This week Inhabitat reported live from the scene of the Solar Decathlon in Madrid as 17 stunning solar-powered houses competed for the title of the world's most energy-efficient prefabricated house.

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One truck and a fleet of vans house over 32 energy-efficient washers and dryers that are capable of cleaning over 300 loads of laundry every day.

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And Sasha brought home some energy-efficient bulbs that we have to put in the house.

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So as your house gets bigger, it has to be more energy efficient and at some point, it has to actually have on-site renewables.

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Other resource-efficient projects like New York's 4 Times Square office building, Atlanta's EarthCraft House and Village Habitat Design's cohousing conservation communities include such innovations as energy-efficient insulation, water and air filtration, or hydronic heating, aiming for healthy, nontoxic construction processes and buildings for humans and the environment.

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