Energy Source™ Directory

Energy Source Directory arrived. Assembled and published by Iris Communications, this is the most complete and most useful guide to specialized products and materials used in energy-efficient construction that we've seen. The 500-page directory is... Read more

The City of Austin’s Green Builder Program was one of 12 award recipients in the United National Local Government Honours Programme at the Earth Summit in Rio, and the only winner from the United States. “The purpose of the Honours Programme is to recognize innovative local approaches to... Read more

The company's promotional material is the epitome of environmentally friendly packaging—like a Ben & Jerry's annual report. The article reprints sent were even bound in a jacket made from corrugated cardboard. So we were quite intrigued by the product. Syndecrete™ is a lightweight, pre-cast,... Read more

Carol Venolia, Publisher/Editor

A study published in the June 5, 1992, issue of

Science by researchers at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and the Institute of Atmospheric Physics at the University of Arizona suggests that smoke emitted into the atmosphere from human activities may be having a significant effect in counteracting... Read more

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

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

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

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

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

Hi folks,

There are a few Peer-Network related opportunities at the AIA Conference on Architecture, and it's coming up soon (June 4-8)! If you'll be in town, I hope you can join us! And if you're speaking at the Conference, let us know--whatever people in this network are talking about is likely to be super-interesting to the rest of us... Read more

This is a test for surveys.

Hi all, hope you're keeping safe and healthy. I'm thinking about protocols to put in place on jobsites related to COVID-19 in addition to our IAQ plans. Wondering if anyone's company has started to layout specific protocols, PPE, etc. and is willing to share.

What got me thinking was this article from Prof. Joe Allen at Harvard about... Read more

Hey, everyone! Reaching out to share about the currently-under-development IEA Annex 89: Ways to Implement Net-zero Whole Life Carbon Buildings. The current committee is really the who's who of building LCA in Europe, but it does seem like it suffers from a lack of North American representation. The one North American on the committee, in fact... Read more

Greetings, Green Gurus:

As unbelievable as it sounds, the Environmental PROTECTION Agency has launched a PR blitz in support of their "new use rule" on asbestos. So the BuildingGreen community needs to push back harder. I'm reposting the links to the letter of opposition that Mary Ann Lazarus put up last week. We definitely need more... Read more

Welcome to the quiz portion of The Beneficial Intersections of Energy, Resilience, and Health.

Learning Objectives
Upon completing this course, participants will be able to:

1. Determine and communicate the financial benefits of energy efficiency, climate resilience, and occupant health and wellness.

2. Understand how... Read more

Hi everyone,

Join us for the webinar, "IRA Funding with a Tax Expert Part 2: Updates and  Clarifications" on Tuesday April 2nd at 3pm ET!

Register here and please feel free to invite anyone from your firms to join.

The great presenter from Energy Tax Savers, Jacob Goldman, is returning for a follow-up session for our... Read more