Fellow Sages,

I was at an interesting lecture last night. Phil Bernstein (formerly of Autodesk, now at Yale) was speaking (in Lawrence, Kansas, at the U of Kansas) about AI and design/AEC ... you may know that he authored the 2022 book, Machine Learning, about AI and the AEC field. 

Phil has a very interesting posture about AI... Read more

Hi folks,

Mahesh announced today that he's leaving his position as CEO of USGBC, GBCI, and ArkScoru, effective Nov. 1. An interim CEO will be announced tomorrow.

I think that Mahesh did some great things for the organization(s)--and he had some really loyal team members. He could also be challenging to work with--as I learned... Read more

Hi. I'm Dan Piselli, the new Director of Sustainability at FXCollaborative. You all may know my predecessor Ilana Judah - she and I worked together closely for many years, and I can only hope to emulate her success.

FYI, a few things about me: I've been a project architect and manager for a number of LEED projects, most recently the... Read more

Hello SMEPers,

I’m hoping to crowd source some anecdotes for a guest lecture I’ll be giving at Yale’s architecture school. The topic is integrated design (especially between architects and engineers) and how it enables better sustainability outcomes.

John Boecker has this great story about how choosing a paint color with higher... Read more

We think fresh water supplies are endless, but this idealistic vision is clouded by the smoke of countless forest fires in the U.S. West and elsewhere. Instead of endless bounty, climate change is bringing us catastrophic droughts and flooding that now dominate the headlines and threaten entire regions.

This report covers innovative... Read more

Re: 310 CMR 78.00: Ban of Covered Products Containing Certain Flame Retardants. This law took effect as of April 01, 2021, and is enforced by Mass DEP. 

Quick Summary: Law bans 11 types of chemical flame retardants from... Read more

Greetings SDLs - I am looking for recommendations for VLT meters that folks have had sucess with (reliability, accuracy, etc.). Are there any that art partiularly useful when in the field for existing buildings? 

Many thanks,

JD

Check out this new executive order. It is broad and includes a lot of items, but of interest to this group, there are some things in here that we pointed towards in our letter back from the beginning of the year, including 24/7 carbon-free electrical energy, a net-zero emissions portfolio by 2045 and net zero emissions from procurement... Read more

Discarded tires are an environmental disaster, and finding a beneficial use for them is a high priority.

BuildingGreen does not approve any flooring product that is made with tire-derived rubber, though some products may be appropriate for exterior use.

Hi everyone, 

We’re so excited to announce that registration for the 2025 SMEPL Summit is now live! Register here and save your seat to join BuildingGreen, your SMEPL peers, and members of all three other networks for a first-of-its-kind summit this year.

In addition to the SMEPL Summit, you’ll have the option of joining us for... Read more

Pint-flush and non-water urinals can save tens of thousands of gallons of potable water per year. A single non-water-using urinal can save more than 10,000 gallons of water per year compared with the U.S. EPA standard of 1.0 gallon per flush (gpf).

When older 3.0 gpf urinals are replaced, the savings can be as great as 50,000 gallons... Read more

We are working on a Core & Shell project with a developer that we work with frequently. I'm looking for advice on best approaches to achieving the Whole Building Life Cycle Assessment credit- we haven't used TALLY and done this type of analysis before. What are some approaches to achieving this credit that others have found successful? I... Read more

Hello Sustainable Design Leaders!

Here at BuildingGreen we are excited and looking forward to creating a valuable and engaging online summit with you all for 2020!

You can Register HERE as well as review important information.

The Summit will happen throughout the week of July 13. The specific meeting times are: 

3:... Read more

As many of you may already be aware, Greenbuild 2020 is scheduled for the week of the Presidential Election, Nov. 3rd, 2020. 

The partners organizing Greenbuild 2020 are USGSBC and Informa Exhibitions. If you have concerns regarding Greenbuild happening during that week, you may want to consider reaching out to whoever you have contact... Read more

Has anyone vetted through all the Epoxy and Resin-based flooring systems to see which flooring application is "healthier"?

Below is a preapproved list from our local health department:
• Tera Lite • Stonhard Stonclad, Stonclad Ut, Stonshield Hri • Sunbelt 110 • Everlast • Westcoat Epoxy Mortar, Slurry, Or Double Broadcast • Dex-O-... Read more

Has anyone here performed circadian lighting studies for WELL using rhino/grasshopper (Lark Spectral Lighting)? 

It seems that Lark can only simulate circadian metrics for daylighting, and NOT electric lighting.  Can anyone shed some light on this?  pun intended :)

Are there any other tools out there that would enable us to... Read more

Hello Green Gurus,

Here is an exciting event we're planning for the end of the month!

Innovative Projects Showcase - “The Power of Collaboration”

A selection of your fellow sustainability leaders will showcase a few recent projects that exemplify integrative process and cross-disciplinary collaboration. Each presentation... Read more