The Lifecycle Building Challenge

A design competition for professionals and students, the Lifecycle Building Challenge is sponsored by the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, the American Institute of Architects, and West Coast Green. The competition is focused on design for adaptability, material reuse, and minimizing lifecycle impacts from products.

Registration and participation is free. Submission deadline is August 30 2009.

From the website:

Lifecycle building is designing buildings to facilitate disassembly and material reuse to minimize waste, energy consumption, and associated greenhouse gas emissions. Also known as design for disassembly and design for deconstruction, lifecycle building describes the idea of creating high-performance buildings today that are stocks of resources for the future.

• Create designs that facilitate local building materials reuse
• Consider the full lifecycle of buildings and materials — from resource extraction through occupancy and, finally, deconstruction and reuse
• Focus on quality and creativity of designs and concepts
• Develop strategies that maximize materials recovery
• Reduce the overall embodied energy and greenhouse gas emissions of building materials through reuse
• Decrease environmental and economic costs
• Address real world issues

Enter the third year of the Lifecycle Building Challenge competition, to shape the future of green building and facilitate local building materials reuse. Submit your innovative project, design, or idea for reducing to conserve construction and demolition materials and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by designing buildings for adaptability and disassembly.

Categories:

Building — a whole building designed for disassembly and material reuse
In addition, building entries can highlight any of the following focus areas:
· existing buildings
· local material sourcing

Product — a building product that facilitates design for disassembly and material reuse
In addition, product entries can highlight any of the following focus areas:
· Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy
· Carbon Management
· Water Efficiency & Quality
· Material Optimization
· Public and Ecosystem Health Protection

Professionals may submit both built and design work. Students may submit only design work. In addition, entrants may also register for Outstanding Achievement Awards:
· Best Greenhouse Gas Reduction
· Best Green Job Creation
· Best School Design

See the website for more.

(In the interest of full disclosure: I'm on the volunteer judicial panel this year.)