September 26, 2019 (SEATTLE) Celebrating the champions addressing climate change, Living Building Makers: Creating Sustainable Buildings That Renew Our World is a handcrafted collection of stories about the remarkable people who bring the built environment to life. Each chapter captures the insights, creativity, humor, and discoveries of the often-unsung individuals – builders, designers, engineers, educators, tradespeople, operators and owners – who rolled up their sleeves to play a pivotal role in creating two of the greenest buildings in the world on the campus of Massachusetts’ renowned Hampshire College.

Veteran builder Jonathan A. Wright’s storied first-hand accounts share how these dedicated professionals transformed their corner of the world by the way they leaned into their work. In the process, the nature of their own work is changed forever.

“Every day for several years, women and men carried out seemingly ordinary work-related tasks to accomplish something extraordinary,” says Wright. “I wanted to honor and commemorate that work and am so happy to have partnered with Ecotone Publishing.” 

A “Living Building” is one that is regenerative and connects occupants to light, air, food, nature, and community; is self-sufficient and remain within the resource limits of their site; and creates a positive impact on the human and natural systems that interact with them.

Says Denis Hayes, President of the Bullitt Foundation (and principal national organizer of the first Earth Day), “Architects, perhaps understandably, get the lion’s share of the public credit for exceptional buildings. But Living Building Makers introduces us to the engineers, electricians, carpenters, plumbers, and other unsung heroes who all perform at their peaks to achieve ultra-high-performance structures. This book is a powerful reminder that it takes a village to create Living Buildings.”

Author Jonathan A. Wright is an accomplished maker with more than forty-five years’ experience as an expert builder specializing in the construction and design of sustainable, healthy, high-performance buildings. His penchant for craft is evidenced beyond the built environment as a published poet of several works including After the Rain (2014) and Season of Dreams (2018).

In 1970, Jonathan joined the first entering class at Hampshire College where he thrived in the non-traditional educational setting. He enjoyed the quality of life in the Connecticut River Valley of Massachusetts so much that he decided to stay, joined by his wife, pianist Meg Kelsey Wright, where they made their family home in Northampton. He founded Wright Builders, Inc. in 1974, and the firm has since achieved more than forty LEED certifications in addition to the R.W. Kern Center and the Hitchcock Center for the Environment Living Buildings.

Perhaps even greater than his passion for wood, water, food, notes, or words, Jonathan cares about people and the richness derived from learning their personal stories. His overarching compassion for the health of people and the planet is ingrained in everything he makes.