Enlarge image Peter Fischer, minister of the Economics Department at the German Embassy, was one of the featured speakers at the openinig ceremony. (© Germany.info) The North American tour of Das Haus, a world-class exhibition that connects industry professionals in North America with the latest market-ready renewable energy and energy efficiency solutions from Germany, just parked in the US capital. Arriving in Washington, DC on July 31, the exhibit will run until August 9. Should you be a DC resident, or be visiting the Washington in the next week, Das Haus will be hosting events from the University of the District of Columbia's Van Ness campus. The exhibition kicked off on August 1 with an opening ceremony at which selected speakers, including the minister of economics at the German Embassy, Peter Fischer, introduced the tour to Washington.

In his remarks, Fischer pointed out the significance of the exhibition: "Das Haus is a great example of how we can produce energy efficient buildings for the future."

The German federal government sponsored the development and the tour, which is being presented by the German American Chambers of Commerce. The pavilion is an integrated, multifaceted structure that demonstrates real-world technologies and solutions for meeting ultra-low energy building standards. It draws inspiration from the Technical University of Darmstadt’s 2007 and 2009 first-place entries in the Solar Decathlon, an international solar house competition presented by the US Department of Energy.

Among others, Das Haus incorporates the following sustainability technologies: thin film photovoltaic roof, facade and louvered panel systems; heat-recovery climate control and ventilation systems; Passive House Standard triple-pane windows; solar-powered LED lighting systems and high-efficiency appliances; vacuum insulated panel systems; VRLA battery systems; and advanced wall construction materials and methods.

Enlarge image (© GACC) Apart from what it demonstrates itself, the tour's aim is to pool experts' opinions on sustainable living. As the website puts it, the goal “is to share inspiration and engage sustainable building experts, associations, and key public officials across North America.” And because the tour visits 12 North American cities for a period spanning over a year, that pool is both broad and deep. Upon arrival in DC, the tour has touched down in Atlanta, Houston, Tempe, San Francisco, Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal, Cambridge and New York. After it rolls out of the US capital, Das Haus will travel to Chicago in September and its last stop, Denver, in October.

In its time in Washington, Das Haus will be hosting a number of events centered around facilitating discussion and illuminating ideas regarding how to efficiently house human beings. These include “Green Drinks DC,” which will unite like-minded people interested in low-efficiency living over drinks and “Green Saturday,” a day to stock up at the local farmer's market and tour Das Haus in the same visit, both on August 4. On August 7, university students in the area can tour the exhibit in a day set aside especially for them and on the closing day there will be a panel discussion entitled, “Let the Sunshine In: Innovation and Sustainability in the Solar Decathlon.”

Even those not particularly enchanted by the theme, might indeed be entertained by just how coolly modern and efficient the house looks in person. The link below provides all information about the Das Haus tour of North America. The events surrounding Das Haus's stopover in your town are as open as the conceptual house that serves as the centerpiece of the exhibition. So, come one and all, expert and eager learner alike, to talk, watch and unite ideas on the future of housing.

(© Das Haus Tour)