Hi All,

I wanted to pass on a few cool things we have going on at Built Environment Plus (formerly USGBC MA)  I really am conscious of not spamming you often and reserve posts for some of our most exciting happenings.

August 5, Building Tech Forum/MaterialsCAN: Getting to Zero with Embodied Carbon. Featuring 13 5-minute... Read more

I'm wondering if people are seeing any increase in WELL or Fitwel certification interest? Or any other 3rd party systems aimed at health and wellness? WELL seems like a higher bar and now WELL v2 offers more flexibility. Is interest and adoption of 3rd party health and wellness certs growing? 

We have a client thats going through a TI remodel in a building thats a LEED Core+Shell certified building. One of the questions we are trying to figure out is are there things we need to be doing to not imperil the building's certification. 

I think the answer is that the landlord had to write tenant guidelines at the time of... Read more

I am looking at having staff members take a materials course and deciding between Parsons Healthier Materials and AIA Materials Matter certificate programs. Does anyone have feedback on either? Bonus points if you know about both and can provide a direct comparison. Thanks!

Built Environment Plus (was USGBC MA- aka Meredith Elbaum's band) has organized this awesome sustainability scavenger hunt.

It's fun. It's easy. Anyone can participate from anywhere - it's all app based, and it's a great way to get energized for Earth Day or week! And it's for a good cause, a fundraiser for supportive organization. Have... Read more

Hi folks,

We’re working on the agenda for what’s shaping up to be a really awesome Summer Summit at a great new venue in Massachusetts. There is an awesome group already registered, and we’d like to fill the remaining slots soon so that we can develop the agenda with your input.

If you’ve been planning to register, please do it... Read more

Wondering if anyone has a slide presentation on the Framework for Design Excellence that they would be willing to share (to present to students). Rather than defining my request as lazy I'd like to offer up the qualification of efficiency.  

Office furniture’s materials and components can come from unsustainable sources, and use adhesives that emit formaldehyde or other volatile compounds.

BuildingGreen-Approved Furniture

BuildingGreen approves tables, desks, and other office furnishings certified to BIFMA’s multi-attribute level 3 standard, which requires low... Read more

Hello - Other than hiring an acoustic consultant, I am wondering what in-house tools you are using internally at the design stage for modelling acoustic performance? 

Thanks, Mona

Are your firms discussing the health effects of silica dust on people working with engineered stone and the recent announcement of the upcoming ban in Australia, as of July 2024?

https://www.dezeen.com/2023/12/14/australia-bans-engineered-stone-silico...

According to the article, a recent report says that there is no safe level of... Read more

Hello SAL Members - after last month's call, and invitation to do some thinking around the direction of the group, a few of us connected and brainstormed questions that might help guide and refine our network. It would be great to have a conversation around everyone's needs and goals, so if you could please take 5 minutes to respond to these... Read more

I received the following email from Naajia at Southface.  I'll be out of town until November 8, but I'll see if there's time for me to address at least the second part before I leave:

A question regarding the BIT-User Forum was brought to my attention by a participant. Apparently when you are posting a question and you pick your location... Read more

Hi all,

All members of the WA Building Code Council received an email from Tim Attebery of the Washington State AGC and I'm trying to make sense of the role of the AGC and whether it is representing the consensus option of general contractors in Washington or not. The letter is very much against the energy code advancement, which... Read more

There has been a lot of discussion re antimicrobials in this group, so here is a pre-release of this month's article on the topic. It's not an extensive feature, but I hope you find it informative.

Brent

First, special shout out to Carolyn Day from Perkins Eastman for getting permission to use their Pro-zoom account for this Greenbuild wrap-up social session, because...frankly...Greenbuild just wasn't the same without all of you.

So, while we can't be together in person, that doesn't mean we are stuck by ourselves. Grab a refreshment and... Read more