The design of the CUSD house is not a result of solely the architects’ work. The architects, engineers, and business students diligently work together in making the house and its systems act as one. This integration comes through countless hours that engineers, architects, and business students spend together both in and out of the classroom, asking questions and teaching each other about the systems we don’t understand. The time we spend together is critical in creating an effective design and helps each of us understand the various systems of our house.

Innovation
By integrating innovations into our house, we hope to raise awareness of new and existing highly efficient technologies which have been relatively obscured to the public. In doing so, we hope affect a shift in consumer preferences to demand higher efficiency in the products they purchase.

Marketability
We look to have a house that appeals to the public. It is our intent to develop a modular living system that could be altered and adapted to meet a variety of consumer taste and function efficiently in a wide range of climatic conditions. Since the house adapts to the homeowner-not the other way around-we want to prove that "green building" does not mean one has to sacrifice comfortable living.

Affordability
One trait that the CUSD team hopes to incorporate into its house is affordability. Efforts to innovate and make changes in housing would be wasted if the innovations were not affordable to an average consumer. We look to make a cost-competitive house which could be a viable option to the general public.

Sustainability
A demonstrable living system featuring photovoltaic panels that is completely self-sufficient will send the message that the future of a living system that runs entirely off of energy from the sun is here, now . Furthermore, photovoltaic panels do not emit any of the "greenhouse gases" (gases that are theorized contributors to global warming) that fossil fuels release in the energy production process.