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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Seal, Tape, Gasket: A Sticky Search for Better Materials
Feature Article
Given the importance of sealing hidden joints in our air and water barriers, you'd think we'd know how long our sealants, adhesives, and gaskets last.
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Exterior Paints: Long-Term Protection and Environmental Tradeoffs
Feature Article
Exterior coatings protect buildings from the environment but often contain hazardous ingredients, so maximizing their durability is often the greenest option.
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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.
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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Measuring Drywall Against Environmental Standards
Product Review
Drywall is one of the most ubiquitous building materials. A new UL standard aims to reduce its energy impact and toxicity in landfills.
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Knoll, Steelcase in Lead with Level 3 Certified Products
Product Review
Two years after the "level" furniture certification program was developed by BIFMA, six products and products lines meet the most rigorous of the certifications-level 3.
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BuildingGreen Announces 2010 Top-10 Green Products
Product Review
BuildingGreen announces its 2010 Top-10 Green Products, with exciting entries drawn from the GreenSpec directory and coverage in Environmental Building News.
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Nexterra NSF-140-Certified Commercial Carpet Tiles
Product Review
Bolyu and Cambridge carpet tiles with Nexterra backing were the first carpets certified to NSF 140-2007e, achieving the platinum level.
In The News
We break news down to the essentials and provide expert analysis.
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Concrete Pours through Loophole in New Carbon Law
News Analysis
Buy Clean California requires contractors to specify lower-carbon products, but industry pressure quashed the law’s potential.
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California Law Uses Environmental Product Declarations to Drive Low-Carbon Procurement
News Analysis
Buy Clean California is the first law in the nation to address embodied carbon in construction materials.
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Reality Check for LEED v4 Product Credits
News Analysis
The three “Disclosure and Optimization” or “BPDO” credits in LEED v4 include both some pretty easy points and points that are not yet achievable.
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Healthy Building Network Launches Online Forum
News Brief
The forum invites affordable housing designers to join HBN experts and others to ask questions and share information on material health.
Perspective
Thought-provoking opinions from the most trusted minds in sustainability.
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Learning Resources
Syllabus supplements and CEU content, 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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