by Jeff Feldman
“How’s the house?”
I am asked this a lot. In winter, this question is often followed with another question, either asked or implied: “Staying warm?”
These might seem unusual questions to ask the average homeowner. But factor in an unusual house—strawbale-insulated with no conventional heating system, and an unusually chilly winter with January and February [...]

by Jeff Feldman
Some people wait for the stars to align before initiating action; for Barbara Humes, it had more to do with the Sun. Humes had been waiting eight years to see solar electric panels raised on the roof of her Harpers Ferry’s home. In late 2009, the pieces finally fell into place, and renewable [...]

by Jeff Feldman
It all began simply enough. Earth pigments, ground to a fine powder, were mixed with water or rendered animal fat  to form a paste. This was the medium our cave-dwelling ancestors used to decorate  their humble abodes as much  as 40,000 years ago. From this prehistoric form of artistic expression forward, humans have used natural materials  to [...]

by Jeff Feldman
I sat engrossed in Coal Country during last month’s American Conservation Film Festival in Shepherdstown. The film documents a range of perspectives on the issue of surface mining for coal in Appalachia, what many have come to call mountaintop removal. Interviews and footage depict miners expressing pride in their heritage; locals struggling to [...]

By Jeff Feldman
At his Glenmont Estate in West Orange, N.J., Thomas Edison must be rolling in his grave. As part of the Energy Independence and Security Act passed by Congress in December 2007, the incandescent light bulb — the very one Edison reputedly discovered 10,000 ways NOT to make before he finally got it right [...]

By Jeff Feldman
On August 24, the federal government’s Consumer Assistance to Recycle and Save Act, better known as “Cash for Clunkers,” came to an abrupt end.  With auto dealerships advertising this rebate program via jumbo-sized block-lettered banners, flashing signs, and blaring TV commercials, it was hard to be out of the loop on this as [...]

By Jeff Feldman
Small Planet
 
In a quiet hollow at the foot of South Mountain, young children explore, discover, learn, and play among fields where crops once grew. This is the Lucy School, a 17-acre farm turned arts-integrated education center. Arriving at the school, you are greeted by vistas of open fields, a large pond fed by [...]

By Jeff Feldman
In a quiet corner of south Jefferson County, the skeleton of a house greets the morning sun. This post and beam framework is a gathering point this morning, drawing people from miles around who have come to raise the walls that will enclose the oaken bones of a home slowly being transformed from [...]

By Jeff Feldman

It’s a common complaint. You awaken in the morning, trudge with sleep-encrusted eyes into the bathroom, turn on the hot-water faucet of your sink or shower and wait . . . and wait . . . and wait a bit more for the hot water to arrive.
Depending on the layout of your home, [...]