The Geography of Nowhere and

Home From Nowhere take a scathing look at suburbia,... Read more

In January 2006, New York City’s New School opened the Tishman Environment and Design Center, which will offer an undergraduate program in environmental studies. “One of the distinguishing characteristics of the Center will be the critical role of design,” says Joel Towers, former director of sustainable design at the Parsons School of Design... Read more

In little more than a decade, bamboo flooring has become a serious contender in the hardwood flooring market, and some believe that bamboo plywood is next. Lauded in environmental circles for its quick growth and the fact that it can be harvested without harming the plant, bamboo seems almost too good to be true. In fact, like any product, it... Read more

2005 set a new record, according to estimates from the Munich Re Foundation, with more than $200 billion in economic losses due to weather-related disasters. Of that total, more than $75 billion was covered by insurance companies. Hurricane Katrina caused much of that loss, with damages estimated at $125 billion, of which about $45 billion was... Read more

To help its 77,000 members meet their green design information needs, The American Institute of Architects (AIA) has signed an agreement with BuildingGreen, Inc. The agreement will bring

Environmental Building News (EBN) articles to AIA members through AIA Knowledge Community publications, including

AIArchitect, and through AIA’... Read more

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has announced the winners of its annual EnergyValue Housing Awards, designed to promote and improve the energy efficiency of new homes in the U.S. The program is funded by DOE’s Building America Program and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory with support from several private sponsors, including... Read more

Greenpeace International unveiled the Music Wood Initiative at the January 2006 trade show of NAMM, the International Music Products Association. The Music Wood Initiative was created to limit the environmental and social degradation caused in the making of musical instruments. “If you walk through a music store, the instruments are comprised... Read more

A pilot study by Yale and Columbia universities ranked the U.S. 28th in environmental performance. The 2006 Environmental Performance Index ranked countries based on sixteen indicators related to environmental health, air quality, water resources, productive natural resources, biodiversity and habitat, and sustainable energy. New Zealand scored... Read more

Vol. 13, No. 1), quite a bit has happened in the area of standardized testing of toilet performance. The Maximum Performance (MaP™) testing that we reported on has been progressing at a rapid pace. Veritec Consulting, Inc., has now tested well over 200 toilet models, and the... Read more

Are you an experienced writer/editor with green building knowledge and excellent research skills? Do you have a knack for distinguishing meaningful information from hype? If so, you might consider joining the editorial team at BuildingGreen, Inc. We need to add a writer to our staff to keep up with our publishing schedule and commitments. The... Read more

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), along with dozens of government, industry, and nonprofit partners, is accepting applications for the 2006 P3 Award, a design competition for scientific and technical solutions to environmental challenges. “P3 highlights people, prosperity, and the planet—the three pillars of sustainability,”... Read more

The new energy tax credits outlined in the U.S. Energy Policy Act of 2005 took effect on January 1, 2006. For more information on the provisions in the act, see

EBN

Vol. 14, No. 9.

On January 4, 2006, the Executive Committee of the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) board of directors approved the charter of a Research Committee and appointed its initial five members. This is a core

organizational committee of the Council (as opposed to being a LEED® committee) that focuses on one of the USGBC’s six key goals in... Read more

Softcover, 178 pages, $19.95.

New Village Press has posted this book's missing page on its website. To view it, visit www.newvillagepress.net/cover_ecoDesign.html, and click on "Errata page 84/85."

Tarkett AG, the world’s largest manufacturer of resilient flooring, has acquired Johnsonite, a producer of specialty flooring and flooring accessories. Johnsonite, based in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, makes flooring adhesives with low emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), entryway track-off systems, and flooring produced from recycled tires... Read more

Recognizing that “utilizing less hazardous cleaning products in our State facilities and workplaces, and implementing measures to reduce exposure to those products, can minimize harmful impacts to office and custodial workers as well as improve air quality and reduce water and air pollution,” New Jersey Governor Richard Codey signed an... Read more

The Passive Solar Energy Book and a leading advocate for energy efficiency in buildings, has created an organization to amplify his call to action. Architecture 2030 aims to “conduct research and provide information and innovative solutions in the fields of architecture and planning, in an effort to address global... Read more