for a happy hour hosted by Gensler Portland, Catena Consulting Engineers, and Turner Construction. This event brings together industry professionals and students together to connect, socialize, and learn about sustainable design collaboration. Gensler Portland, Catena Consulting Engineers, and Turner Construction Co. are currently working together on the Western Oregon University Student Success Center located in Monmouth, Oregon. This project incorporates carbon reduction strategies and inclusive design solutions that foster a sense of belonging for students and staff.

Come tour the nature conservancy headquarters in SE Portland, learn about the design process, and discuss the challenges and opportunities for climate adapted native planting design on urban sites.

Space is limited, please sign up to join us for light refreshments and natural building conversations!

We set out to make a plant-based, carbon-negative wall system that didn’t lose sight of efficiencies or neglect human-scale, craft-focused building. The StraBloc™ system is for architects, designers, professional builders, and DIYers seeking healthy and authentically sustainable building solutions without the laborious time and cost of other natural build processes. It combines the carbon-storing, eco-friendly, healthy air qualities of natural building, with the efficiencies of conventional framing. Our vision is to create a collective of StraBloc™ fabricators and installers, equipped with resources and community support to instill a culture of stewardship and ecological responsibility into our built environment.

Our system is healthy for homeowners, safe for our workers, empowering for our local community, and gentle on the planet. To find us, drive to the end of Baltimore Avenue, PARK IN CATHEDRAL PARK BOAT RAMP.

Our Blockery is located within Green Anchors; its entrance is 200ft north of the boat ramp lot, parallel to the tracks. Take a left into the Green Anchors complex followed by the first right and you’ll see our shop!

Join us on October 10th, 2023 for an in-person event celebrating our remarkable achievements in reducing carbon emissions from buildings!

Sustainable Building Week works to Keep Portland Green. SBW offers a week of events to break down siloed thinking to improve cross-disciplinary education, connectivity, and future collaboration to promote sustainable practices and design across the city of Portland and beyond. Please join us on October 10th at our offices in the Ecotrust Building for refreshments [...]

A panel conversation about what it means to be a Certified B Corporation in the design + build + material supply space. Industry leaders will share their motivations and experiences pursuing the comprehensive certification and how the B Impact framework has helped expand their notion of positive impact. As one panelist puts it: "We've been doing sustainable design for a while, but now we have a sustainable business model."
Light snacks and beverages included.
Panelists:
• Jon Lundstrom, Co-Director of Design at Green Hammer
• Jenn Lanius, Architect at EMA Architecture
• Lynn Morgan, Marketing Manager at Sustainable Northwest Wood
• Wes Griffin, Administrative Director at B Local PDX

Learn how the Zero Energy Retrofits Manager from Birdsmouth Design-Build retrofitted his 1907 Portland home to Zero Energy cost effectively. Come away with DIY strategies and the knowledge of when to call in the pros. Ryan is the Zero Energy Retrofits Manager for Birdsmouth Design-Build and the host of The Retrofit Podcast powered by Green [...]

This presentation will include information about how much it costs to electrify a home and how one's monthly utility bills will change.

Join us for an exciting in-person event at the June Key Delta Community Center, a zero energy building! This event is all about showcasing and celebrating the innovative ideas and perspectives of Black visionaries in the sustainable building industry.

Join us at Fortis Construction for a collaborative session on low carbon concrete in the Oregon market. We will discuss successes, opportunities, and challenges of utilizing low carbon concrete mix designs on projects, and will have speakers representing different viewpoints (designers, engineers, contractors, consultants, manufacturers, etc.) all working towards a common goal.
Rachel Gesik, Fortis Sustainability Manager

Elena Goldstein Lake, Brightworks Sustainable Buildings Technical Lead

Jason Weiss, Oregon State University, School of Civil and Construction Engineering

Join us for an evening of networking, mentorship, and celebration. This event brings together diverse professionals and advocates from architecture, engineering, construction, and STEAM education. Discover how our organizations are advancing climate justice and empowering students and emerging professionals to create an equitable, sustainable, and inclusive future. Connect with Room for More, ELSO, NOMA, and others while celebrating the kickoff of the NOMA National Conference.

Come make new connections, share insights, and join the movement toward positive change in our A/E/C industry.

A one hour tour of a certified Phius 2021 Zero Passive House built by Birdsmouth Design-Build! Plus a short presentation on what Passive House is and the specific assemblies and systems used to meet the standard in this home.

Join Lovett Deconstruction and the City of Portland Bureau of Planning and Sustainability for a one-of-a-kind Sustainable Building Week event and gain 1 AIA LU in the process!

One of the silver linings of COVID is that the pandemic lockdown provided Oregon Metro HQ with the opportunity to evaluate their sustainability practices and environment. Innovations were made to both, resulting in a Platinum LEED certification for this government institution. We will celebrate with a tour, plaque dedication and a rooftop reception.

A community gathering showcasing how local, reclaimed building products and techniques come together in a nature-oriented dwelling (NŌD).

Under warm sunny skies, we broke ground mid-July on our first permitted ADU à la NŌD (nature-oriented dwelling) in Vancouver, Washington. This success is a culmination of years of work by this dedicated Placecraft team and more, along the way.

Our first-of-its-kind wall system is built around our insulation innovation — the StraBloc™ — which combines the carbon-storing, eco-friendly, healthy air qualities of natural building, with the efficiencies of conventional framing. Other natural building materials for this first-of-its-kind, ADA accessible structure include locally sourced insulated perlite and earthen flooring, wood fiber board, reclaimed wood claddings and siding, as well as interior and exterior plaster.

Our system is healthy for homeowners, safe for our workers, empowering for our local community, and gentle on the planet.

How can landscape architecture help solve the climate crisis? ASLA’s Climate Action Committee Chair April Philips provides an Oregon-focused look at climate action in our state.

Sustainable Building Week networking is too much fun to keep it once a year. We’ll supply the drinks, light snacks, and a few topics of discussion. December's agenda is the second annual Sustainable Holiday Pictionary. Everyone will get a chance to draw and guess the sustainable holiday themes. Will it be an off-the-grid ginger bread [...]

Given the increasing frequency and severity of natural hazards and the dire predictions of climate scientists that things will get worse, we need to accelerate climate change mitigation and simultaneously get serious about resilience to reduce potentially catastrophic risks. Fortunately, when we look at buildings and urban environments, there is overlap in mitigation and resilient [...]