Championing the
Changemakers

I love fall and the start of heating season here in Vermont: the... Read more

Environmental Health Perspectives.

The authors of “Exposure to PBDEs in the Office Environment” tested office dust in eight Boston buildings, along with handwipes and blood samples from workers, for polybrominated... Read more

The current property tax system assesses the overall value of a development project without reference to the size of the lot; instead, says Joseph Minicozzi of consulting firm Urban3, we ought to tie a project’s value to its per-acre productivity. An acre of land might become the clothing department or parking lot of a big-box store, but it... Read more

Food waste is the single largest... Read more

Physics of Fluids reveals that pollutant particles, rather than dissipating randomly, actually accumulate in specific areas and even form coherent... Read more

In conjunction with the Professional Awning Manufacturers Association and screen manufacturer Phifer Incorporated, California firm White Box Technologies... Read more

Thirdhand smoke (also called THS), a residue of gases and particulates found on cigarette smokers’ skin, hair, and clothing as well... Read more

Nanoparticles are used in an increasing number of products, from building materials to cosmetics; nanosilver in particular is widely used as an... Read more

Human life has evolved to depend on the functions performed by intact ecosystems. These ecosystem services include water and air filtration, flood control, pollination, moderation of disease spread, and natural beauty. All are vulnerable to degradation by human activity.

Ecosystem services, while interdependent, can be thought of in... Read more

If you think about it, the way paint is distributed and sold doesn’t make any sense. There are only so many ingredients that go into any given can of paint, but rather than stocking those ingredients in bulk and mixing them to order, paint sellers ship and stock dozens of different base types, gloss levels, and sizes—in cans that don’t use... Read more

Resilience is the ability to bounce back after a disturbance or interruption. By emphasizing the life-safety benefits of creating homes and communities that can maintain safe, livable conditions during extended power outages or interruptions in heating fuels or gasoline shortages, we may be more successful at convincing mainstream... Read more

Energy modeling, commissioning, the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)—since the first building projects became LEED-certified in 2000, concepts like these have gone from being niche interests to being used on tens of thousands of building projects worldwide. While larger trends are also responsible, widespread adoption of the LEED... Read more

Following in Maine’s footsteps, the State of Georgia has effectively banned LEED certification for State building projects.

Governor Nathan Deal’s executive order (PDF), echoing language used by Maine Governor Paul LePage, requires green building standards that equally recognize three forestry standards—the Sustainable Forestry... Read more

Countertops and other horizontal surfaces are used in everything from residential kitchen counters to hospital desks. They have to stand up to damage caused by pens, accumulated dirt, hot pans, liquids that penetrate and stain, cleaning chemicals, nail-polish remover, and disinfectants—and we want them to look good, too. There is no perfect... Read more

In 2008, Serious Materials (later renamed Serious Energy) acquired the pioneering window manufacturer Alpen Energy Group of Boulder, Colorado—whose windows had been recognized as a BuildingGreen Top-10 Green Building Product in 2007. On September 27, 2012, Serious Energy sold back the top-efficiency fiberglass window and architectural glass... Read more