Championing the
Changemakers

We are excited to share the REPORT from the 2019 Small Firm SDL Summit held in Las Vegas on June 5th. Take a look and use this forum to post questions and comments that will allow us to engage our new members as we continue the valuable conversations begun at the Summit. As you will read in the introduction, we know that collectively small... Read more

Hi Green Gurus,

A "fun" take-away from the sustainable MEP Leaders Summit (just ended today):

Inspired by Passive House, we are embarking on a campaign: "Low Load Buildings Are SEXY".

One idea we have is:  what if the AIA design awards set limits on metrics like heating loads to meet basic eligibility?

If you have... Read more

Hi all,

I am on the planning committee for the National Adaptation Forum, which is an excellent conference (this will be the 6th annual) that has relatively little representation from architecture and engineering audiences. Our municipal and agency clients, as well as private sector, tend to attend this conference for climate adaptation... Read more

Hi All,

Our local COTE committee has the opportunity to meet with a local jurisdiction on meeting the targets set forth by their Climate Action Plan.  In preparation I'm looking for innovative building codes/ordinaces that address existing buildings.  I am already digging into Boston's Building Energy Reporting and Disclosure Ordinance... Read more

Hi all,

I have asked a few of you in this list, but thought I might expand the question to the wide group.

To ensure that your firm will be able to collect post-occupancy energy data from your completed projects, have any of you included language about sharing energy data during operations in an owner agreement/contract? We have... Read more

Hello Sustainable Community Design Leaders,

Now that everyone invited to the SCDL calls has access to this forum, I want to shift us over here for announcements and reminders, so here's your reminder that this month’s call is next Monday, March 21st, 11am–12pm ET (8-9am PT). Back to our usual time!

You can view the agenda here.... Read more

Someone made a tombstone to mark Internet Explorer’s end-of-support date

https://www.engadget.com/internet-explorer-tombstone-175433997.html

Welcome to the quiz portion of Energy-Efficient Multifamily Housing.

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


1. Restate the six big opportunities for energy savings in multifamily housing.
2. Differentiate between the four green building rating systems for new... Read more

Hi All -

With the holidays coming up and budgeting for 2023 - do we have any information on when and where a mini summit will be?  I heard rumors of Arizona?  Hoping to come but need the info as soon as I can.

Welcome to the quiz portion of In-House Daylight Modeling.

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


1. Explain general daylighting theory and design.
2. Simulate towards better daylighting design.
3. Demonstrate how daylight modeling is used in practice.
4.... Read more

Hi all, it's time to schedule our next session. Who's in? Ping me at amt@vmdo.com if you want to be considered part of the working group, and fill out your availability on this Doodle poll.

If you just want to monitor what's going on, we'll post updates to the Working Group page. 

The agenda for this call is to figure out what we... Read more

SDL Show & Tell in Chicago, Tuesday, November 13 from 7-9:30 PM (CST)
HKS | 125 S Clark Street | Chicago, IL 60603

What better way to kick off your time at Greenbuild than with snap previews of the best sessions? The Sustainable Design Leaders Show & Tell is back, brought to you by BuildingGreen and HKS! This event is by... Read more

World: There is no way we can shut down in order to lower emissions, slow climate change and protect the environment.

Mother Nature: Here's a virus. Practice.

Who is measuring the positive environmental impact our actions are having on the environment? 

For example, there have been reductions in air pollution. If the... Read more

Hi Folks ,

Two fun and useful events to help us all do more in less time!!

1. DeCon Hackathon 4/12

These are sessions where the community comes together to 'crowdsource' standard construction details that are disassembly-friendly for a public detail library so that everyone can use it and start adapting those details in... Read more

Hi all,

My office is looking at some certification options for our upcoming renovation. One thing the management team asked me that I don't have a solid answer for is, do WELL certified spaces typically go through with recertification and everything it entails, or are they doing the upfront work to get certified and then letting it lapse... Read more

Hello all,

Could any of you point me out to recent studies showing the health impacts of plastic piping vs. copper piping? 

We have a project where NIRON or Aquatherm are proposed as a VE item in lieu of copper.  I know there is some studies showing PEX and PVC piping health impacts, but I can't seem to find anything on these 2... Read more