Building from the inside out, Eric Manou worked as a carpenter while earning his degree in the creative arts at UC Berkeley, gaining hands-on construction experience alongside formal design training. That foundation shaped a vision that merges artistic intent with the realities of the built environment.His work balances aesthetic refinement with technical rigor, reflecting a deep understanding of the systems that bring buildings to life.

 

Operating as designer, builder, and developer, he maintains accountability at every stage, allowing sustainability, performance, and meaning to be embedded from concept to completion.“I am committed to improving homes, neighborhoods, and the built environment. Every decision is mine to own, and I bring my full energy and expertise to the work,” he says.

 

He designed, built, and developed what is believed to be the first net-zero housing development in the United States: Atomic City, a 15-home urban infill project in Oakland, California, including three live–work units.

 

In recent years, his focus has been Project Zero, an urban housing development designed to achieve both zero embodied carbon and zero operational carbon—a next step in his commitment to regenerative development and sustainable urban living.