Passive House Podcast

In this episode of the Passive House Podcast, Ilka Cassidy talks with Jane Sidebottom, 2026 president of Women in HVACR and founder and owner of AMK Consulting. Jane describes the “new collar” women coming into HVAC from waitressing, retail, and nursing, many of them looking for stable pay and schedules that work with raising a family. 
She shares what employers can do to keep women in the industry, starting with defined career paths and flexibility for caregiving. Diving in to what excites her about where the industry is going, including window heat pumps that make electrification workable in low-income housing, and how listeners can get involved with Women in HVACR.

https://www.womeninhvacr.org/
https://www.amkconsultinggroup.com/

Join us on the Reimagine Buildings Collective: https://collective.reimaginebuildings.com/

Thank you for listening to the Passive House Podcast! To learn more about Passive House and to stay abreast of our latest programming, visit passivehouseaccelerator.com.

In this bonus episode of the Passive House Podcast, Michael Ingui is live on the expo floor of the ZEB Summit in Dublin, Michael chats with attendees about what's scaling Passive House in their world. Guests explain how Passive House reached 7% of residential output in the Republic of Ireland, what post-occupancy data shows for Scottish social housing, and why Cairn Homes uses AeroBarrier to protect its construction schedule.

Thank you to Aeroseal for sponsoring this episode and supporting the team's trip to Dublin.

https://www.zebsummit.com/

Featured in this episode:

• Hugh Franklin, Aeroseal UK and AeroBarrier Ireland, and Roy O'Brien, Aeroseal
• Hugh Whiriskey, Founder and Director, Partel
• Dr. Barry Mc Carron, Managing Director, KORE Retrofit
• Leighanne Fay-Crowe, KORE Retrofit
• Steven Magee, KORE Retrofit
• Dr. Wolfgang Feist, Passive House Institute
• Caroline Ashe Brady, Passive House Association of Ireland
• Emma Fletcher, Octopus Energy
• James York, Principal Energy Consultant, Collective Architecture
• Ryan Daly, Daly Renewables
• Ann-Marie Fallon, Co-Director, Passivhaus Trust
• Matt Risinger, The Build Show
• Julie Torres Moskowitz, Certified Passive House Consultant and Architect
• Ingrid Yancey, Certified Passive House Designer

Join us on the Reimagine Buildings Collective: https://collective.reimaginebuildings.com/

Thank you for listening to the Passive House Podcast! To learn more about Passive House and to stay abreast of our latest programming, visit passivehouseaccelerator.com.

In this episode of the Passive House Podcast, Michael Ingui talks with Tomás O'Leary of the mosart Group about scaling Passive House across massive residential developments in Ireland and the UK. Fresh off a tour of Cairn Homes' Passive House neighborhood outside Dublin, Tomás shares the approach behind delivering certified Passive House at scale — from early benchmarking and training contractors directly, to building a team of certifiers with a direct line to the Passive House Institute. The conversation also touches on post-occupancy monitoring, tenant feedback, and Tomás's upcoming visits to Massachusetts and New York this October to share lessons with US developers and architects.

This episode was made possible with the support of Aeroseal: https://aeroseal.com/

https://passivehouseaccelerator.com/podcast/250-enhancing-lives-and-cutting-carbon-in-ireland
https://mosartgroup.com/

Join us on the Reimagine Buildings Collective: https://collective.reimaginebuildings.com/

Thank you for listening to the Passive House Podcast! To learn more about Passive House and to stay abreast of our latest programming, visit passivehouseaccelerator.com. And please join us at one of our Passive House Accelerator LIVE! zoom gatherings on Wednesdays.

In this episode of the Passive House Podcast, Michael Ingui talks with Josh Dorfman, co-founder of Plantd and host of the Supercool podcast. Josh and Michael dig into some of the most exciting solutions Josh has covered on Supercool and discuss the growing recognition among lenders and insurers that high-performance buildings are simply lower-risk investments.

https://www.plantdmaterials.com/

https://getsuper.cool/podcast/

Join us on the Reimagine Buildings Collective: https://collective.reimaginebuildings.com/

Thank you for listening to the Passive House Podcast! To learn more about Passive House and to stay abreast of our latest programming, visit passivehouseaccelerator.com. And please join us at one of our Passive House Accelerator LIVE! zoom gatherings on Wednesdays.

In this episode of the Passive House Podcast, Ilka Cassidy talks with Ace McArleton and Jacob Deva Racusin, co-founders of New Frameworks. Ace and Jacob share how their paths through natural building and site-based straw bale construction led them to develop panelized straw wall systems, and reflect on the industry's need to break down silos between design, fabrication, and construction.  Ace and Jacob also preview the Reimagine Buildings Collective's month-long bio-based panelization lab, featuring manufacturers from across North America.

Podcast with Jay and Ace: https://passivehouseaccelerator.com/podcast/247-natural-materials-and-collective-power

Join us on the Reimagine Buildings Collective: https://collective.reimaginebuildings.com/

Thank you for listening to the Passive House Podcast! To learn more about Passive House and to stay abreast of our latest programming, visit passivehouseaccelerator.com. And please join us at one of our Passive House Accelerator LIVE! zoom gatherings on Wednesdays.

In this bonus episode of the Passive House Podcast, Zack Semke talks with Katrin Klingenberg, co-founder and co-executive director of Phius, about the origins of the organization to today's growing national movement. The conversation  looks ahead to PhiusCon 2026 in Phoenix, October 8-10.

Attend PhiusCon: https://phius1.zohobackstage.com/PhiusCon2026

Join us on the Reimagine Buildings Collective: https://collective.reimaginebuildings.com/

Thank you for listening to the Passive House Podcast! To learn more about Passive House and to stay abreast of our latest programming, visit passivehouseaccelerator.com. And please join us at one of our Passive House Accelerator LIVE! zoom gatherings on Wednesdays.

In this episode of the Passive House Podcast, Ilka Cassidy talks with Michael Jemtrud, professor of architecture at McGill University and chair in Architecture, Energy, and Environment, about his interdisciplinary research lab's work bridging design education and offsite construction. Michael discusses McGill's Reconstruct program and the development of tools to close the "over the wall" gap between architects and manufacturers. The conversation explores how teaching students to think like "virtual framers" could give the next generation of architects a real advantage entering the workforce.

https://aeechair.research.mcgill.ca/en/

Join us on the Reimagine Buildings Collective: https://collective.reimaginebuildings.com/

Thank you for listening to the Passive House Podcast! To learn more about Passive House and to stay abreast of our latest programming, visit passivehouseaccelerator.com. And please join us at one of our Passive House Accelerator LIVE! zoom gatherings on Wednesdays.

In this episode of the Passive House Podcast, Mary James and Jay Fox talk with Tom King, founder and CEO of TKF, about his all-in-one factory-built HVAC and hot water system, the Hydropod. Tom traces the company's origins, highlighting  NYSERDA-funded pilot projects at Syracuse University and a low-to-moderate income housing community in Phoenix, New York. The conversation covers the practical realities of retrofitting very different building types and how TKF has redesigned the Hydropod for its commercial launch based on lessons learned from two years of real-world installation and monitoring.

www.tkfabricate.com

https://www.energiesprong.org/

https://passivehouseaccelerator.com/articles/comprehensive-pod-solutions-on-the-way

Join us on the Reimagine Buildings Collective: https://collective.reimaginebuildings.com/

Thank you for listening to the Passive House Podcast! To learn more about Passive House and to stay abreast of our latest programming, visit passivehouseaccelerator.com. And please join us at one of our Passive House Accelerator LIVE! zoom gatherings on Wednesdays.

In this episode of the Passive House Podcast, Ilka Cassidy talks with Rob Leonard, a longtime builder and prefabrication specialist who helped develop the BuildSmart panel system and now leads PHIUS's Trades Training Program. Rob traces his path from decades in the field to pioneering panelized construction. Rob also shares what's next for industrialized offsite construction, from micro-factories to AI-assisted quality control, and reflects on workforce development as one of the most urgent challenges facing the building industry.

Beeson Acres Resources LLC: https://www.beesonacresresources.com/
Phius Trades Training Program to Help Shape the Future of Building: https://www.phius.org/phius-trades-training-program-help-shape-future-building
Virginia Tech Housing Innovation Challenge: https://arch.vt.edu/experiential-learning/FutureHAUS/housing-innovation-challenge.html
Expanding Industrialized Offsite Construction in Central Appalachia: https://cece.vt.edu/content/dam/cece_vt_edu/projects/Expanding%20industrialized%20offsite%20construction%20%28IOC%29%20in%20Central%20Appalachia.pdf

Connect with Rob: 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/robert-leonard-b2873010

https://www.phius.org/our-people/rob-leonard

Join us on the Reimagine Buildings Collective: https://collective.reimaginebuildings.com/

Thank you for listening to the Passive House Podcast! To learn more about Passive House and to stay abreast of our latest programming, visit passivehouseaccelerator.com. And please join us at one of our Passive House Accelerator LIVE! zoom gatherings on Wednesdays.

In this bonus episode of the Passive House Podcast, Brent Davidson and Brynn Cooksey discuss what’s changed in the heat-pump world, what architects, engineers, and contractors need to understand, and where the industry still needs to improve. They preview the U.S. Heat Pump Summit and why bringing the right people together could be key to getting heat pumps right at scale.  

The conversation also sets the stage for Passive House Accelerator’s upcoming Heat Pump Solutions initiative, where collaborative Labs will help shape a public Heat Pump Solutions Symposium this October.  

https://www.usheatpumpsummit.com/
https://www.airdoctorshvacservice.com/

Brent Davidson:https://www.linkedin.com/in/brentdavidson/
Brynn Cooksey: https://www.linkedin.com/in/theairdoctor/

Join us on the Reimagine Buildings Collective: https://collective.reimaginebuildings.com/

Thank you for listening to the Passive House Podcast! To learn more about Passive House and to stay abreast of our latest programming, visit passivehouseaccelerator.com. And please join us at one of our Passive House Accelerator LIVE! zoom gatherings on Wednesdays.