Championing the
Changemakers

Green Gurus,

Taking advantage of the good stuff that this pandemic is leaving us with, the Boston COTE has gone virtual for its meetings. That means that all of you around the country can join our great program.

Coming up next Wednesday at 2pm EDT (11am PDT, 1pm CDT) we'll have the always inspiring Andrea Love present along with... Read more

Congrats, Kjell, on your elevation into the AIA College of Fellows! Much deserved!

Hello SCL,

Our diligent Contractor's Commitment working group (led by the great Amanda Atkinson) have reviewed a massive amount of feedback and will soon be releasing an updated version of the program (CC 2.0). We will need a majority of the SCL membership to vote YES to adopt the updated version for 2023. 

In advance of the vote... Read more

Hi folks,

We had a fun impromptu conversation on our call last week. We got most involved in the challenge of getting developers interested in taking advantage of IRA Tax Credits. That can be quite a challenge given their business model.

We also heard about emerging data on tradeoffs between embodied and operating carbon, and how... Read more

Welcome to the quiz portion of Net-Zero Water and More: Moving Beyond “Low Flow”

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


1. Define net-zero water.
2. Describe the role of utilities in water efficiency solutions.
3. Explain the water-energy nexus and the water-... Read more

Plastic windows come in both ABS and vinyl (PVC). Even though PVC is particularly loathed by environmentalists, energy performance is BuildingGreen's primary green consideration for windows, and some vinyl windows offer exceptionally strong energy performance, often with competitive pricing.

BuildingGreen-Approved Plastic Windows

... Read more

Hi folks,

We've got another timely and engaging webinar lined up! Join Panama Bartholomy and Peter Rumsey for the latest on electrification policy and applications. (As always, if you can't make it at this time that's ok, we'll be recording it.) 

Register here to get the link: https://www.buildinggreen.com/peer-networks/webinars... Read more

Anyone know of tools/methodologies for estimating embodied carbon and carbon sequestration potential of individual green infrastructure projects (e.g. bioswale along bikeway)? I've seen tools for the larger scale (e.g. land use change) as well as specific to trees (e.g. i-Tree), but these don't fully meet my needs.

Thanks!

Hi All,

Someone just told me that 80% of his previously certified Energy Star Projects no longer earn certification with the update baselines.  Have any of you started digging into this yet?

-Meredith

Has anyone worked on a project installing a PowerNest system?  I just found out about it today and would love to get working information on it.  

Here's the link, in case its new to you as well. https://www.ibispower.eu/home

Thank you -

I wanted to share news of a pledge intiated by the US Government Health and Human Services to reduce healthcare sector emissions. It was announced on Earth Day 2022. The pledge is part of the US's efforts to meet commitments made at COP26. I highly recommend watching the webinar to hear more of the pledge's nuance.

The voluntary pledge... Read more

Hi Fellow Design Professionals: It would be great if you could participate in this important research on the status of professionals addressing extreme heat.

Thanks.

MAL

Planning for Extreme Heat Survey

Our research team from the University of Arizona and Arizona State University is studying how planning... Read more

Following the summer SDL summit - we formed a spinoff user group called "Carbon Sync" to discuss Life Cycle and Carbon Assessment tools like Tally and Athena.  We've had three successful calls with folks sharing a couple 5-minute presentations about various studies and explorations.  We have a mix of experience levels - but are collaborating... Read more

All,

I wanted to spread the word to all of you that AIA Minnesota is hosting a virtual edition of Materials Matter, a five-part series starting next Wednesday 3/24, from 10AM-3PM Central Time on five Wednesdays throughout March, April and May. Come to one ($15 per session) or all ($60 for the whole series of 20 CEUs, including GBCI... Read more

I have a colleague researching existing, proposed, or anticipated changes to urban planning and building codes that encourage lower carbon footprints.

Can anyone comment on or point me to resources on how cities are using carbon footprint analysis and carbon reduction in permitting, now or in the future?

Some specific topics that... Read more

Hi SDLers: See the great opportunity to weigh in on the 5th National Climate Assessment at a series of workshops in early 2022. 

Register here:

https://www.globalchange.gov/content/nca5-engagement-workshops?utm_sourc...

Hope all are staying well.

Mary Ann