350NM Event Calendar
Rethinking Housing for a Fossil Fuel-Free Future
Speaker: Joaquin Karcher, Zero Energy Designer and founder of zeroedesigns, Taos, NM
When: Monday, March. 23, 2026 Youtube video: YouTube video – Rethinking Housing For a Fossil Free Future
Description: This talk explores practical, cost-effective pathways to decarbonized housing, focusing on fossil fuels free construction and a new building-science–based approach capable of reducing heating and cooling energy use by up to 90%. It will briefly look in the rear-view mirror at how we arrived at today’s building practices, outline the current state of the art in high-efficiency construction, and explain how these systems work in practice. From there, Joaquin will introduce an emerging approach that simplifies high performance while dramatically cutting energy demand—offering a realistic path toward climate-aligned housing that remains attainable and cost-effective for everyday communities.
Joaquin Karcher‘s work over the last 35 years has been driven by a commitment to sustainable design, from earth architecture to passive solar/adobe construction to Passive House standards and beyond. He designed the first certified passive house in New Mexico, co-authored the New Mexico Earthen Materials Building code which was adopted internationally and has designed homes in Germany, New Mexico, Arizona and the Navajo Nation. His focus now is on affordable, zero-carbon, ultra-efficient residences powered entirely by solar energy. Karcher Biography zeroedesign website
Presented by 350NM and the New Mexico Solar Energy Association
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