After receiving his Bachelor of Architecture Degree from the Pratt Institute in 1963 he spent two years as an architect in the Peace Corps in Arequipa, Peru.
He later worked with the firm of Edward Larrabee Barnes in New York before completing his master's degree and beginning a teaching and research career at the University of New Mexico in 1973.
His architecture and renewable energy research at both UNM and the University of Oregon established his leadership in the field of resource conservation and passive heating, cooling and daylighting design.
He is the architect of both the AIA's position statement and the U.S. Conference of Mayor’s Resolution #50 adopting the “2030 Challenge” as a means of dramatically reducing building sector greenhouse gas emissions.
[9] His report, "Roadmap to Zero Emissions" submitted to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, outlines his strategy for addressing what he believes is today's most pressing global challenge.