Berkeley backyard cottage

“When Karen, a planning professor from the [Berkeley] College of Environmental Design, met with a team of students from Dr. Ashok Gadgil’s Design for Sustainable Communities course, neither knew what was brewing.

“Karen discussed how her two bedroom Berkeley home was too small for her constant stream of guests, her daughter and an aging relative.

“The team of students was researching small homes as a means to create affordable and sustainable housing.

“The result was a net zero energy backyard cottage, a new model for shared affordable housing, a Clinton Global Initiative grant and a new Berkeley startup.

• Excerpts from Tiny House Blog