Green buildings and neighborhoods can reduce demand for energy by capturing natural, incidental energy. One strategy is configuring roads, infrastructures, and landscaping so that buildings:

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Roads, infrastructures, and parcels can be configured so that buildings minimize solar gain in summer and maximize it in winter. This way the building needs less cooling in the summer, since it is configured to receive less heat from sunlight, but also needs less heating in the winter because it is receiving more sunlight. For example, eaves and deciduous trees can prevent light from entering windows in the summer when the sun is high and the trees are leafy. In the winter, the trees will be bare and the sun lower, allowing sunlight to enter the building.
The use of sunlight, wind, and geothermal energy through integrated design processes can also reduce the overall energy loads of a building.

Green Buildings and Neighborhoods Can Reduce Demand for Energy by Capturing