Championing the
Changemakers

ICYMI, this washington post piece reminded me of our summit conversation last Friday about architecture's/SDL's role in reimagining the world post-covid through innovating our practice. 

The article contains some compelling quotes from several visionary architects (fascinated that it's mostly big-A architects, largely bypassing input... Read more

Hi folks,

Wondering if this group has insights about the low-embodied carbon product "Vertua" from Cemex, which appears to be a proprietary concrete product launched in 2020.

Our client wants to use CarbonCure; but our likely concrete sub is saying Cemex (where they typically source their concrete) offers an alternative called... Read more

Kristen Fritsch, in the thread about ipe wood, asked about resources comparing the carbon footprint of transporting building materials vs the transport mode.  There are people who spend their lives on this topic that I won't presume to speak for, but I'll share a few observations:

Even though freight transport is something like 7% of... Read more

We are pursuing sustainability goals (and documentation of those goals) outside of any certification/rating system for a current project.  However, we have set up a criteria list of goals by following strategies/credits from many of those systems (LEED v4 EPDs, SITES v2 threatened tree species, WELL v2 mindful eating, etc.).  This approach is... Read more

Conventional heating systems burn fossil fuels on the building site or use outrageous amounts of electricity.

BuildingGreen-Approved Heat Pumps

The best heat pumps solve both these problems and provide efficient cooling. BuildingGreen approves air-source heat pumps with minimum HSPF and SEER levels of 10 and 20, respectively.... Read more

Have any of you heard of anyone ever using phase change material (PCM) "movable partitions" as a resiliency strategy to mitigate indoor overheating during a heat wave in passive buildings? You'd keep them stored in a basement or cool room, and deploy them into habitable spaces during the heat wave to keep the space cooler than the exterior... Read more

Hey, everyone! Eleven months after our initial release, we have now released a totally updated version of our EPIC tool. It’s available at the same location as before (https://epic.ehdd.com) and reflects thousands of hours of work over the last year. From humble beginnings in Excel, EPIC now has about 2,000 users and dozens of logins each day—... Read more

Welcome to the quiz portion of Finding Products for LEED v4—A Guide

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


1. Describe ways in which the LCA approach is gaining ground in LEED v4 and how the transition is reinforced by manufacturer transparency and disclosure.
2.... Read more

Hi,

Has anyone been asked by a client to track welding rods on any projects? We were recently asked to do this. I was asked why the client would ask us to do this. I don't know if it has to do w/ "real property" and is a property tax-related reason, or if it is an environmental/sustainable reason. There is piping associated with the... Read more

Products & Materials Specialist and LEED AP BD+C Brent Ehrlich excels at deep, unbiased, and nuanced technical research on the health and environmental impacts of green building products and materials. Some areas of focus include:

product and material constituents, including their risks

product certifications

... Read more

Hi folks,

Oregon’s ZERO Coalition is looking for responses to the question below on local policy for electrification, and I thought tapping this group would be helpful.

Are you aware of any local governments outside of Oregon that are promoting or enforcing electrification?

THIS WEBINAR PURCHASE AND REGISTRATION IS CLOSED.

Practitioners interested in reducing the embodied carbon of buildings are likely now used to considering the impact of different materials, like mass timber or low-carbon concrete. Low-carbon... Read more

Hi folks, 

We all need some more fun and now that we are all breathing better - let's do it!

WHAT is the "Lighter Side of Green" (LSG) ?

You all are rockstars in the Green world, but what about your other talents? LSG is a show where we will highlight the artistic and comedic talents of our Green Building community!... Read more

Hi everyone - 

The State of Oregon just posted this Policy Analyst Job Posting. The position is specifically looking for someone to assist in embodied carbon and other sustainable code items. I have heard directly from Oregon's Building Code Division that even though the position is looking for public policy, an architect or engineer (or... Read more