William Collins, a home developer in West Hartford, Connecticut, takes a different method. A community is made up of all its members, and Collins argues that everyone should have access to affordable housing. It benefits residents immediately, but also improves the community as a whole. Historically, cities constructed plain brick cubes and referred to them as houses. The idea was that low income housing just needed to provide basic facilities, and some argued that if it provided anything more, people would lose motivation to find work and relocate to better accommodation. Anyone who is responsible for paying the family's bills will agree that utilities account for a sizable portion of the monthly budget. That becomes a problem for low-income households, which can be alleviated by creating energy-efficient housing. According to William Collins, West Hartford may become quite cold in the winter, and while it is not in the coldest section of the country, insulating housing to maintain the maximum amount of heat keeps inhabitants safe and reduces bill spikes when the temperature drops. Another problem that is impacted by energy efficiency in home design is the environment. Heating a home consumes a lot of energy—energy that is typically derived from coal or oil. By designing with energy conservation in mind, we can reduce our reliance on both of these finite natural resources.

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