News Analysis
EBN Advisory Board member Mike Nicklas led an international delegation of renewable energy experts in promoting sustainable energy at the Earth Summit last month. He and others were negotiating for inclusion of renewable energy and energy conservation measures into agreements being worked out for the United Nations... Read more
Product Review
To the best of our knowledge, this product is now being marketed under the name Rauhsaser by Better Wall System of Kenora, ON.
CoverAge is a tacky name for a great product that all remodelers should know about. It is a paintable, textured wallpaper that’s made entirely of recycled paper (at... Read moreFeature
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
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
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
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
SmithGroup is hosting Metropolis Magazine for a “Think Tank Event on Waterfront Redevelopment and Urban Resilience”. While the event is in our office, if you're not in DC, it will also be broadcast live on Facebook Live (https://www.facebook.com/events/1299577320146259/) Feel free to share this invitation with others. Information about the... Read more
Quiz
Welcome to the quiz portion of Changing Building Design Priorities for a Changing Electrical Grid!
Learning Objectives
Upon completing this course, participants will be able to:
Define a “Highly Variable Renewable Energy” generation asset, or VRE, and understand how VREs can most effectively contribute to the... Read more
Forum topic
Hello SD Leaders!
I recently joined and looking forward to all the amazing dialog. I was told that for membership to be official, I must reveal my unsustainable secret. As much as I preach environmental protection in architecture, I’m a bit of a motorhead with a 1967 HP 289 Mustang that I resurrected from a junk yard when I was 16 — that... Read more
Basic page
The page you're looking for is no longer available. There may be several reasons:
We made a mistake when upgrading our website, and the page was lost. Your browser session expired (e.g. you were interrupted while making a purchase and then came back to it hours later). The content is so out-of-date that our editors decided it was... Read moreForum topic
Hello everyone,
I wanted to let you all know that I'm no longer at Bergmeyer and have moved on to a new position at Sustainable Brands as of this week. As a non-architect/non-designer, it's always meant so much to me how readily I was accepted into this group and how much of your knowledge and expertise you willingly shared. As is the... Read more
Forum topic
I am putting together my conference/training budgets for 2023 and I am hoping to add a BuidlingGreen SDL in-person summit to my list. Are there any plans for in-person summits in 2023? I seem to remember Nadav speculating about Puerto Rico as a location for a Winter summit. Wishful thinking?
Forum topic
Hello,
Has anyone come across a rating system 'crosswalk' infographic?
Cheers, Mona
Forum topic
Hi everyone!
If you will be attending Greenbuild 2023 or live in the DC area, please join us for a Show & Tell!
When: Tuesday September 26, 6:30-9pm ET
Where: Perkins Eastman, 1 Thomas Cir NW #200, Washington, DC, 20005
Please sign up here to present/attend. Beverages and refreshments will be served. We look... Read more
Forum topic
Is this EDI, or JEDI? (Justice, Equity...)
Notes (attached) and Guiding Questions:
Equity, Diversity, And Inclusion In Our Firms
What are the barriers and what’s working to cut through them?
The process is so super slow... how to to celebrate our small achievements?
How are we fostering inclusion and... Read more
Forum topic
Congratulations to Jill Kurtz for her Building Design + Construction 40 Under 40 award! A much deserved recognition.
Meet the 40 Under 40 class of 2021 | Building Design + Construction (bdcnetwork.com)
Forum topic
Hi everyone, I'm sure that some of you already received the message below from Kira Gould (and/or others), but assuming that it didn't get to all of you, I'm forwarding it here. I believe that Lindsay is in common cause with all of us here on this forum, and will provide meaningful built-environment contributions to COP.
Thanks for... Read more


