Material Selection
Selecting building materials can be complex. You have to take into account toxicity, performance, the environmental life cycle, cost, and other factors.
Understanding what makes a building product green is a long-term prospect. Green characteristics differ from product category to product category, and multi-attribute vetting is critical.
Material Selection
Deep Dives
Get up to speed on complex topics. You can also earn CEUs and download PDF Spotlight Reports.
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Biobased Materials: Not Always Greener
Feature Article
We tend to think of biobased materials as inherently greener-but even "natural" and "rapidly renewable" materials can carry big environmental impacts.
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What Makes a Product Green Today?
Feature Article
Lots of manufacturers call their products "green," but are they? Here's our guide to the high-performance attributes that matter.
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LEDs: The Future Is Here
Feature Article
LEDs have finally become an economically viable lighting option, but choosing the best LED products still takes knowledge and skill.
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Better Choices in Low-Slope Roofing
Feature Article
There are big differences in environmental impacts of commercial roofing materials, but the biggest variable may be service life.
Quick Takes
Jump straight to the essentials with these short explanations of green building concepts.
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Product Guidance
Unbiased information from our product experts helps you separate green from greenwash.
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Decorative Ceiling Panel Uses Recycled Content
Product Review
Chicago Metallic has introduced Monarch GE, a decorative ceiling panel system using gypsum and 70% recycled content from glass.
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BuildingGreen Announces 2007 Top-10 Products
Product Review
BuildingGreen, Inc., publisher of the GreenSpec Directory and Environmental Building News (EBN), announced its annual Top-10 Green Building Products, representing the most exciting products covered in those publications in the last year.
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180 Walls Sets New Standard for Green Wallcovering
Product Review
A woven polyester wallcovering from Milliken, 180 Walls is cost-competitive with vinyl wallcoverings and offers a number of environmental benefits that are backed up by third-party certifications.
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Unique American Teak Offers FSC-Certified Flooring
Product Review
A new supplier is offering prefinished teak flooring from Costa Rica certified by the Forest Stewardship Council.
In The News
We break news down to the essentials and provide expert analysis.
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Plum Creek SFI Certification, Audit Process Challenged in Oregon
News Analysis
An Oregon nonprofit is seeking to suspend Plum Creek’s SFI certificate in Oregon due to legal violations. The company says it has already addressed the issues.
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Spray Foam with Minimal Global Warming Impact Now Available
News Analysis
U.S. production of next-generation HFO blowing agents signals a positive shift in the spray polyurethane foam (SPF) market.
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Material Health Tools Harmonize
News Analysis
Manufacturers should get more consistent signals as Cradle to Cradle, GreenScreen, Pharos, and other tools align, while staking out niches.
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GreenCircle Will Label Products Eligible for LEED v4
News Brief
Does that HPD meet LEED v4 credit requirements? Soon, you can just look for the logo to find out.
Perspective
Thought-provoking opinions from the most trusted minds in sustainability.
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Learning Resources
A wide range of education options, with automatic reporting for AIA and GBCI.
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Just For Fun
Something weird happens every April at BuildingGreen...
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