In 2009, President Obama proposed an initiative to decrease our country's energy consumption and dependence on fossil fuels. One key to this plan was to decrease the amount of energy used to heat and cool our homes through government incentives. The EPA estimates that the average American household spends over $1000 annually for heating and…

Today's education institution kitchens are colorful and inviting, designed with curvature and stainless steel to compete with local restaurants, offering more variety and efficiency to the demanding health-conscious "Generation Me" consumer who is short on time and big on selection. In short, campus eateries are less "cafeteria" and more "cafe."…

Building energy-efficient school facilities is not just about being "green." It is about providing high-performance facilities that are safe, healthy, and conducive to learning. It is also about building facilities that are cost-effective from their inception and in the long term. Many school districts are working under ever-tightening…

Consumers are constantly being presented with choices that have economic, environmental, and lifestyle/social dimensions. For example, is an energy-efficient hybrid car (with regenerative braking) a better choice than a regular petroleum-only vehicle when considered from all three dimensions? Surprisingly, although each and all of these dimensions…

A methodology to develop an easy-to-use toolkit for the preliminary design of high performance schools in hot and humid climates was presented. The toolkit proposed in this research will allow decision makers without simulation knowledge easily to evaluate accurately energy efficient measures for K-5 schools, which would contribute to the…