Ecological architecture - sustainable design

Video Media Awards

Eco Eye - A Place For Home: The Future of Rural Communities

Duncan Stewart looks at the social implications of Ireland's extraordinary number of one-off homes across Ireland’s countryside and searches for sustainable solutions to Ireland's housing problems.


Our practice has featured regularly in both Irish and foreign media throughout the years. Here is a selection of these:

  • RTE Home of the Year praises our A-rated architecture,the serene and upbeat energy from the materials, space, natural light, a sense of warmth, "just feels so comfortable", fascinating the intrigued Judges.
  • Irish Examiner's review of the Home of the Year episode.
  • Ethical Financial referred back to us to gain insight into ecological architecture at scale through innovatively-financed energy refits for communities in Ireland and elsewhere in Europe.
  • 'Forests' have published our 'LCA of 3-storey Timber-Framed Residential Workplaces', co-authored with Prof. Ken Byrne (Dept of Biological Sciences, UL), Drs. Mike Clancy and Jean O’Dwyer. PDF version also available. See also the ecoVillage Cloghjordan.
  • Comfortable, clean and cheap to run? Allergies and fatigue may be due to everyday pollutants and draughtproofing to save energy. Well-designed ventilation and natural materials can help both, writes Sally Starbuck in the Irish Independent.
  • Sally Starbuck has been interviewed by Emma Good for the e-newsletter of Ethical Financial; experts in honest and professional advice in their customers' best interests, longterm.
  • Gaïa Ecotecture contributed 'an excellent case study' in Environmental Sustainability to 'Creating Places for People: RIAI Town and Village Toolkit', funded by the Department of Arts, Heritage and Gaeltacht. Gaïa Ecotecture welcomes the publication. See also the ecoVillage Cloghjordan.
  • Sally Starbuck has contributed an article to RIAI's new consumer magazine "house + design"
  • Irish Times feature: Cloughjordan: Inside Ireland’s only ecovillage. See also the ecoVillage Cloghjordan.
  • Irish Independant feature: Treading softly on the earth, Tipp Ecovillage's green heart beats strong. See also the ecoVillage Cloghjordan.
  • Open House weekend, abstract for IAHS Sustainable Housing congress. See also the ecoVillage Cloghjordan.
  • Presentation at Hempbuilding Symposium presentation at CAT Macchynleth, 'Learning from Housing' exhibition in Dublin
  • Transforming Ireland lecture for UCD Earth Sciences Institute, TCD TrinityHaus and Dublin City Council under the aegis of the TCD-UCD Innovation Alliance
  • Invitation to present to UNIDO Expert Group Meeting into ecovillages in the Beijing region
  • "Sustainable Buildings in Practice:What the Users Think" By Prof George Baird, Wellington NZ: ISBN: 978-0-415-39932-6 Routledge January 2010. See also Navan Credit Union.
  • "About the House" ; RTE TV Series 10, 2009, featuring our Dublin Airport House. See below for videos of this programme.
  • 25th Passive and Low Energy Architecture : PLEA International Conference; Dublin UCD October 2008; Paper 443 by Paul Leech. See also Navan Credit Union.
  • Engineers Ireland ;Lecture series ; Lectures by Paul Leech in Dublin and Cork , Autumn 2008. See also Navan Credit Union.
  • "Making a difference" The Irish Times - Saturday, January 13, 2007
  • "The Arts in the West since 1945"; Prof Arthur Marwick: Oxford University Press 2002. See also Mayo live-work.
  • "Rencontra a l'horizon", 'La Maison Ecologique' Dec.-Jan2003, interview with Paul Leech by Yves Sant-Jours, illustrated with several of our ecohouses.
  • "Beyond Sustanable Building; Balancing between best practice and utopian concepts" Technical University of Eindhoven : 2002; ISBN 90-6814-565-7 Paper by Leech "Sailing to Utopia using best practice as a navigating tool; incorporated also in Forward and Synthesis; CD and 'bouwstenen' published proceedings.
  • Proceedings of www.sb05.com, Sustainable Building World Conference 2005 Tokyo Poster Paper 01 136. See also Navan Credit Union.
  • SB05 Tokyo poster. See also Navan Credit Union.
  • Proceedings of www.sb08.org Sustainable Building World Conference 2008 Melbourne, Australia: Oral Paper by Paul Leech SB1213. See also Navan Credit Union.
  • Paul Leech - "Energy Efficiency in Large Buildings - New Thinking, Green Energy Conference 2008, Sustainable Energy Solutions & Opportunities, Tipperary Institute, Thurles Campus - 19 & 20 May" Lecture by Paul Leech
  • "The Irish Today;Profiles in Excellence": Cadogan London 2000: Several illustrated completed projects.
  • "Architecture Today": Prof. James Steele, School of Architecture, University of Southern California LA., Phaidon London 1997, ISBN 0 7148 3617 6.
  • "The Architecture of Ecology" Academy Editions London 1997, ed. M. Toy, Architectural Design.
  • "In Search of Natural Architecture", Gaia Books, London 1994, ISBN 1 85675 0469.
  • "Green Design: Sustainable Building for Ireland" OPW/ RIAI/ ERG, Govt. Publications 1996. ISBN 0 7076 2392 8: Pub No. EUR 16859 of the European Commission: Leech on steering/ editorial committee and part author.
  • "Green Vitruvius: A Manual of Sustainable Architecture" EU Commission 1999, part editor/ review group member.
  • "Developing a Government Policy on Architecture - A Proposed Framework & Discussion of Issues" chaired- Paul Leech, Dept. of Arts, Culture & Gaeltacht 1996; policy subsequently adopted by Government
  • "The Healthy House" Sydney Baggs PhD, Harper Collins, Sydney 1996, ISBN 0 7322 5753 0. Thames and Hudson, London 1996, ISBN 0 500 27920 9.
  • "The New Natural House Book: Conran Octopus" 1998 2nd edition, ISBN 1 85029 985 4
  • "The Climatic Dwelling" James & James, London 1996, ISBN 1 873936 39 7
  • "Our House" Duncan Stewart, Folens, Dublin, with TV series; several projects featured
  • "Spirit & Healing in Design: Awards" EcoDesign Vol. III, No. 3
  • "Building on the Edge of Europe", ISBN 0946641 749: 1996. "L'Imaginaire Irlandais" Paris: 1996. See also Mayo live-work.
  • "By Design" TV Series, Little Bird/ Create Films for RTE 1997
  • Lexus Magazine #4 "Eco Structures - Green Architecture has grown sophisticated"
  • Article by Pirmin Jung in 'Architektur & Technik', May 2008 Switzerland, regarding Navan Credit Union
  • "Leargas" RTE television / Telifís na Gaeltachta: November 2001: the future of housing in Ireland. See below for YouTube videos of this programme.
  • Sunday Times article about the Trefoil House