Related to some recent questions on site-specific sun/wind analysis and early energy modeling tools, are there any tools that account for nearby topography (like bluffs) or large buildings/vegetation in energy calculations? Or favorite methods to estimate its impact particularly during early massing studies?

Thanks,

Rachel

Hello Green Gurus,

Here’s one more exclusive webinar for you! Coming up next week:

Behind the Scenes: COTE Top Ten 2021
Tuesday, May 4th, 2021
2pm - 3pm ET (11am - 12pm PT)

Register here.

Description:
Eight of this year’s Top Ten winners are from firms in this network. We also have a member on the... Read more

The deadline for submitting presentations is coming up. This year ASHRAE is hosting a joint conference with Simbuild. We are just about to send out an extension announcement (It is now Feb 9th) , so there is still time to get an abstract for a presentation. 

Possible ideas for topics: 

Daylight - new metrics and... Read more

BuildingGreen is considering hosting a reception and SDL Show & Tell at the AIA Conference on Architecture 2019. If you are planning to attend the conference, please email me directly. Your participation will influence our decision. The newly forming Small Firm SDL peer network (firm w/less than 50 employees) will have their inaugural... Read more

Welcome to the quiz portion of LEDs: The Future is Here.

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


1. Restate the energy efficiency and long service life of LEDs.
2. Describe basic LED components and how, when assembled, they perform differently than traditional light... Read more

We've got a great private (BG Communities/SD Leaders) webinar lined up for December. Register now to get it on your calendar. And let us know if you have suggestions or requests for future webinar topics!

Register here

Topic: Organizing Sustainability: knowledge management as the key to high performance

Description: Corey... Read more

Hi,

I have a colleague doing research on PCM in several projects. For context in their report, they were wondering if this group has seen any recent increase in application of PCMs in recent years. Is it just in ceilings or other applications? If so, what products are being used? They were having difficulty finding manufacturers other... Read more

Question for you all: there is this wonderful graph showing how we can shift mechanical and electrical dollars into envelope investments to make deep energy savings cost-neutral. Have you experienced this on a project?

1-minute or less survey! (two questions, more detail if you want)

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/... Read more

In our quest to create a low carbon future the lectrification/Decarbonization working group is planning spend the next 10 months creating tools to advocate for electrification:

On Wednesday, November 10th (4-5:50pm PST), the Women in Green committees of California are hosting an exciting session to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Women in Green - Steadfast and Strong.

Join us for a dynamic and lively conversation from women leading in all areas of sustainability including policy, corporate, non-profit, and... Read more

Hello! Long shot here, but I thought I would try.

Alex Wilson and I are working on an article about priorities for the next four years under the Biden-Harris administration. We'd like to feature some recent photos of climate demonstrations, protest signs calling for the Green New Deal, or other environment-focused illustrations of... Read more

This might be going down a rabbit hole, but in moving to California this year I noticed that "zero net energy" (ZNE) is the standard term, whereas "net zero energy" (NZE) was more common back east. The DOE's 2015 definition (below) uses "zero energy building" (ZEB), which to me implies a building uses no energy at all.

Regional... Read more

Hello all,

We are having a mini office debate on fiberglass vs aluminum windows for use in schools (k-12) in Massachusetts. In the past we have always used aluminum windows on our schools, for durability. However, their performance is not as great as other products that are up and coming on the market. There is some hesitation to switch... Read more

This is specifically to Chris but also to anybody who is interested in the topic - which Chris raised on our SAL call today, regarding how to influence change:

From this article, which i thought was good but had a great paragraph pulled below.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/12/business/Steve-Mollenkopf-Qualcomm-corner-office.html... Read more