The overwhelming majority of wallcoverings are flexible vinyl, laden with all the life-cycle concerns that come with PVC. Products used to contain orthophthalate plasticizers—which make up a large percentage of these products. Phthalates are not bound in the material and can slough off in dust, exposing occupants during everyday work or play.... Read more

Anyone has experience with CertiPUR-US? I’m having a hard time finding assurance documentation for foam padding for seating.

I would appreciate any feedback or experience on CertiPUR-US program or any recommendations on product.

Hello Sustainable Community Design Leaders,

Now that everyone invited to the SCDL calls has access to this forum, I want to shift us over here for announcements and reminders, so here's your reminder that this month’s call is next Monday, March 21st, 11am–12pm ET (8-9am PT). Back to our usual time!

You can view the agenda here.... Read more

Hi all,

I am on the planning committee for the National Adaptation Forum, which is an excellent conference (this will be the 6th annual) that has relatively little representation from architecture and engineering audiences. Our municipal and agency clients, as well as private sector, tend to attend this conference for climate adaptation... Read more

Welcome to the quiz portion of Mouth, Meet Money: Case Studies of Outcome-Based Design!

Important: This quiz covers all related articles within this topic. Scroll to the bottom of the article page to find links to all the articles covered by this quiz.

Learning Objectives
Upon completing this course, participants will be... Read more

Kelly provides administrative support to BuildingGreen projects, including major contracts as well as event planning, and logistics coordination for BuildingGreen’s network of sustainable design leaders. Among her projects, Kelly coordinated a large tri-state regional economic development project focused on the green goods and services industry... Read more

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Hi All,

Our local COTE committee has the opportunity to meet with a local jurisdiction on meeting the targets set forth by their Climate Action Plan.  In preparation I'm looking for innovative building codes/ordinaces that address existing buildings.  I am already digging into Boston's Building Energy Reporting and Disclosure Ordinance... Read more

Hi All! 

We have had a few multi-family projects consider this single package vertical unit with integrated ERV, but we haven't pulled the trigger for fear of the unknown. Our local engineers aren't sure how it actually performs and worry it may not meet code requirements for separation between exhaust and intake. Has anyone else used... Read more

Here’s a nice NYTimes op ed on urban density that directly addresses the concern Gwen raised on out call today: 

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/24/upshot/coronavirus-urban-density-risks.html?referringSource=articleShare

The construction sector’s take-make-waste approach to materials needs an overhaul. Materials and construction account for an estimated 11% of global greenhouse gas emissions annually. At the other end of the life cycle, demolition in the United States annually generates 90% of some 600 million tons of construction-sector debris. Getting trashed... Read more

Hello Green Gurus,

Thank you for your patience while we pulled together the summer summit reports and getting them posted, sorry it took so long!

You can see the most recent summit reports for SDL, SCL, and MEP near the top-left of the Resources page in the Peer Networks Hub.

A friendly reminder, these reports are sharable... Read more

The IECC is accepting applications for committee members for its development of the 2024 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC). The responsibilities of the committees include:

Hi all, 

Thank you again to those of you who attended the Summer 2024 SDL Summit! We had an unforgettable few days of learning from one another, including from our presenters.

The slides for the 5-minute presentations are below, as well as the BuildingGreen slides from the Summit. Please be aware that we have permission from all... Read more

Conventional heating systems burn fossil fuels on the building site or use outrageous amounts of electricity.

BuildingGreen-Approved Heat Pumps

The best heat pumps solve both these problems and provide efficient cooling. BuildingGreen approves air-source heat pumps with minimum HSPF and SEER levels of 10 and 20, respectively.... Read more