When admiring an old building’s fine craftsmanship and durability, have you wondered if a new building would be similarly admired 100 years from now? Jenny Bevan is glad you are asking. A designer from the birthplace of historic preservation in the U.S., Bevan outlines how old ways hold new, sustainable solutions. Following the trend of the expanding awareness and inherent value of sustainable agriculture and local food, she recommends the use of “local architecture.” Bevan repositions historic preservation from the vantage of holistic sustainability. Beyond charm and nostalgia, she illustrates what gets lost with modern design, and how some of the common practices are ultimately more expensive to taxpayers, communities and the environment.

Trained in architecture at the University of Notre Dame and the University of Virginia, Jenny Bevan is one of the few contemporary designers looking to the past for sustainable building and design methods. She is also co-founded the Vision for Civic Conservation, an initiative to provide the framework of guiding principles to sustainably address progress and growth in local communities, especially their historic districts.