New Housing Guide: A primer for building culturally appropriate, high-performance homes in the Great Bear Region

Remote First Nations of the Great Bear region share the goal of reducing fossil fuel dependency. Approximately half of the energy consumed in remote coastal communities is used to heat and power homes. Reducing the amount of energy used to heat homes, and retaining heat in a home helps to reduce the energy demand for the whole community. First Nations are working to develop energy efficient, culturally appropriate housing that is appropriate for the coastal weather conditions to support energy independence.

The New Housing Guide provides a roadmap for coastal First Nations to develop housing that meets the needs, goals and requirements of their own communities. This tool can support remote First Nations to make decisions on how they pursue the planning and building of new homes over the short and long term.

Pinna is honoured to support the development of the New Housing Guide at the request of the First Nations that are represented by the Great Bear Initiative, and to offer ongoing support to these communities as the Great Bear Initiative Community Energy Facilitator.