Design Strategies
Parent
Design Strategies
Deep Dives
Get up to speed on complex topics. You can also earn CEUs and download PDF Spotlight Reports.
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When Hurricane Harvey Hit, the Texas Medical Center Stood Ready
Feature Article
At the Texas Medical Center, hard-won lessons learned from Tropical Storm Allison kept Hurricane Harvey at bay.
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Focus on Resilient Housing
Feature Article
A broad look at the opportunities and challenges in providing resilient multifamily housing.
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Five Reasons to Be Optimistic About Solar Energy
Feature Article
Commercial-scale solar energy, buoyed by battery storage, is continuing to grow, redefining how we produce and use energy.
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Affordable Housing and Sustainable Design: The Goals Are Aligned
Feature Article
Green building is not just for those with means.
Quick Takes
Jump straight to the essentials with these short explanations of green building concepts.
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Demand-Controlled Ventilation: Fresh Air Only When You Need It
Explainer
Balancing the need for fresh air with minimizing energy use is difficult. Demand-controlled ventilation is the responsive solution.
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Circadian Rhythm and the Role of Lighting
Explainer
LEDs with color tuning are now being sold, but do we really have the light formula for waking us up and putting us to sleep?
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Standard Effective Temperature: A Metric for Thermal Comfort and Resilience
Explainer
Do you know how hot or cold your building would be if the power went out? You could be using thermal modeling to find out.
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Understanding GreenScreen and List Translator Benchmarks
Explainer
The Health Product Declaration and some other programs ask for GreenScreen benchmarks. What does that actually mean?
Product Guidance
Unbiased information from our product experts helps you separate green from greenwash.
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How Low-Flow Can You Go with Plumbing Fixtures?
Product Review
BuildingGreen-Approved toilets, urinals, showerheads, and faucets automatically meet CALGreen and LEED v4 water-efficiency standards.
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BuildingGreen Announces Top 10 Products for 2017
Product Review
Our innovative Top 10 product selections reduce stormwater and wastewater, improve efficiency and IAQ, and contain fewer hazardous materials.
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Treated Wood for Ground Contact, Minus the Toxic Pesticides
Product Review
Accoya, now code-approved for fungus and termite resistance, relies on acetylation as a benign alternative to conventional pressure-treated wood.
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DC Power Supply Integrates AC and Renewables
Product Review
Nextek PhD provides AC-to-DC power at the building scale, integrates renewable energy, and can even save on first costs.
In The News
We break news down to the essentials and provide expert analysis.
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IRA’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund: Just the Basics
News Analysis
This program funds clean-energy projects, including building-scale technologies, primarily through grants to nonprofit financial institutions.
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IRA’s Section 48 Investment Tax Credit for Energy Property: Just the Basics
News Analysis
This program provides a tax credit for investment in renewable energy projects. It includes bonus credit for projects in energy communities and projects that use certain amounts of U.S.-manufactured products, including steel and iron.
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Wellness in the Warehouse: A Prototype for Safety and Health
News Brief
Behind every online order, there are people. A new study explores ways to ensure they have safe and supportive workplaces.
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With Early-Phase Carbon Tool, Designers Learn What Works
News Brief
ZeroGuide, a free tool from NBBJ, is about education as much as it is about modeling. It’s also a gateway to more refined approaches.
Perspective
Thought-provoking opinions from the most trusted minds in sustainability.
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Pete’s Product Puzzle: VersaDry
Blog Post
Simple folded metal solves a common moisture problem
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Building Products Matter Even More Than We Thought
Op-Ed
Operational energy use is critical, but materials might be an even bigger part of the solution to climate change and other pressing environmental issues.
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We Spend 90% of Our Time Indoors. Says Who?
Blog Post
Where the oft-quoted statistic comes from, and what the underlying study says about health in buildings
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On the Path to Net Zero
Op-Ed
At Leonard Farm, we’ve taken another big step in our quest for net-zero energy and net-zero carbon—but we’re not there yet!
Learning Resources
Syllabus supplements and CEU content, with automatic reporting for AIA and GBCI.
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The Missing Embodied Carbon Link: Construction
Spotlight Report
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The Urgency of Embodied Carbon and What You Can Do about It
Feature Article
Building materials emit massive amounts of carbon long before the lights go on. Here’s how thoughtful design can reduce global warming impact.
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Assessing Climate Hazards: The First Step in Resilient Design
Spotlight Report
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Native Landscaping for Biodiversity
Spotlight Report
It may take hundreds or thousands of years to return to pre-industrial-age levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide, but the loss of animal and plant species that is occurring today is, practically speaking, irreversible.