GeoPraxis®, Inc., a company that provides architectural, engineering, and construction software and services, has become Green Building Studio, Inc., taking on the name of the company’s online energy-analysis service. The firm’s utility and real-estate consulting business, including the online EnergyCheckup™ tool, meanwhile, has spun off but... Read more

The Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI) has expanded its Green Label Plus program, released in 2004 to recognize carpets with low emissions of indoor pollutants, to include adhesives. Green Label Plus supersedes the organization’s older “Green Label” program, which addressed carpets, carpet pads, and adhesives. Before receiving Green Label Plus... Read more

Advisory Board member Russell Perry, AIA, is now at SmithGroup’s Washington, D.C., office, after 11 years with William McDonough+Partners (WM+P). While at WM+P, Perry was project leader for several high-profile, aggressively green projects, including Ford’s River Rouge complex in Dearborn, Michigan, and the National Collections Centre at... Read more

Wonderful Houses Around the Worldby Yoshio Komatsu, Shelter Publications, Bolinas, California, 2004. Flexcover or softcover, 48 pages, $14.95/$8.95.

Among U.S. and Canadian members of the International Facility Management Association (IFMA), 70% are implementing green concepts within their organization’s facility, according to a May 2005 online survey performed by IFMA. Full results are online at www.ifma.org/tools/research/survey_results.cfm.

The International Code Council (ICC), an organization focused on building safety and fire prevention, disappointed the green building community when it voted in late September 2005 not to adopt member-ratified changes to the 2004 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) that would have strengthened standards for wall insulation. The... Read more

The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) recognized the nonprofit Green Building Initiative™ (GBI) as an accredited national standards developer in September 2005. Following its accreditation, GBI submitted an application to establish its Green Globes™ commercial buildings rating system as an American National Standard. For more on GBI... Read more

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Alberici Group Corporate Headquarters, 8850 Page, designed by Mackey Mitchell Associates, won... Read more

The Rainforest Alliance, an accredited certifier of compliance with Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) standards, has published the SmartGuide to Green Building Wood Sources, a comprehensive listing of all FSC-certified suppliers in North America, including those certified by organizations other than the Rainforest Alliance’s SmartWood program.... Read more

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has been awarded the fourth annual Henry C. Turner Prize for Innovation in Construction Technology. Named after the founder of Turner Construction Company, a corporate sponsor of USGBC’s LEED® Rating System, the Turner Prize each year recognizes an invention, an innovative methodology, or exceptional... Read more

As of September 1, 2005, all of Potlatch Corporation’s 1.5 million acres (600,00 ha) of forestland, located in Idaho, Arkansas, Oregon, and Minnesota, has earned certification according to Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) standards. The certification of 319,000 acres (130,000 ha) in Minnesota, along with chain-of-custody certification of a... Read more

Green engineering firm Keen Engineering has signed a letter of intent to join the professional design and consulting firm Stantec. “Joining Stantec will accelerate our vision of being a top-tier integrated building design firm promoting sustainable development,” says Keen president and CEO Kevin Hydes. According to Stantec president and CEO... Read more

Johnson Controls, Inc., an industry leader in control systems for heating, cooling, and ventilation equipment, and York International Corporation, a leading manufacturer of heating and cooling equipment, announced in August 2005 that Johnson Controls would acquire York. “The transaction will enable us to become a single source of integrated... Read more

In July 2005 the Illinois Commerce Commission adopted Governor Rod Blagojevich’s sustainable energy plan, including a renewable portfolio standard (RPS) requiring the state’s electric utilities to meet 2% of their electricity needs with renewable sources by the end of 2006. The requirement will increase by 1% each year until it reaches 8% in... Read more