ZED FED

ZED FED is a field guide to living systems.

Zero Waste Federation brings architecture, engineering, ecology, and construction together to design places that work with water, food, energy, and land.

An illustrated introduction

Pods that turn waste into abundance.

We are a network of sustainability practitioners creating integrated places at scales from a tiny shelter to a civic landscape.

01 / Modular ecology

The pod index

Five adaptable modules can work independently or combine into a complete living system.

02 / Productive module

Zed Pod

A zero-discharge bathroom system designed for dignified, deployable sanitation without the waste stream of a conventional porta potty.

Modular greenhouse pod with solar roof
Fig. 01 / Productive envelope and solar roof

Sanitation meets cultivation

The compact bathroom module sits inside an envelope that supports planting and energy generation.

  • Bathroom and productive greenhouse
  • Rooftop solar generation
  • Designed for modular deployment
03 / Food + water

Living Pod

A kitchen, greenhouse, and biodigester that processes kitchen and greywater on site with zero discharge.

Section drawing with vertical food production and planted water systems
Fig. 02 / Food production and water systems in section
04 / Seasonal enclosure

Porchpod

An open porch greenhouse that handles greywater, produces food, and encloses for productive winter use.

05 / Roof ecology

Wetpod

A productive rooftop wetland that integrates water treatment, habitat, thermal benefit, and edible landscape.

06 / Compact shelter

Loftpod

A sleeping loft above the Zed, Living, or Porchpod adds private space without expanding the ground footprint.

07 / Closed-loop thinking

One system. Many scales.

Every project is shaped around useful relationships between people, climate, materials, water, energy, food, and land.

01 / CAPTUREWater + energyCollect what the site offers.
02 / USEShelter + nourishmentMeet the needs of daily life.
03 / TRANSFORMWaste + greywaterProcess resources on site.
04 / REGENERATEFood + habitatReturn value to the landscape.
08 / Field notes / 1121 64th Street

From system sketch to urban habitat.

The pod is both infrastructure and architecture: a compact frame for sanitation, cultivation, energy generation, and everyday life.

View the Zed Pod drawing set (PDF) ↗
09 / The practice

From a tiny shelter to a civic landscape.

Our network brings the right disciplines together for each challenge, connecting planning with buildable solutions.

  • Single-family residences
  • Multi-family developments
  • Off-grid development
  • Nomadic living
  • Tiny homes
  • Accessory structures
  • Large-scale development
  • Civic buildings
  • Site and landscape planning
  • Appropriate technology
  • Alternative septic
  • Emergency and temporary housing
10 / The network

Different disciplines. Shared purpose.

Environmental, architectural, structural, and systems thinking enter the project together.

Nik Bertulis

Environmental Engineer

Shan Masuda

Architectural Designer

Priya Naik

Structural Engineer

Bear Kaufman

Systems Engineer

11 / How we work

Design for the whole cycle.

01

See the system

Map resources, constraints, climate, inhabitants, and stewardship.

02

Integrate early

Bring design, engineering, ecology, and construction together at the outset.

03

Prototype precisely

Test and refine modules for different contexts.

04

Leave abundance

Create places that produce food, restore water, and support habitat.

12 / Begin a collaboration

Bring us the problem that refuses a conventional answer.

We work with homeowners, communities, developers, public agencies, builders, and fellow practitioners.

Start a conversation ↗