Home Green Homes

Hosted by Izumi Tanaka

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104

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Apr 2026

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About the show

This channel explores affordable, resilient, and sustainable homes through conversations with green building professionals, architects, designers, homeowners, developers, and real estate professionals. Topics include green building, energy-efficient homes, electrification, climate-resilient housing, and future-ready real estate. The podcast is for homeowners, buyers, and realtors interested in sustainable real estate, as well as builders and designers working at the intersection of affordability, resilience, and climate-conscious living. Episodes highlight real-world projects, practical strategies, and lived experiences that make sustainable and eco-friendly homes more accessible and achievable. Whether you’re a homeowner planning a renovation, a green real estate professional, or simply curious about sustainable housing and regenerative design, this channel offers grounded conversations about how we build, buy, and live in homes that are better for people and the planet.

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April 30, 2026Episode 10434 min

104. Eco-Flip Playbook: Real Talk with Mary Love

What does it actually look like to flip a house the green way — and make the numbers work?In this episode, Izumi sits down with Mary Love, a North Carolina-based green realtor, building scientist, and project manager who has been doing eco-conscious real estate investment long before "green homes" was a mainstream term. Mary shares hard-won lessons from decades of rehabbing and renting energy-efficient properties — from wrangling reluctant HVAC contractors to educating appraisers on the value of sustainable upgrades.In this episode, you'll learn:Why insulation and air sealing are always the first priority — and how to do it without gutting the wallsHow to use blower door and duct blaster tests to document before and after performance (and use it as a marketing tool)What appraisers actually need to see to give green upgrades their proper valueHow rebates and incentives can make eco-flipping cost-competitive with standard rehabsWhy the conversation has shifted from energy savings to safety and resilience — and what that means for investorsThe "Fortified Standards" framework for disaster-resilient constructionMary's motto: "A little bit of something is better than a whole lot of nothing"Whether you're a seasoned investor or just starting to think about greener rehabs, Mary's practical, no-nonsense approach will show you that eco-flipping isn't just good for the planet — it's a smart business model.📬 Connect with Mary Love: mary@lovethegreen.org | lovethegreen.org

April 1, 202638 min

103. Built to Last. Or Fail? with George Siegel

Are homes really built to last… or just built to sell?In this eye-opening episode, Izumi sits down with documentary filmmaker George Siegal, creator of Built to Last: Buyer Beware, to uncover the uncomfortable truth about how most homes are actually built—and why so many fail when disaster strikes.From hurricanes in Florida to wildfires in California, George shares heartbreaking stories of homeowners who lost everything—and the common patterns behind those losses. The biggest takeaway? Most homes are built to the minimum code, not for long-term resilience.If you’re a homeowner, buyer, investor, or real estate professional, this conversation may completely change how you look at homes.In this episode, we cover:Why “built to code” often means built to the bare minimumThe biggest mistakes homebuyers make when evaluating a propertyHow disasters reveal hidden weaknesses in our homesWhy rebuilding after a disaster can take years—not monthsThe surprising connection between resilience and sustainabilityWhat questions you must ask before buying or building a homeHow insurance, building practices, and human behavior all play a roleGeorge also shares practical tips—including how one simple correction saved him $1,000/year on insurance—and why homeowners need to take responsibility for understanding the true quality of their homes.🎬 Watch the film: Built to Last: Buyer Beware 📄 Free resource: Essential questions to ask before buying a homeBottom line:Don’t just fall in love with the finishes—the countertops, the floors, the “wow” factor.Understand the bones of the house… because that’s what determines whether it survives.

March 18, 2026Episode 10231 min

102. A Father's Journey for Green Home with Nick Grimm

In this episode of Home Green Homes, Izumi Tanaka talks with Nick Grimm — a father, homeowner, and sustainability professional who is gradually transforming his 1953 Los Angeles home into a healthier and more energy-efficient space.Nick didn’t begin with a master sustainability plan. Like many homeowners, his journey started with basic maintenance: replacing appliances when they broke and making upgrades when necessary. But as he learned more about sustainability, each decision became an opportunity to choose better options.So far, Nick and his family have:Replaced a gas cooktop with an induction stoveInstalled a heat pump washer/dryerUpgraded their electric panelInstalled solar panelsPurchased an EV and chargerBegun planning for heat pump HVAC and water heatingStarted thinking about drought-resilient landscapingOne turning point came when Nick used an indoor air quality monitor while cooking on a gas stove — and saw pollution levels spike inside his home. With a young child experiencing asthma, it accelerated their switch to induction cooking.Nick also discusses the real barriers to electrification, including the complexity of rebates and the financial realities many homeowners face.Despite those challenges, he believes individual choices still matter. For Nick, the ability to take action — even one appliance at a time — is empowering.

February 25, 202632 min

101. Electrifying Made Easy with Elephant Energy: Akanksha Mathur

If you're a homeowner wondering whether it’s time to replace gas appliances with electric alternatives — this episode is for you.In Episode 102 of Home Green Homes, Izumi chats with Akanksha Mathur, General Manager for Southern California at Elephant Energy, to discuss what it really takes to electrify your home.From heat pumps and induction cooking to rebates, incentives, and indoor air quality — we break down the electrification process step-by-step.Elephant Energy is a Certified B-Corp focused on making the switch from gas to electric simple, seamless, and climate-friendly. Akanksha shares her journey from mechanical engineer to climate advocate, and why education is the missing link in helping homeowners make confident decisions.If you live in Southern California — or anywhere thinking about clean energy upgrades — this conversation will help you understand:• What “home electrification” actually means• How heat pumps work• What incentives are available• Why indoor air quality matters• The biggest challenges homeowners face• How to make sustainable choices easierThe future is electric. The question is — are you ready?🎧 Listen now and learn how to make your home cleaner, healthier, and more energy-efficient.Chapters00:00 Introduction to Elephant Energy05:19 Akanksha's Journey to Elephant Energy10:15 The Process of Electrification15:44 Challenges in the Electrification Process20:59 Educating Homeowners on Electrification26:16 Personal Reflections and Future AspirationsMore Resources:Switch-is OnTECH Clean California

February 11, 2026Episode 10023 min

100. Prefab for a Changing Climate: A Conversation with Plant Prefab Founder Steve Glenn

What does it really take to build homes that are beautiful, efficient, resilient, and responsible?In this special 100th episode of Home Green Homes, Izumi Tanaka welcomes Steve Glenn, founder and CEO of Plant Prefab, for an in-depth conversation that weaves together architecture, sustainability, entrepreneurship, and climate action.Steve traces his path from an early love of architecture to founding LivingHomes and later Plant Prefab—companies created to challenge the waste, inefficiency, and environmental impact of conventional construction. He explains what truly sets Plant Prefab apart: customized architectural design, a purpose-built factory capable of both panelized and modular construction, and a mission-driven commitment as a certified B Corp and public benefit corporation.The conversation also dives into Plant Prefab’s work supporting communities rebuilding after devastating Southern California wildfires, and why prefab construction can offer faster, more predictable, and often more cost-effective rebuilding solutions.Along the way, Steve addresses common misconceptions about prefab homes, shares what homeowners should prioritize when designing for climate resilience, and reflects on leadership, scaling a values-driven company, and what he hopes the future of housing can become.This episode is especially relevant for homeowners, home dwellers, architects, builders, developers, and anyone curious about how housing can be part of the climate solution.Key Takeaways / Listener HighlightsPrefab ≠ mobile homes: Plant Prefab homes are legally and structurally equivalent to site-built homes and cannot be excluded from zoning, financing, or insurance.Energy matters most: Over a home’s lifetime, operational energy use has a bigger climate impact than materials—efficiency and solar should be top priorities.Time is money: Faster, parallel construction can significantly reduce carrying costs, rent, and uncertainty—especially important in rebuild scenarios.Design and sustainability go together: High-quality architecture and environmental responsibility are not mutually exclusive.Rebuilding after disaster is an opportunity: Prefab can help communities recover faster while building more resilient, future-ready homes.Mission-driven businesses face real challenges: Scaling sustainably takes persistence, patience, and long-term vision—but the impact compounds over time.Chapters00:00 Personal Impact and Vision for the Future

December 5, 2022Episode 2815 min

BONUS: Oakfield Nest: A Story of Eco-Chaplaincy with Adam Sgrenci

[This episode is from a short video about Adam's project. Best to watch on HomeGreenHomes YouTube channel.] Adam, a long-time construction professional, and his family were experiencing health issues when they found their “property” in Redwood City, California. What they wanted was a place where they felt healthy. Yet the property was in such disrepair that his first thought was to demolish and rebuild. Instead he chose to “heal the house and the land that the house was sitting on” in the same way that he wanted to heal the family’s wellbeing. Thus Adam took on a challenge to change the construction process, which is typically very extractive, disruptive and wasteful, into a regenerative process to have a positive impact not just on the environment but also to the local community and local economy. The project touched on the Five Roots of Regenerative Real Estate®: 1) Health and Wellness; 2) Sustainability; 3) Community; 4) Ecology and 5) Spirit, which also relates to the concept of “Eco-chaplain.” (Those who work to establish people in a healthy, compassionate, and mutually supportive relationship with each other and the natural world. - Sati Center of Buddhist Studies) As a result, he was able to accomplish his Vision of truly regenerative project and indeed be an eco-chaplain for himself and his family, the property he turned into his family nest, the people who worked on the project and the surrounding community.

December 26, 2022Episode 3040 min

2.29 Sustainable Site with Brandon Carlson

Definition of sustainable site is it promotes land development and management practices with our future in mind. So sustainable sites generate less waste, minimize impact on the landscape, and use less energy, water and natural resources. Brandon is a Sr. Applications Engineer for one of an innovative solar technology company. He was influenced by growing up with a father who was a pioneer of sustainable building professionals. Now that he owns a property of his own up the hills in southeast of Los Angeles near Temecula, he has undertaken a truly regenerative transformation project of what once looked like a deserted property into a home with net-positive energy sanctuary. Brandon shares the strategic approach he has taken to regenerate his home and the land surrounding his home on almost 5-acre of property including decarbonization, water management, and landscaping following the concept of “sustainable site.”

March 22, 2022Episode 1028 min

2.10 Healthy House on The Block with Amanda Klecker

“Anytime moisture is in the house, it not only can create a potential for mold growth or mildew, it can raise the humidity levels drastically based on what’s going on and how long it’s been going on, and that can actually create a very unhealthy environment inside the house.” Amanda Klecker is a Certified Building Biology Practitioner and Certified Professional Inspector trained with the International Association of Certified Home Inspectors. Amanda is passionate about helping homeowners create their own healthy living environment. Over the last few years, Amanda has become a green living expert in terms of keeping a healthy house. She is constantly involved in learning about the newest found toxins and solutions for healthy living. Amanda offers a wide variety of resources on her website as well as via Instagram for homeowners, homebuyers, and real estate agents to identify health issues in home environment and tips and ideas for creating healthier living.

October 6, 2022Episode 2331 min

2.23 Rainwater Only Landscape with Dane Shota

"...soil without biology is geology. It's supposed to have life in there. So by telling people to use harsh chemical fertilizers I was part of the problem. I heard this saying, 'Be the solution, not the problem." Nationwide, landscape irrigation is estimated to account for nearly one-third of all residential water use, totaling nearly 9 billion gallons per day. As climate destabilization leads to intensifying heat waves, fires, and droughts, we are witnessing already burdened watersheds getting stretched to their limit. It's been estimated that California only has enough water supply to last one year, a state in which declared water shortage emergencies and restrictions to outdoor usage have become the norm. Approximately one-half of residential water consumption is used on our lawns. What if we could reduce water usage, sink carbon, increase biodiversity, and beautify our landscapes all at the same time? This is precisely what Dane Shota has sought out to do. As a bio-nutritionist, permaculturist, consulting arborist, and real estate broker, Dane consults with landscape architects and homeowners alike on using “rainwater only landscaping.” In this conversation, Dane will share with us his landscaping techniques for using only what falls from the sky to create beautiful, drought tolerant landscapes for his clients in arid climates. *At 20:19, Dane mentions the nutrients of the product lasts for 6 years, but he later corrected to mean 6 months.

June 19, 2023Episode 1027 min

3.10 Let's Compost with Cordelia O'Rouke and Glenn Arnade, Grades of Green

"From the environmental aspect, composing has so many benefits. When you compost your food instead of throw way in the landfill, it gets proper aeration and it has oxygen to properly decompose so it doesn't release harmful greenhouse gasses like methane into the environment. So it's helping kind of the global warming movement on one aspect. And then from another lens, I'm taking AP environmental science right now and my teacher was talking about how one of the main reasons that they're requiring compost in California is because they're running out of landfill space. And so landfill space is obviously really detrimental to a lot of ecosystems because you're displacing those natural lands to put in manmade things like the landfills. And so when we compost our food, we're not taking up those lands and taking those lands away from natural ecosystems. And lastly, composting is known as black gold. And so, compost is really valuable to a lot of plants, and so, when we compost instead of just throwing it away, we create that natural fertilizer, so composting also reduces the use of synthetic fertilizers, which cause so many problems in the ecosystem." Grades of Green is an international non-profit organization, originally founded in Southern California by moms to “educate, empower and inspire students to take action and achieve long lasting environmental impact in their schools and communities.” Special Project Manager, Glenn Arnade, proudly introduced me to a high-school student named Cordelia O’Rouke, who spearheaded a program to get local schools to start composting the food scraps from their cafeterias. In California, the State Senate Bill 1383 enacted in January 2022 requires the food and compostable materials be kept out of the landfill. Empowered by the bill and the support/structure provided by Grades of Green, Cordelia has so far reached approximately 4,000 students at 4 different schools and trained them to engage in composting programs to divert the cafeteria food scraps. Cordelia discussed the benefits of composting and how it can help the environment by reducing greenhouse gasses and landfill space, and also shared tips on how to compost, including adding more brown waste and finding the right composting method based on individual goals and living situations.