Tessa Bradley is the principal architect and CEO of the Artisans Group Architecture and Planning Company, a woman-owned, woman-led firm based in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. Tessa was in the second round of PHIUS trainings, and Artisan's Group did the second certified Passive House in Washington State ... so they've been in this space for almost as long as anyone in the US.

In this episode, we discuss the difficulties of talking about passivhaus and high-performance building in a way that's not so terribly unsexy, the value of having a place to show clients—whether it's a past client's home, an office or an apartment they can spend time in—and the importance of knowing when going for certification will be beneficial for all involved.

Connect with Tessa and Artisan's Group:

• Tessa on LinkedIn => https://www.linkedin.com/in/tessa-bradley-96b49112/

• Artisan's Group on LinkedIn => https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-artisans-group-inc./

• Artisan's Group on Instagram => https://www.instagram.com/artisansgroup/

• Artisan's Group website => https://artisansgroup.com/portfolio

Trey Farmer is a Principal and Partner, as well as the Chief Sustainability Officer, at Forge Craft Architecture and Design, based in Austin, Texas. His Passive House journey began in Grad School, where he got his CPHC as part of the program. He is one of the team of friends who bring the Humid Climate Conference to life, looking forward to the sixth installment this coming Spring (2026).

In this episode, we talk about the nuances of applying the Passivhaus standard to hot, humid climates, cooling vs. dehumidification, the many motivations of the clients he's worked with on passive house projects, and the real sense of camaraderie and friendship that exists within the passive house community.

Connect with Trey and Forge Craft Architecture + Design:

• Trey on LinkedIn => https://www.linkedin.com/in/trey-farmer/

• Forge Craft on LinkedIn => https://www.linkedin.com/company/forge-craft-architecture-design/

• Forge Craft on Instagram => https://www.instagram.com/forgexcraft/

• Forge Craft Healthy Homies on Instagram => https://www.instagram.com/forgecrafthealthyhomies/

• Forge Craft website => https://forgexcraft.com/

• Humid Climate Conference website => https://humidclimateconference.org/

• Reimagine Buildings Collective (where Trey and I met) => https://collective.reimaginebuildings.com/

Michael Quast is the CEO of Passive House Canada. With a career that spans marketing, PR, executive management, and communications, including being executive producer for the successful HGTV renovation show, Holmes on Homes, and then later CEO for The Holmes Group, Michael feels that his role at Passive House Canada is something of a unicorn job, perfectly blending his personal passion with his professional abilities.

In this episode, we talk about Michael's experience building the first straw bale house in his town (Oakville, ON), 20 years ago, the importance of supporting and including anyone interested in getting into the field of better-performing homes, not letting dogmatic viewpoints exclude people, and his optimism for the future of the Passive House industry.

Connect with Michael and Passive House Canada:

• Michael on LinkedIn => https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeloquast/

• Passive House Canada on LinkedIn => https://www.linkedin.com/company/passive-house-canada/

• Passive House Canada on Bluesky => https://bsky.app/profile/passivehousecan.bsky.social

• Passive House Canada website => https://www.passivehousecanada.com/