Firstly, I would like to say that I’m delighted 
to be appointed Chairman of the Passive House Association of Ireland and to have received such support from the Board of Directors. I greatly look forward to continuing the excellent work done by Martin Murray as he steps down from the role which he has held for the last three years. We all owe Martin a debt of gratitude for his success in establishing the organisation and putting it on such a firm footing.
As we now enter the next phase of the PHAI, I see the crucial element of the role as growing the organisation both in terms of members and influence in Ireland.
The engagement and participation of architects with the Passive House movement has always been very strong and the success of the Passive House Association of Ireland owes a great debt to the community of architects in Ireland. As a Chartered Engineer, I hope to complement this with the increased engagement of engineers and will endeavour to forge a closer relationship with the engineering community and industry at large.
In the past number of years I have completed a Ph.D. on the application of the Passivhaus standard to the climate of Ireland and am currently working with both a University and an SME on a pan-European project on the integration of seasonal thermal energy storage to low-energy housing.
Given my links with academia, I am keen to establish strong links between the PHAI and educational establishments with the aim of encouraging research and the promotion of the Passivhaus standard among students. As a board, we are planning to make presentations to third level colleges and engage students in a design competition to be held at the same time as our annual See The Light conference on 7th November.
In tandem with this, I think there is real potential for establishing a number of chapters of the Passive House Association of Ireland throughout the country and having events at local level which would integrate with our third level colleges and local industry. If you would like to be involved with this please let me know.
Of course, any organisation is only as strong as its members, and I am keen to hear any suggestions you the members have in terms of how best to promote the Passivhaus standard and increase our influence at local and national level. Don’t hesitate to drop me a line or give me a call.
Finally, I would like to thank the existing board of directors for their tireless enthusiasm and energy in promoting something we all believe in so passionately.
Yours sincerely,
Shane Colclough
