His $5 Million Experiment: Building a Very Big House With Very Little Carbon

A financier-turned-architect wanted to minimize the carbon footprint of his beach house in Brazil without compromising on size or aesthetics

The main house has 10 roofs, by Walter Cain’s count. Four have photovoltaic panels and one has a solar hot water system to warm the pool. KOMODO PRODUTORA

By: Fred A. Bernstein Nov. 25, 2025 1:00 pm ET

By the time he was 50, Walter Cain had made enough money as a partner in a private-equity firm to retire and, he says, “do something creative for the rest of my life.” Meanwhile, restoring and enlarging an 1837 Greek revival house in Piermont, N.Y, along the Hudson River, had reinforced his love of buildings. LEARN MORE…

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