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Welcome To Our Living Building

“Imagine a building designed and constructed to function as elegantly and efficently as a flower.”

- Living Building Challenge

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THE HITCHCOCK CENTER’S LIVING BUILDING

To meet the challenge, the Hitchcock Center will:

  • Restore contaminated soil of a former arsenic-contaminated apple orchard.
  • Place an equal amount of land into permanent conservation restriction.
  • Achieve Net Zero Energy through highly efficient building strategies and a 60 kW rooftop solar array
  • Achieve Net Zero Water through composting toilets, rainwater collection storage, treatment for drinking water, and greywater filtration through a constructed wetland.
  • Create landscapes that use native species to promote greater biodiversity.
  • Use only chemical-free and non-toxic materials.
  • Use locally sourced, salvaged, recycled, and sustainably harvested materials.
  • Provide equal access to all of our community.
  • Promote biophilia, the innate love for the natural world, through design artistry.

HITCHCOCK CENTER

Education for a Healthy Planet

Founded in 1962, the Hitchcock Center for the Environment’s mission is to foster greater awareness and understanding of our environment and to develop environmentally literate citizens.

Our net zero energy, water, and waste building, built with responsibly sourced, nontoxic materials, is a powerful new teaching tool that supports a returned approach to achieving environmental literacy in the 21st century.

We are committed to providing accessible and affordable environmental education programs for people of all ages and abilities who seek greater environmental knowledge, understanding, and action in support of a more ecologically restorative and socially just future.

We invite you to join us in this commitment so that we may leave our children and our children’s children a safer, healthier, cleaner, and sustainable world.

USING NATURE’S WISDOM

These ecological principles underpin the design and operation of our Living Building.

NATURE RUNS ON SUNLIGHT
Like the leaves of a plant, the building’s solar panels convert energy from the sun to power our building.

Nature fits form to function
Living things are adapted to their environment in ways that help them survive. A hummingbird’s bill mirrors the shape of the flowers on which it feeds.

Nature demands local expertise
Living things are attuned and responsive to their environment. Those that succeed and thrive are those that adapt and evolve to changing local conditions. Wood frogs can freeze solid in winter, and then in spring they thaw and hop away.

Nature banks on diversity
Biological diversity ensures the resilience of an ecosystem. The more species, the more options. No bees, no apples.

Nature recycles everything
In the cycles of nature, we find that all matter on Earth is truly re-cycled. Air, water, and minerals are used over and over again. There is no waste. Today, we drink the same water that dinosaurs drank 100 million years ago.

Nature uses only the energy it needs
An ecosystem in balance is one where all parts operate in a cycle where nothing is wasted. In nature, all things are connected. A year of plenty is used - to survive, to thrive, and to prepare for lean times. The black bear feasts and grows fat in fall, and so survives the long winter famine.

ENERGY

RELYING ONLY ON RENEWABLE FORMS OF ENERGY

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KILOWATT-HOUR = kWh

NATURE USES ONLY THE ENERGY IT NEEDS
The bear feasts to store energy for the long winter sleep, just as our surplus energy generated in the summer is sent to the grid to be stored as credit for the shorter days of winter.

NATURE RUNS ON SUNLIGHT
Like the leaves of a plant, the building’s solar panels convert energy from the sun to power our building.

ENERGY DATA

RELYING ONLY ON RENEWABLE FORMS OF ENERGY

Energy Data is continually collected in order to monitor real-time energy use and energy generation for the building

Kilowatt-hours

Select a Time-Frame

ENERGY LEGEND

  • Energy Generation
    • Solar Generation
  • Energy Use Types
    • Outlets Use
    • Lights Use
    • Mechanical Use

WATER

OPERATING WITHIN THE WATER BALANCE OF OUR PLACE AND OUR CLIMATE

water-content-data
water-content-02 Greywater that leaves the building is filtered through our constructed wetland Some water returns into the earth and some water evaporates back into the air. All of our water comes from the rain. Collected rainwater is stored in a 6,000 gallon underground reservoir Rainwater is treated for drinking using UV sterilization
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NATURE FITS FORM TO FUNCTION
Like a watershed, our building’s roofs are shaped to capture rainfall.

View Compost System

NATURE RECYCLES EVERYTHNG
See how our building, like a mushroom, mitigates waste through composting.

Our Composting waste system

DRAMATICALLY REDUCING WATER USE AND
RETURNING NUTRIENTS TO OUR ECOSYSTEM

compost-content-02 Our nearly waterless toilets use no energy and only a few drops od water. Just like soil outside, the compost chamber uses microbes to breakdown waste and release nutrients. Once decomposed, composted nutrients can be returned to the earth.

NATURE RECYCLES EVERYTHNG
Just as a mushroom thrives on nutrients from fallen leaves and decaying insects, our building turns waste back into useful nutrients.

Materials

CREATING A MATERIALS ECONOMY THAT IS LOCAL,
NONTOXIC, AND ECOLOGICAL RESTORATIVE

materials-content-02 Fiberglass Windows Niwot, CO White Cedar Wood Saint-Martin, QC Steel Doors Milan, TN Salvaged Insulation Framingham, MA Planting Bed Soil Agawam, MA PolyWhey Wood Finish Hardwick, VT Nylon Carpets LaGrange, GA Nordic Lam Timber Chibougamau, QC Photovoltaic Panels Cradle to Cradle Certified San Jose, CA

NATURE DEMANDS LOCAL EXPERTISE
Using local products and services encourages a robust sustainable community. 75% of our materials were sourced from within 1,000km.

Our building is constructed of primarily non-toxic materials.

All construction waste was either recycled or reused on site.

Total embodied carbon of our materials will be offset through a carbon exchange program.

We avoided harmful materials and chemicals on the RED LIST to help keep us and our ecosystem healthy.
Learn more about Red List Materials

RED LIST materials

CREATING A MATERIALS ECONOMY THAT IS LOCAL, NONTOXIC, AND ECOLOGICALLY RESTORATIVE

redList-content W e w or k ed ha r d t o a v oid using har m fu l R ed List m a t erials o r chemicals in ou r Living Building: Alkylphenols A sbes t os Bispheno l A (B P A) Cadmium Chlorin a t ed P o l y e t h ylene and Chlo r osul f on a t ed P o l y e t h ylene Chlo r oben z enes Chlo r o fluo r ocarbons ( C F Cs) and H y d r ochlo r o fluo r ocarbons (HC F Cs) Chlo r op r ene ( N eop r en e ) Ch r omium I V Chlorin a t ed P o l yvi n y l Chloride ( C P V C) F ormalde h y de (added) H alogen a t ed Flame R e ta r da n ts (HFRs) L ead (added) M e r cur y P o l y chlorin a t ed Biphe n yls (PCBs) P erfluorin a t ed Compounds (P F Cs) P h thal a t es P o l yvi n y l Chloride ( P V C) P o l yvi n ylidene Chloride ( P VDC) Short Chain Chlorin a t ed P ar r a fins W ood t r e a tme n ts c o n taining C r eos o t e, Arsenic, o r P e n tachlo r opheno l V ol a tile O r ganic Compounds ( V OCs) in w e t applied p r oducts
redList-content-01 A v oiding these ma t erials helps keep us and ou r e c o s ys t em healt h y .
redList-content-02 Some o f ou r bui l ding p r oducts h a ve a Decla r e Label which an s we r s three importa n t que s tions: 1. Where does the p r oduct c ome f r om? 2. Wh a t is the p r oduct made o f? 3. Where does it go a t the end o f its lif e ?

Beauty

RECOGNIZING BEAUTY AS A PRECURSOR TO CARING, PRESERVING AND CONSERVING

beauty-content-01 Designed and built by Tom Schultz, the floor of the Ecotone depicts the watershed in which the Hitchcock Center sits. Photographs by Jessica Schultz celebrate the spirit of the natural world around our building. These drawings are used throughout our site to illustrate the six key ways in which our building works like nature. Look out for animal tracks on the floor throughout our building. To appreciate beauty elevates our spirits and inspires us to be better people. Our space has been designed to include elements that nurture our innate human connection to nature. Silhouettes of native bird species on our windows gracefully connect us to the beauty and diversity of all living things in our ecosystem. Glyph Drawings Beauty at our Feet Celebrating Culture, Spirit, and Place Natural Connections Our Natural World

NATURE FITS FORM TO FUNCTION
Emulating nature’s beauty throughout the building elevates our spirits and brings out the best in ourseleves and humanity.

Health & Happiness

CREATING ENVIRONMENTS THAT OPTIMIZE
PHYSICAL AND PSYCOLOGICAL HEALTH AND WELL-BEING

health-content-02 Special lights in our building tell us when conditions are good for natural ventilation. If the light is green, our HVAC system turns off and we can open the windows. South-facing windows provide passive solar radiation to heat the building on cold winter days. Our vegetal green screen gives us natural shade in the summer and allows the sun to warm us in the winter. OUTDOOR INDOOR CURRENT TEMPERATURE
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NATURE RUNS ON SUNLIGHT
Just as plants thrive and grow in the presence of sunlight, human happiness and wellbeing thrive and grow in sunlight.

Healthy indoor air quality is assured through use of non-toxic materials, regular testing, and our energy recovery ventilators.

Over 50 operable windows provide access to fresh air, daylight, and views to nature. This makes for healthy indoor environments and happy, productive people.

Place

RESTORING A HEALTHY INTERRELATIONSHIP WITH NATURE

place-content-02 Responsive to Our Bioregion Place-based educ a tion is a t the c ore o f ou r w ork and mission. We Learn from Native Species We are nestled at the foot of the Holyoke Range and in the heart of the Connecticut River Valley. All areas disturbed by construction were planted with a native meadow seed mix. Our landscape is planted with native plants that support other native birds and pollinators to promote resiliency and greater biodiversity.

NATURE DEMANDS LOCAL EXPERTISE
Living things need to be attuned and responsive to their environment. Every aspect of our building design was informed by our place; in the valley, on this hillside, and as part of this community.

Outdoor courtyards, nature trails, gardens, and children’s nature play areas promote observation, exploration, and reconnection to the natural world through the seasons.

We will replace 2.44 acres, the area of our site, with an equal exchange of land that will be put into permanent conservation.

We remediated arsenic-contaminated soil to leave our site better than when we arrived.

Equity

SUPPORTING A JUST AND EQUITABLE WORLD

equity-content-01 As more land becomes privatized we offer free access to land for the public. We strive to keep our programs free and low-cost and work extensively with underserved and diverse communities. Rights to Nature We are open to all through our free and accessible building, trails, and gardens. The physical layout of our site creates easy and equal access to all differently abled children and adults. Universal Access for All We aim to foster a true, inclusive sense of community that is just and equitable and that embraces all sectors of humanity and allows the dignity of equal access and fair treatment. Our trails and teaching garden are accessible to all visitors. VIEWS T O HO L Y OKE RANGE A C CESS T O HAMPSHIRE C OLLEGE A C CESS T O TRAI L S Y S TEM A shared sidewalk for bicycles and pedestrians and a bus line connects our building to the greater Pioneer V alley communit y . Promoting Inclusive Communities

NATURE BANKS ON DIVERSITY
Cultural and biological diversity is a source of strength and resilience for healthy ecosystems and communities