Global green building alliance releases guide for $35 trillion investment to achieve net zero, meet global energy transition goals

The international alliance of UK-based Building Research Establishment (BRE), the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA), the Singapore Green Building Council (SGBC), the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), and the Alliance HQE-GBC France developed the guide, Financing Transformation: A Guide to Green Building for Green Bonds and Green Loans, to strengthen global cooperation between the finance and real estate sectors.

Sustainability

Amazon, JPMorgan Chase among companies collaborating with ILFI to advance carbon verification

Four companies (Amazon, JPMorgan Chase, JLL, and Prologis) are working with the International Living Future Institute to support development of new versions of Zero Carbon Certification.

Sustainability

CBRE to use Climate X platform to help clients calculate climate-related risks

CBRE will use risk analysis platform Climate X to provide climate risk data to commercial renters and property owners. The agreement will help clients calculate climate-related risks and return on investments for retrofits or acquisitions that can boost resiliency.

Building Technology

Could ‘smart’ building facades heat and cool buildings?

A promising research project looks at the possibilities for thermoelectric systems to thermally condition buildings, writes Mahsa Farid Mohajer, Sustainable Building Analyst with Stantec.

Jim Young | Sep 16, 2013

Passive solar, enhanced envelope crucial to Univ. of Illinois net-zero project

Passive solar strategies and an enhanced envelope are keys to achieving net-zero on the new 230,000 sf Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering building at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Sep 13, 2013

Insurance expert: Managing green liability risk not so different from 'normal' risk mitigation

Worries about legal liability have long dogged the sustainable building movement, but insurance expert Karen Erger says sustainability lawsuits are caused by the same types of issues that have always prompted clients to sue AEC firms.

Sep 13, 2013

Video: Arup offers tour of world's first algae-powered building

Dubbed BIQ house, the building features a bright green façade consisting of hollow glass panels filled with algae and water.

Jim Young | Sep 11, 2013

New design for Chinese science park aims for zero-carbon footprint

A new design for Jinshui Science and Technology Park in Zhengzhou, China is aiming for a zero-carbon footprint.

Sep 4, 2013

Smart building technology: Talking results at the BUILDINGChicago/ Greening the Heartland show

Recent advancements in technology are allowing owners to connect with facilities as never before, leveraging existing automation systems to achieve cost-effective energy improvements. This BUILDINGChicago presentation will feature Procter & Gamble’s smart building management program.

Jim Young | Sep 3, 2013

Grand Junction, Colo., courthouse aims to be first net-zero building on National Register of Historic Places

After a two year renovation, the 95-year oldWayne S. Aspinall Federal Building and Courthouse in Grand Junction, Colo., is being evaluated for LEED Platinum status and may become the National Register of Historic Places’ first net-zero-energy building.

Jim Young | Aug 27, 2013

College of the Desert in Palm Springs to produce more energy than it consumes

A 60-acre solar farm next to the College of the Desert in Palm Springs, Calif., along with a number of sustainable building features, are projected to help the campus produce more energy than it uses.

Jim Young | Aug 19, 2013

Integration of solar panels in building skin seen as key net-zero element

Recent high-profile projects, including stadiums in Brazil for the upcoming World Cup and Summer Olympics and a bank headquarters in the U.K., reflect an effort by designers to adopt building-integrated photovoltaics, or BIPV.

Aug 14, 2013

Green Building Report [2013 Giants 300 Report]

Building Design+Construction's rankings of the nation's largest green design and construction firms.

Jim Young | Aug 12, 2013

New York’s first net-zero school will be a sustainability lab for city school system

An elementary school on Staten Island will be the first net-zero energy school in New York City and the Northeast. The school is designed to use half the energy of a typical New York public school. Construction will be completed in 2015.