Product Review
The company's promotional material is the epitome of environmentally friendly packaging—like a Ben & Jerry's annual report. The article reprints sent were even bound in a jacket made from corrugated cardboard. So we were quite intrigued by the product. Syndecrete™ is a lightweight, pre-cast,... Read more
News Brief
At first glance,
An Environmental Handbook for Florida Contractors looks like it deals only with the environmental regulations that Florida contractors must contend with. And, indeed, the Handbook describes in detail the requirements for complying with regulations at the federal, state, and local levels. But the book goes much further,... Read more
Feature
Carefully stake the building site and driveway, remove trees that are within the excavation area or too close, then erect a fence to keep heavy equipment off fragile soils and away from nearby trees.
Protecting trees and the local ecosystem when building on previously unbuilt land is a vitally important—yet often overlooked—part of environmentally responsible construction. Healthy trees and shrubs can reduce a home’s environmental impact and directly benefit homeowners in a number of ways:
•Enhancing comfort by shielding the house... Read more
Feature
Ozone depletion and global warming are two of our most serious environmental problems—and foam insulation materials containing CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons) contribute significantly to both of these problems. The environmentally concerned builder or designer should make it a highest priority to avoid them. Even many of the non-CFC alternatives... Read more
Feature
Susan Maxman is the first AIA president to make sustainable design a priority.
Q.Where would you say architects as a group stand on environmental issues?
A.Architects tend to be reactive rather than proactive. It is important that we take the lead on these environmental issues. The architecture schools in particular tend to be conservative. They just aren’t... Read more
Op-Ed
Introducing the first issue of our newsletter.
Buildings have a tremendous impact on the environment. In North America, buildings and the building industry account for about 30% of carbon dioxide emissions, 35-40% of ozone depletion, 20-30% of municipal solid waste, vast quantities of natural resource consumption, and dramatic loss of open space each... Read more
News Brief
The American Institute of Architects convention in Boston this past June was the setting for a changing of the guard in the American architectural establishment. The Institute’s first woman president took the reins, the Committee on the Environment became its largest and fastest growing committee, and the first installments of the Environmental... Read more
Forum topic
The BE+ Annual Sustainability Scavenger Hunt is kicking off tonight/tomorrow or whenever you can join!
Anyone can join from anywhere, and participate as much or as little as you want.The missions are shared on the Goosechase App which is really easy to use and fun to see all of the other teams submissions.
Our office had four... Read more
Forum topic
Call for Reviewers and Call for Proposals now out. If you're not planning on submitting a proposal to present, please consider volunteering as a reviewer, subject matter expert or member of the Program Working Group. The quality of the education program is directly proportional to the people who select it!
See many of you in Alabama... Read more
Forum topic
Hello Green Gurus!
The open Peer Networking Meetups that began when Covid-19 struck and we were all suddenly working from home have proven their value. In consultation with those who were on the last few calls we’ve decided to make them a permanent, monthly event.
Feel free to join us if you’re interested in connecting with folks... Read more
Peer Network Event
Forum topic
The Winter Summit participants have had this for a few weeks now, and no one has screamed about anything being inaccurate, misleading, or too revealing, so it's time to share the latest Summit report more widely.
Per our long-standing policy, this report can be shared outside our "safe space"--it's a great way to share the wealth of... Read more
Forum topic
Hi Green Gurus,
We are convening our first Regional Coordinators quarterly call Thursday, July 21 2-3pm ET (11am-12pm PT). Anyone who might be interested in this role is welcome to join. We’ll give you more specifics, answer any questions, and create our list of representatives for each region. We’ll finish by looking ahead at what to... Read more
Reports, Courses, Study Guides, Live Webinars
If you are interested in sharing this WELL AP Exam Study Guide within your organization and... Read more
Forum topic
Hello Green Gurus!
ILFI’s annual Living Future Conference is coming up, so we thought we might host a (virtual) Show & Tell session of 5-minute versions of peer network members’ presentations like we often do in conjunction with Greenbuild. First we want to see if this is of interest to you all. Please take 30 seconds to let us know... Read more
Forum topic
Hello Green Gurus,
Back at the retreat in March 2021 (does anyone remember back that far?), we formed an Air Quality Working Group with members from SDL, SMEPL, and SCL. Drawing on our collective experience, standards, research, and other resources, we began navigating the murkiness of indoor air quality considerations. We came up with a... Read more
Forum topic
Hi Sages,
Thanks to those who filled out the survey and helped set our agenda for Monday's meeting. We know that this time doesn't work for everyone (no time could, of course), so we'll be alternating times each month. The April meeting will be Thursday, 4/11 at 3:00 eastern.
The agenda is here. It also has the Zoom link (in case... Read more
Forum topic
Hi - Posting on behalf of Pete Munoz at Biohabitats
Biohabitats is hiring a proposal coordinator in Portland. Please spread the word. Thanks!
PROPOSAL COORDINATOR
Cascadia Bioregion Portland, Oregon is the preferred location, but will consider Denver, Colorado or Santa Fe, New Mexico
Years of Experience: 5+ years... Read more
Forum topic
All,
I'm sure a few of you attended our recent webinar on the LEED v4.1 LCA webinar. In case you missed it, the recording is posted. We were stunned by the amount of engagement from the audience; we allotted 30 minutes for questions and I think it went even longer. The webinar recording should be a great starting point for anyone... Read more

