Leaping into 1998

As we begin the new year, there is a sense of optimism that green building is on the upswing. There aren’t any real surveys to point to, but you could “feel” the tremendous energy at the string of green building conferences last fall. The environment is back in the mainstream press. Oil companies are admitting that there is an end in sight for the petroleum age. The National Association of Home Builders is dusting off plans for a national green building conference.

EBN circulation was at an all-time high at the end of 1997. And the new book that I co-authored with staff at the Rocky Mountain Institute,

Green Development: Integrating Ecology and Real Estate, has already sold out of the first 3,000 print run, after being introduced in November!

All this bodes well for the fledgling green building industry. But it also calls for caution. With money to be made in green building, look for an increase in unsubstantiated green claims about products. Watch for design firms and construction companies with no experience in green design positioning themselves as “green.” Watch for mistakes to be made that could tarnish the image of the green building community.

As always, we at

EBN believe that education is the key to environmentally responsible design and construction. We have expanded our offerings to better respond to the growing need for information. Our

EBN Product Catalog is shipping. We’re loading lots of additional information onto the next edition of our

E Build Library CD-ROM (if you order the current version now, you can upgrade to the 1998 edition for just a small handling charge). And watch for other exciting projects throughout the year.

All of us at E Build wish you the very best for 1998.

— Alex Wilson