Pardee Homes VP To Judge China’s First Solar Decathlon
Los Angeles, Calif. July 25, 2013 -- Joyce Mason, vice president of marketing for Pardee Homes, will participate in China’s inaugural Solar Decathlon, a joint effort of the U.S. Department of Energy (D.O.E.) and China’s National Administration of Energy. Organized by Peking University and staged in Datong in Shanxi Province, the Decathlon’s Solar Village will showcase 20 homes created by college and university student teams who represent 35 nationalities in countries from six continents.
China’s Solar Decathlon runs August 2 through August 13, with August 11 set for the awards ceremonies. For participants and to follow the Decathlon’s progress and judging visit http://www.sdchina.org/
“The Solar Decathlon’s goal is education, for college students who will enter our clean energy workforce, for builders looking for innovative new ideas, and for consumers seeking greener homes and communities,” said Richard King, Director, U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon. “We are excited to have China host an international competition—the first Solar Decathlon on the Asian Continent.”
Student teams build the homes in concert with professional contractors, aiming for attractive, energy-efficient, solar-powered designs. One of 15 judges charged with evaluating the students’ success, Mason joins a group of experts from diverse disciplines related to renewable energy and sustainable design.
“This is the first Decathlon with primarily international entrants, and I look forward to seeing the creativity and building science from such a varied field,” said Mason. “China’s Solar Decathlon presents an amazing learning opportunity for us all.”
A judge in three previous U.S. Solar Decathlons, Mason has contributed significantly to Pardee Homes’ greener and more sustainable residential development. More than a decade ago, she developed Pardee’s LivingSmart® brand to promote energy and water savings, indoor air quality and use of earth-friendly building materials. Since 2001, LivingSmart® has been a standard for all new homes built by Pardee Homes, which is also well known for its advocacy of sustainable development practices in the homebuilding industry and with home buyers and general consumers. http://www.pardeehomes.com/living-green
“Pardee Homes is proud to see Joyce participating in Solar Decathon China, as a representative of our company and our nation,” said Pardee Homes President and CEO Michael McGee. “She brings a real depth of knowledge and an eagerness to learn more that will contribute much to the entire event at Datong.”
Established in 2002, D.O.E.’s Solar Decathlon continues to raise public awareness about renewable energy and energy efficiency, and is credited with getting solar energy technologies into the marketplace faster. In 2005, D.O.E. began efforts to expand the event internationally, and in 2007, initiated Solar Decathlon Europe in concert with Spain. The inaugural of this competition was held in 2010 in Madrid. www.solardecathlon.org.
Solar Decathlon China continues in the same tradition. “I hope the competition will inspire a lot of Chinese college students to open up their minds and build their careers in developing innovative technologies and practices in renewable energy and building energy efficiency,” said Yu Pingrong, research professor and director of the Center of Solar Energy at Peking University.
To see student-produced videos of the design/build achievements in previous solar Decathlons, visit http://www.solardecathlon.gov/videos-team-produced.html