The 2025 EEBA High Performance Home Summit opened with a powerhouse lineup of industry pioneers—Mark LaLiberte, Dr. Joseph Lstiburek, Gord Cooke, Sam Rashkin, and Gene Myers—each offering decades of wisdom, humor, and perspective on where high-performance building has been and where it’s going. Moderated by Laura Dwyer, the “Legends” panel celebrated both the evolution and the enduring purpose of building better homes.
Mark LaLiberte: Knowledge Shared is Knowledge Multiplied
Mark LaLiberte opened with stories from EEBA’s early days, when building science was taught via overhead slides and hair dryers thawed out snow-covered film trays. His central message was timeless: education is everything.
“Knowledge shared is really knowledge multiplied,” LaLiberte said, reminding attendees that spreading what we know is key to moving the industry forward.
He emphasized that building better is not just about innovation, but about execution, and that the responsibility to educate the next generation—including the trade base—has never been greater.
Dr. Joe Lstiburek: Don’t Do Stupid Things
With his trademark wit, Dr. Joe Lstiburek distilled decades of building science lessons into one blunt principle: “Don’t do stupid things.”
He recounted early energy crises and insulation mistakes that caused widespread rot and indoor air problems—failures that taught today’s critical lessons about moisture management, durability, and humility.
“Failure has made me the man I am today,” he said, stressing that mistakes drive learning, but the industry must improve how it transfers knowledge between generations.
Lstiburek also warned that AI and simulations can’t replace human judgment and experience, underscoring that “we learn from failure—but we shouldn’t always have to.”
Gord Cooke: Keep It Fun and Keep It Collaborative
Gord Cooke reflected on the spirit that makes EEBA special—a “builder’s club” that brings together builders, manufacturers, researchers, and policymakers.
“That confluence is the real value of EEBA,” he said. “And it should be fun—building homes that families grow up in should be fun.”
Cooke urged attendees to maintain that sense of community and curiosity, bridging generational gaps and keeping the collaborative energy that defined EEBA’s founding years.
Sam Rashkin: Change Science and the Power of Purpose
Former Energy Star leader Sam Rashkin shared his insights on *“change science”—*the art of leading transformation in an industry resistant to it.
“Just like there’s building science, there’s change science,” he said. “You can’t move a market all at once—you have to shrink the change.”
By scaling energy efficiency in incremental steps, programs like Energy Star and DOE Zero Energy Ready Homes succeeded. Rashkin also encouraged attendees to engage deeply and ask questions that can lead to “life-shifting clarity,” reminding them that real progress happens through connection, curiosity, and purpose.
Gene Myers: Stay the Course—Do the Right Thing
Representing the builder’s perspective, Gene Myers of Thrive Home Builders grounded the conversation in today’s economic and policy realities. Amid uncertainty in costs, rates, and regulations, Myers urged builders to hold firm to their mission:
“It’s never been the wrong thing to do the right thing—for our customers and for the planet.”
He spoke candidly about market headwinds and shifting policies but framed them as temporary. The values of efficiency, resilience, and integrity, he said, are not.
“We may be small in number, but we are changing the world for our customers. If we don’t, who will?”
A Shared Legacy—and Challenge Ahead
From LaLiberte’s call to “teach what you know” to Lstiburek’s warning not to “do stupid things,” the Legends Panel was both nostalgic and forward-looking. The panelists agreed that the next generation must balance passion with patience, education with execution, and above all, purpose with persistence.
“You get to change lives,” LaLiberte reminded attendees. “Do it with passion—and build homes our descendants will thank us for.”