PHCA Community Meeting | Passive House x Fire Hardened

By Passive House California , May 4, 2026 - Community Meeting, Featured Articles

The building industry is conducting two parallel conversations—Passive House and fire hardening, using different vocabularies to describe a fundamentally shared ethos. This talk argues that airtight envelopes, sealed penetrations, and continuous insulation architects have long detailed for Passive House performance are simultaneously accomplishing the work of fire hardening. Drawing on a retrofit underway in Pacific Palisades during the January 2025 fires and on new-construction prototypes developed for Altadena rebuilds, Marcos…

PHCA Community Meeting | Hidden Impacts of Plastic Building Products

By Passive House California , May 2, 2026 - Community Meeting, Featured Articles

Plastics are almost entirely derived from fossil fuels and generate pollution throughout their life cycle, including greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change, toxic chemicals and microplastics that impact human health and the environment, and waste that lasts for centuries on land and in waterways. Many individuals and organizations are becoming increasingly concerned about plastic pollution, but most people don’t realize that the building and construction sector is the second…

PHCA Community Meeting | Complexities in Selecting Passive House Windows

By Passive House California , May 2, 2026 - Community Meeting, Featured Articles

The California energy code has very simple requirements that windows have to meet in order for a project to comply with the energy code. Certified Passive House buildings, on the other hand, have a much more nuanced approach to analyzing and specifying windows. This can present some difficulties for designers, architects, energy modelers, and builders. This presentation aims to demystify these requirements and provide clear guidance as to the best…

PHCA Community Meeting | Rebuilding Incentives for Sustainable Electric Homes: How this new program works with homeowners and builders to help those who need it most

By Passive House California , March 20, 2026 - Community Meeting, Featured Articles, News

Passive House California has a new partner in our effort to create a carbon-neutral, all renewable energy future! RISE Homes is a program mandated by the California Public Utilities Commission and funded by the state’s six investor-owned electric utilities to incentivize all-electric home rebuilding after natural disasters. Join us for our next Community Meeting, Tuesday, April 21st from noon-1 p.m. to learn about RISE Homes, a $50 million program designed to…

Up to $45,000 ($30,000) Incentive for All-Electric Certified Passive House Homes in California

By Passive House California , March 13, 2026 - Featured Articles, News, Press Release

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has announced a new opportunity for homeowners rebuilding after wildfires and other natural disasters. Through the Rebuilding Incentives for Sustainable Electric Homes (RISE Homes) program, eligible Californians can receive financial assistance when reconstructing all-electric homes. Homeowners can qualify for incentives—up to $45,000—if the new home is designed and certified as a Passive House. A Passive House Standard follows rigorous design principles that dramatically improve energy performance. By combining a…

The California Passive House Rebuilds Catalog

By Passive House California , February 5, 2026 - Featured Articles, News, Press Release

Last year, the Passive House Network, in collaboration with Passive House California, held the California Rebuilds Design Competition to challenge and inspire the rebuilding efforts in Altadena and the Pacific Palisades. We received dozens of entries from designers around the world, and now we’re thrilled to be able to make those entries accessible to everyone. We’re launching The California Rebuilds Catalog, available for free online, to show what Passive House…

PHCA Community Meeting | “Fire-Wise Property Hardening: Life Safety, Insurance, and Passive Building Design”

By Passive House California , December 3, 2025 - Community Meeting, Featured Articles

Description Wildfire risk in the built environment is rapidly increasing, bringing serious implications for life safety, property protection, insurance availability, and modern building standards. Architects, designers, and building professionals can’t afford to wing it—evidence-based strategies are essential for reducing vulnerability at both the building and community scale. Learn how to spot and shut down critical ignition pathways. Understand how Predicted Fire Weather conditions and Early Alerts can be used to…

Governor Newsom signed into law AB368

By Passive House California , October 2, 2025 - Featured Articles, News

On Monday October 1st,  CA Governor Newsom signed into law AB368.  Authored by Assembly Member Christopher Ward the law directs the California Energy Commission to study the cost effectiveness of the Passive House Standard.  This is a first step toward including Passive House standard in the CA building code.  The CEC has until July 1st 2028 to complete its study. The major effort to see this bill come to life and…

Passive House & Fire Resilience (PHN)

By Passive House California , January 19, 2025 - Featured Articles, Webinar

Growing wildfire devastation demands better-protected buildings – better protected by building design and better design of their surrounding landscape. Yet, after fire events, like in Los Angeles, there is a need to rebuild quickly. Just build it back, the thinking goes, but we can do better. Let’s build forward with fire-safe strategies integrated with Passive House building design to drive down our dependence on fossil fuels, protect people’s health, and…