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
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
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
Forum topic
We are evaluating Dynamic Glass - and I have always been a bit timid to use.
Any thoughts / experience on what we should be aware of?
Thanks!
Forum topic
Sign up now to roll up your sleeves and have fun solving real problems! April 28 from 3-5pm ET
DESIGNING FOR DECONSTRUCTION
Building deconstruction, or disassembly, is a critical strategy for carbon reduction, minimizing waste & contributing to a circular economy, yet remains a serious challenge for many reasons.
Many... Read more
Forum topic
Have any of you come across aqueous ozone product for hand sanitation? https://www.3oescientific.com/
This company is selling to hospitals/schools. May indeed be awesome, but so many "totally safe" products are proven not to be. Curious if this group has seen it or have looked at it's claims.
Forum topic
Has anyone done inherent bias training in their firm, and if so, how'd it go? Do you have someone you'd recommend as a trainer/facilitator? Thanks!
Forum topic
Our fledgling group had an organizing call last Tuesday, March 17th. Of course, it was a great conversation - the group is full of amazing people! The focus of our conversation was the goals and actions that should drive this group forward. I have a few ideas. Please share your own in this thread!
I start from the belief that we see our... Read more
Forum topic
Hello, folks! We recently had contact with Northeastern University about sand. I know it sounds ... dry. But sand shortages are a serious issue globally and are leading to criminal activity everywhere and even "sand mafias" in poorer nations without resources to enforce mining laws.
The ask from Northeastern is that BuildingGreen amplify... Read more
Forum topic
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
Quiz
This summit was pre-approved for 10 AIA HSW LUs and 10 GBCI CE hours.
Please complete the survey question to confirm your attendance and receive your CEUs.
By providing your credential numbers in your profile, you will enable us to automatically report these CEUs to the organization. Please first check your profile to be sure your... Read more
Forum topic
A question for you, all input appreciated: What are some metrics and data points you all use to report out to your staff and leadership? I'm starting on higher-level analysis of our projects' performance by typology and through other lenses, and I wonder if you have found metrics or reporting points that are particularly impactful in your... Read more
Author
P.J. is an accomplished writer and speaker who brings passion, humor, and discernment to all her work.
Whether it’s a spotlight report on decarbonization, a webinar on ESG, or just a chummy email bulletin, she is ferociously committed to truth, accuracy, and thoroughly... Read more
Forum topic
Hi everyone,
Thank you so much to the SDL members who attended the Summer 2023 Summit! We had an amazing time with you there. A big thanks as well to the attendees who shared 5-minute presentations during the summit.
Below are some of the slides for the presentations. Please note that we have permission from all of these... Read more
Forum topic
I'm in search of anyone who's done a LEED ACP Pilot Credit. It's unclear to me whether using one of these pathways replaces the way the base prereq or credit would function in the rating system being used by a project seeking certification or if it's a strategy to achieve Innovation in Design credits only. The documentation I've been able to... Read more
Forum topic
I give you... the content-ready site. The editors should be able to start adding Best Practice content.
Development site:
https://live-bituser.pantheonsite.io/
Instructions (with tutorial videos):
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1EUIzitkW0CczFQo8V2q3gVDVO4Juk4EI9iv8...
I created accounts for all the editors... Read more
Quiz
Welcome to the quiz portion of Occupant Engagement: Where Design Meets Performance.
Learning Objectives
Upon completing this course, participants will be able to:
1. Restate at least five methods being used to provide feedback to occupants so that they better understand how to interpret, and respond to, their... Read more
