Congratulations to Mara Baum (HOK) and Alison Kwok (U of Oregon), FAIA! 

AIA announcement

We have another great class of COTE Top Ten winners—congratulations to all of you with recognized projects. Join us on May 10 at 2:00 pm Eastern time for an inside peak at many of this year’s winners, along with insights from jurors. CLICK HERE TO REGISTER.

To keep things open and honest we won’t be recording this session. This “safe... Read more

Hey all - sorry I won't be able to join our call today. I had a client request an emergency meeting today (boo) because corporate mandated that they eliminate fossil fuel use from all their buildings (yay!) by 2025 and they've got a project underway that needs to pivot quickly. 

Had I been able to join, I wanted to share this in case... Read more

Some of you are aware of my ongoing saga of off-site renewable energy and a LEED certification we are pursuing. The short version is that there is a new-construction corporate headquarters office building (Building #2 on the attached graphic). This building is pursuing LEED certification. 

The company also just installed a 1 MW... Read more

I have to admit that I wasn't particularly paying attention to LEED during Greenbuild, but anyone recall the "big announcement by USGBC" that LEED v4.1 is coming?

Article can be found @ Green Building Law Update by Stuart Kaplow and the title is "LEED v4.1 Announced by USGBC at Greenbuild."

https://www.greenbuildinglawupdate.com/... Read more

For consideration in determining CM "Greenness", are we leaders if we wait for city ordinances?  can we collectively agree/adopt a standard?

and for those of you in this market, how is this being received and implemented?

https://www.portlandoregon.gov/bps/article/701085

Multnomah County, City of Portland commit to reducing... Read more

Hello lovely Green Gurus!

Just wanted to take a quick second to let you all know how much I've appreciated this amazing network over the last few years. I have taken a position at Amazon Worldwide Sustainability in their Sustainable Buildings group, and while I will be leveraging all of my skills and experience doing much the same thing... Read more

I am wondering how architectural firms plan to close the gap to zero in the next few years. 

Owner's dictate outcomes and the typical owner is not committed to zero - even when sustainability is a focus of the project. 

We can present solar-ready designs, all electric buildings, geothermal, etc. but there is still quite a gap to... Read more

Welcome to the quiz portion of Seal, Tape, Gasket: A Sticky Search for Better Materials.

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


1. Choose the best means of achieving barrier continuity for any given application.
2. Assess a joint sealant's service life and product... Read more

As Building Green’s Finance Manager, Ashleigh is responsible for the development and analysis of financial strategic plans, operational budgets, and the development and analysis of associated performance indicators.  Additionally, in her day-to-day she oversees all areas of finance including: payroll, accounts payable and receivables, project... Read more

Hello Sustainable Design Leaders,

I am thrilled to be joining such an esteemed collective of driven thinkers and doers. I look forward to meeting some new faces and reconnecting with some familiar ones in an effort to advance sustainable design in the built environment.

Thanks,

Jonce

Hi everyone,

Just a reminder to please fill out the SCL 2024 Events Attendance Poll by the end of next Monday, December 18th. Thank you so much to those who have filled it out already! :) 

-Amanda

Hi all-

We are dabbling in developing an official research component of our firm. We have collaborated with a class at a local university and are looking for ways to take our research to a higher level. I'm curious how some of the other firms doing design or building technology research approach the process. For instance, do you have a... Read more

Hi All, this is primarily directed at our Sustainable MEP folks, but please anyone with insight feel free to weigh in.

I am increasingly seeing designs and specifications asking for Passive House levels of airtightness as verified by blower door testing, but with traditional ventilation system designs. 

To me, Passive House US has... Read more

Green gurus!

We're getting some interest from clients abroad on two specific materials which we don't have experience with here in the U.S.:

1) Cross Laminated Timber (CLT)

and/or 

2) CarbonCure concrete

Anyone willing to share lessons learned on these material either here in the forum or offline? Or point me... Read more

Hi folks!

Do you have examples or case studies of projects with compelling examples of circularity/salvaged material reuse? We’re looking to go beyond the examples we've seen of furniture reuse or creating art from salvaged material, and we’d like to collect some examples to get our client excited about the possibilities in a deep... Read more

Dear Green Gurus,

I both regret and am excited to tell you that I am leaving this group to pursue my next adventure.  I'm stepping down as Kirksey's Director of Sustainability, moving to Tucson, and starting my own business.  My business plan is to buy existing buildings, renovate them to net zero, and then sell or rent them.

I... Read more