News Analysis
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Green Gurus -
I’m honored to be co-chairing, along with Caryn Brause FAIA, the ACSA/AIA Intersections Research conference at UMass Amherst October 2023. The theme, "Material Economies," was developed with an eye for inclusivity for academics and practitioners alike, addressing critical emerging issues around architectural material... Read more
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Hi All- I'm posting this question for my ZGF colleague Chris Chatto. Somehow he wasn't initially included on the SDL list as it moved from Wiggio to BuildingGreen's (Green Gurus) site. Happy New Year, Lona
Hi everyone –
We could use your help in developing a determining a “red list” premium for a feasibility cost... Read more
Product Guide
Exterior doors often have poor insulation and seals that allow air through.
BuildingGreen-Approved Exterior Doors
BuildingGreen has different criteria for commercial and residential exterior doors.
Commercial swing (hinged) doors must be NFRC-rated, certified, and labeled for U-factor. They have a maximum air leakage of 0.... Read more
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Hello,
This is not my area of expertise but our contactor has suggested central heat pump hot water (CHPHW) is $1m more expensive than gas fired domestic hot water for a 150 unit multi-family residential building in Massachusetts. The Building Decarbonization Practice Guide is extremely helpful but, from their comments, it is all coming... Read more
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All -
I know many of your firms do landscape design, and I wanted to make sure you were aware of a new and pretty impressive conceptual calculator to estimate the carbon impacts (emissions and sinks) of landscape design. Developed by Pamela Conrad of CMG Landscape with grant support, Atelier 10 and an app developer, the tool allows you... Read more
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Hi Gurus!
This query just came from GSA via the Large Firm Roundtable. It seems that one way we can help is simply to route this to the best concrete and asphalt suppliers we know of, so they can respond.
Can you pass on some information to the large firms sustainability roundtable? GSA, and the White House, just announced new... Read more
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On Thursday, September 27 at 2PM Eastern Time you can join the first BuildingGreen Communities webinar where we will share key takeaways from the 11th annual Summer Sustainable Design Leaders Summit (@ the Garrison Institute in upstate New York). Our new webinar format using Zoom will allow for interactive questions and comments throughout. If... Read more
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Hi Everyone!
Does anyone have a good resource for whole-building embodied carbon benchmarks broken down by building use and building category (structure, foundation, envelope, interior)?
I know of CLF’s 2017 Benchmark Study (great resource!) and the One-Click LCA study on European Buildings but are there any others? I know many... Read more
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Hi folks,
Our next private webinar is coming right up:
Fusion of Design + Performance: How Payette Was Recognized As AIA Firm of the Year
Tuesday, February 12, 1:00 pm EST
Payette is the first AIA Firm Award recipient to have been nominated jointly by the Committee on Design and Committee on the Environment. Z Smith... Read more
Peer Network Event
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Hi folks,
We often hear from you with a suggestion of someone who would be great for the network, and a question about how to refer them. We've now made that easy, with three steps laid out in an Outreach Toolkit that's posted in the left margin of the Member Directory.
So, if you're thinking of someone to invite or come across... Read more
Quiz
Welcome to the quiz portion of Deep Material Vetting (That Won't Chew Through Your Design Budget).
Learning Objectives
Upon completing this course, participants will be able to:
1. Align product vetting with goals that aim to mitigate occupant exposure and environmental toxicity.
2. Foster partnerships with... Read more
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Facilitating Engagement and Collaboration in Virtual Meetings (or, Avoiding a Goat Rodeo with Many Awkward Silences*)
If you weren't already sitting in virtual meetings every day... We all are now. So how do we facilitate an online meeting in which everyone is focused, engaged, heard, collaborating and problem-solving in an efficient,... Read more
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Green Gurus –
Clark Brockman brought to our attention an important and impactful opportunity to advance building decarbonization through the US Department of Energy’s proposed rulemaking around water heater efficiency, advancing adoption of heat pumps, while still providing exceptions (and efficiency targets) for electric or natural gas... Read more
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Hi MEP Leaders,
We had a great conversation in our last monthly call about the function and purpose of this group, and what we can best do together. You can see detailed notes from that call here. And we'll soon be sending out a reminder about the October call (Tuesday, Oct 8, 2pm eastern).
One of the ideas from that conversation... Read more