A transformative leader, Deborah is dedicated to finding affordable and equitable solutions that promote better, cleaner, and healthier buildings for all. Her path to sustainable leadership began in her native Ireland, where, as young engineer at a general contracting company, she gained practical construction knowledge and an appreciation for a collaborative design-build approach that emphasizes proactive coordination and a more efficient process for decision-making and issue resolution.
This integration of design and construction management, and the knowledge gleaned from her work within the Passive House movement, formed her design philosophy and laid the foundation for her approach to professional practice and for her contributions to sustainable design. As befits a founder of the Passive House Association of Ireland and of Passive House Canada, she works to prevent unnecessary disruptions to the building envelope. She advocates for the early involvement of trade professionals to facilitate project coordination and accurately connect materials and components to minimize construction conflicts and weaknesses within the envelope. As well, she has developed communication and coordination protocols to increase project performance. The uncertainties of the construction process and the difficulties in perfecting rigorous high quality build ups in extreme weather conditions, led Deborah to embrace prefab construction as an ideal approach for achieving sustainable design goals. At UnitiWall, she is contributing to the development of a wall system that will effectively reduce energy demand in buildings, with panels that balance the use of available materials while minimizing their environmental impact. She is also developing clear and transparent work protocols, quality assurance standards and methods, and impact, risk, and reward benchmarks for the complete envelope solution.