News Analysis
It isn’t just environmental zealots who are up in arms about the U.S. Forest Service’s policies on managing the nation’s timber resources. The Association of Forest Service Employees for Environmental Ethics has jumped into the fray—from the inside. Jeff DeBonis, the Association’s founder and executive director,... Read more
News Brief
Carol Venolia, Publisher/Editor
If “progressive construction” can be defined as pushing the tools and techniques of conventional builders in the direction of less environmental destruction, then Building With Nature’s material goes beyond progressive, into the forefront of visionary thinking about construction. This bimonthly newsletter, now... Read moreExplainer
News Analysis
The recent ruling to allow logging on several thousand acres of old-growth forest in western Oregon was portrayed in the national media as a blow to environmentalists, but the action may not prove so damaging in the end. While the ruling permits logging on 13 of the 44 sites that were under consideration by the so-... Read more
News Analysis
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
Feature
Carefully stake the building site and driveway, remove trees that are within the excavation area or too close, then erect a fence to keep heavy equipment off fragile soils and away from nearby trees.
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
News Brief
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
Feature
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
Feature
Susan Maxman is the first AIA president to make sustainable design a priority.
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
Op-Ed
Introducing the first issue of our newsletter.
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
Quiz
Welcome to the quiz portion of The BuildingGreen Guide to Insulation!
Learning Objectives
Upon completing this course, participants will be able to:
1. Discuss how insulation works to increase the energy efficiency and environmental sustainability of buildings;
2. Explain why certain materials make more sense than... Read more
Forum topic
HI All,
Built Environment Plus, a green building member-based non-profit in Boston, is looking for a dynamic person to lead our expansive Education Program which includes courses taught by BuildingGreen and many others in this network. Check out the offerings here: Trainings Archive - Built Environment Plus
This is a critical and... Read more
Product Guide
CEUs are available for reading our entire plumbing guide. Click here to learn more and take the quiz.
Rainwater capture is increasingly important as shortages put pressure on our water systems.
BuildingGreen-Approved Rainwater Harvesting
We approve a wide range of rainwater catchment and storage systems and components, with... Read more
Forum topic
Hello everyone,
Here's a reminder that our call for this month will be taking place next Tuesday, November 12th at 2:00pm EST.
Please feel free to join us!
Join Zoom Meeting:
https://zoom.us/j/248664490
One tap mobile
+16699006833,,248664490# US (San Jose)
+19292056099,,248664490# US (New York)... Read more
Forum topic
Hi everyone, we had a great first all-network call with the SCL members who joined us last month! We’re looking forward to the next all-SCL call on January 8, 2024 at 1pm ET.
In the meantime, we’d love for you to fill out this survey to help us best tailor the all-SCL calls to the needs of the network. Please fill out the survey by... Read more
Forum topic
Hi! We're putting together a pre-summit survey to collect input from everyone who's signed up for the Summit; we'll use that to prep the agenda for our get-together July 9-10.
Based on our last few phone calls, here's a list of topics on our radar. If there are others you'd like to see added to the survey, or if you have more thoughts... Read more
Author
Peter Yost (at https://building-wright.com/ ) is available to provide building science expertise, trainings, public speaking, building investigations, and more. Learn more
Forum topic
Extremely proud to say that the just-announced winner of the international 'Next Generation Facade' design competition is a team led by the 2017-18 EDR Research Fellow, Liz McCormick. The facade normally separates inside from outside. What if the 'facade' was a place you occupied, where you worked? What if different parts of the facade... Read more
Forum topic
Folks, would love to hear what software you're for in-house daylighting/energy performance modeling at the SD/DD level. My IT folks have been pushing us to try out Autodesk's Insight again after a not so impressive pilot we did a few years ago. Has it gotten better? Was it us? What programs do you feel good about? Which ones really make you mad... Read more


