Resources
LEED - Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
LEED is a rating system that measures the "green-ness" of a building. It has become the most widely recognized benchmark for the design and construction of high-performace, environmentally responsible buildings. It is a consensus-based standard developed by the US Green Building Council (USGBC).
Mr. Smith has been a LEED Accredited Professional since 2005. The firm is also a member of USGBC.
For anyone studying for the LEED exam, or if you just want to learn more about design with the environment in mind, the web resources below were compiled according to the LEED credits format. They are a bit rough, and incomplete, but this will be added to over time. If you've found a useful site, please send an e-mail.
CSI - Construction Specifications Institute
CSI is a national association dedicated to creating standards and formats to improve construction documents and project delivery. The organization is unique in the industry in that its members are a cross section of specifiers, architects, engineers, contractors and building materials suppliers. CSI is renowned in the industry for its rigorous certification programs for professionals seeking to improve their knowledge of accurate and concise construction documents.
They also have other interesting things going on lately...
GreenFormat provides a standardized format for reporting information about the sustainable attributes of construction products.
The "How not to screw it up" series of audiocasts features stories of lessons learned the hard way.
Architecture 2030
The Architecture 2030 Challenge: buildings are responsible for almost half (48%) of all green house gas emissions annually. Seventy-six percent of all electricity generated by US power plants goes to supply the Building Sector. Immediate action in the Building Sector is essential if we are to avoid hazardous climate change.
EPA's Target Finder helps architects and building owners set aggressive, realistic energy targets and rate a design's estimated energy use. The target and design ratings in Target Finder are derived from the Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS).
