Windows and glazing play a disproportionate role in a building's performance compared to other parts of the assembly.  As we strive to meet our 2030 and 2050 climate goals the design strategies for both our new and existing buildings must be closely evaluated.

Wood-insulated panels (WIPs) combine CLT with rigid exterior wood fiber insulation (WFI) to create a consistent, uniform panel with continuous exterior insulation. These panels can be used to fabricate shell systems, delivering a structural/thermal/moisture enclosure solution for use in new construction and retrofits, and the wood cut-outs from these panels go into the WFI "hopper" in a cradle-to-cradle cycle. This session will present the results from OPAL Build's pilot project, a 1000sf schoolhouse in Belfast, Maine.

Residential Energy Efficiency programs are poised to see a shift in scope from weatherization to decarbonization that will include deeper retrofits and strategies to eliminate fossil fuels in and outside the home.  This panel will discuss the skills and expertise needed in the workforce to decarbonize our residential building stock and contemplate how we will train and fill for these positions, looking at diversity, barriers, and feeder programs.

While project teams typically establish quantifiable performance targets for their projects, there is no magic bullet for defining the right energy consumption goal for each project. This panel of high-performance experts and architects will discuss strategies for quantitative goal setting: when, who, and how aggressive.