2016 Charles River Cleanup

By Celis Brisbin, Programs Manager


The EPMA's had an great turn out at the 17th Annual Charles River Clean-Up on Saturday. We were blessed with the elusive Boston spring sun! The Esplanade was packed full of strolling families, runners, cyclists and roller bladers all enjoying the fine weather. We were assigned to the river section between the Boston University and Massachusetts Ave Bridges, along with three other volunteer groups. We gathered at the Exercise Course on the Esplanade to pick up our Charles River Clean Up t-shirts, trash bags, and pick up tools, then headed off to get to work.


It was great to be alongside volunteers from all over Boston. There were retirees, school children and even some toddlers helping out. We split up to gather trash along the Storrow Drive fence line and by the water. The volume of trash was noticeably lower than past years due to our mild winter. We found a lot of broken glass in the rip rap along the shoreline, some car accident detritus along the road, and some old clothing by the water that had become a home for algae and small fresh water mollusks. 


The Annual Earth Day Charles River Cleanup brought over 3,000 volunteers together, highlighting the impact of community empowerment, teamwork and environmental stewardship. It was really inspiring to see the turnout and help contribute to the health of our city. 


After the clean-up, we gathered at the Hatch Shell for a group picnic. As music played over the loud speaker, people took over the lawn with picnic blankets, frisbee games and dancing. It was a great wrap up to an awesome day of service! 
Thank you to all of our volunteers, and we look forward to seeing you at our Earth Day Clean Up next year! 
 

New Mass. Green Buildings in the Month of April

By Ryan Duffy, Communications Fellow


Massachusetts, as well as Boston in particular, have time and again shown their status as pioneers in the green building and energy efficiency movement.  At the beginning of this year, U.S. Green Building Council announced Massachusetts was third state in the nation for LEED, measured in square feet certified per person in 2015. 

Also check out this story about Boston making the Top Dozen list of U.S. Cities with the Most Energy Star Certified Buildings!

Are you aware that Massachusetts is a leader in the production of Living Buildings? We just recognized a new Living Building Challenge attaining building – the Old Oak Dojo in Jamaica Plain! Congratulations to the project team at Next Phase Studios for their hard work to attain this distinction.

Also, this past April alone, 24 building projects were involved in some kind of LEED or Energy Star certification in the state of Massachusetts! 14 buildings were Energy Star certified and 2 projects received LEED Silver certification. One project–Charles River Community Health– received LEED for New Construction certification, and another–a multi-family residential construction project– received LEED for Homes certification. 


5 projects attained Gold Certification 

LEED was developed to address all buildings everywhere, regardless of where they are in their life cycle. From hospitals to data centers, from historical buildings to those still in the design phase, there is a LEED for every building.


New Balance's brand new headquarters in Allston (with 297,332 square feet of office space) became Platinum certified.  The LEED benchmark of Platinum is very impressive and difficult to achieve.  This building is Platinum because it has 2 green activities that achieved outcomes of energy efficient design, water use reduction, sustainable site selection and development, responsible materials selection and waste management, and enhanced indoor environmental quality.

Read more about New Balance's recently completed headquarters, and the larger projects planned for this area of Brighton and Allston in Bostinno and Boston.comSee photo at right, taken from Bostinno.com

Stay tuned for future green building reports in 2016 — It's an exciting time to be a green building enthusiast or professional in the state of Massachusetts!

Boston Properties @ BTF '16

By Ryan Duffy, Communications Fellow

Thank you to Ben Myers from Boston Properties



Ben provided us a tour-de-force of his keen observations of the state of real estate and green buildings today. It was great to hear first-hand what the development community is concerned with and what challenges he faces as Sustainability Manager at the marquee real estate company.

Thank you to Ben and Boston Properties for serving as our Gold Sponsor at this year's 2nd Annual Building Tech Forum. Boston Properties' commitment to green building and sustainability is unquestionable; they have built more green buildings than any other commercial operator in Massachusetts. 

As Sustainability Manager for this major firm in the real estate industry, Ben had a great perspective on how good building projects come together.  He spoke about what their teams see as trends in building tech and how they embrace innovation to deliver the best buildings for their tenants.


Boston Properties is also a sponsoring partner of the Chapter and we were thrilled to host these leaders in the achievement of high-performance buildings. 

From Boston Properties:

“As a real estate company focused on high-performance buildings that provide healthy and productive spaces for living and working, we support the advancement of building tech and the synergy between the tech sector and thecommercial real estate industry. We are a real estate company that wants to be a technology company. We have a keen interest in innovation, and are frequently considering equipment, controls, building materials, and other measures that create better experiences. We are excited to sponsor the USGBC MA and the 2016 Building Tech Forum, and support the work of entrepreneurs to transform cities into more sustainable built environments.”

For a more comprehensive recap, check out this post by Executive Director Grey Lee!

Read more about Boston Properties on their website or check them out in our blog


 

Observations of a big networking event by an emerging professional

By Grey Lee & Wenbin Wang

This note is from our graphic design intern, Wenbin Wang (in glasses below), who helped us with the marketing materials and especially the event program. She is a freshman at Tufts, studying mathematics. She is great with InDesign, though, too!


“Yesterday's event was so exciting and inspiring for me as someone who hasn't been exposed to abundant building technologies. It is interesting to see how firms from all kinds of industries, like real estate, construction, software engineering, and education, intersect and work together on buildings. I was amazed by the extensive implementation of cutting-edge technologies in every aspects of buildings, from lights to automatic control systems and the astonishing achievement of these technologies in saving energy. Also, I'm glad to see people actively involved in advocating for environmentally friendly and sustainable buildings and real estate firms pay serious attention to the sustainability of buildings.

Panelists' pitches also covered a lot of innovation and transformation happening in the industry and visualized a cheerful graph of our future smart and energy saving buildings. It's exhilarating to see robust development in building industry and people contributing to the progress. I wish people in the industry could have more chances like last night to share thoughts and work together to proceed the future with more green buildings.”

 

You bet, Wenbin! We certainly will be working to help more people connect with building tech. Thanks for all your help this semester!

[here's an image of the flyer she put together:]


From National: World Green Building Trends Report 2016

By Ryan Duffy, Communications Fellow


 USGBC has announced the results of the Dodge Data & Analytics World Green Building Trends 2016 SmartMarket Report, to which USGBC is a contributing partner. The new report, conducted in nearly 70 countries, demonstrates that global green building continues to double every three years. The report also finds emerging economies like Brazil, India, Saudi Arabia and South Africa will be engines of green growth, with development varying from twofold to sixfold over current green building levels.


“International demand for green building, due in great part to the LEED green building program’s global popularity, has grown steadily over the years,” said Rick Fedrizzi, CEO and founding chair, USGBC. “Countries are looking for tools that support stable and sustainable economic growth. International business leaders and policymakers recognize that a commitment to transforming the built environment is crucial to addressing major environmental challenges.”

Increasing consumer demand has pushed the world’s green building market to a trillion-dollar industry, a surge that has led to a corresponding increase in the scope and size of the green building materials market, which is expected to reach $234 billion by 2019.

The SmartMarket report also revealed that expansion will continue in developed countries such as the United States, Germany and the United Kingdom. Across all regions, many survey respondents forecast that more than 60 percent of their projects will be green by 2018.

Economic forces were cited as the most important drivers for many of the countries surveyed. The report found that green buildings offer significant operational cost savings compared with conventional buildings. To this effect, respondents expect a 14 percent savings in operational costs over five-year savings for new green buildings and 13 percent savings in operational costs over five years for green retrofit and renovation projects. Building owners also report that green buildings—whether new or renovated—command a 7 percent increase in asset value over conventional buildings.

Today, there are nearly 75,000 commercial projects participating in LEED across the globe, with 1.85 million square feet of building space becoming LEED-certified every day.

“The growth of LEED reflects its global adaptability as the world’s most widely used and recognized system guiding the design, construction, operations and maintenance of green buildings,” saidMahesh Ramanujam, COO, USGBC. “LEED is a critical tool in creating structures that mitigate greenhouse gas emissions; create healthier indoor environments for workers, students and community members; and lower utility bills for building owners through reduced energy and water use.”

Follow this link for the report

Sponsor Highlight: Re-Stream

By Ryan Duffy, Communications Fellow


Re-Stream, who we recently formed a partnership with, is a green logistics company focused on environmental responsibility by reducing waste on both a project-based and contractual basis. Founded by the team who created an industry, Re-Stream is a woman-owned business enterprise based in Waltham, MA.

As many of our members and sponsors are well aware, buildings are an enormous contributor to waste, greenhouse gas emissions, pollution, and subsequently, a leading cause of climate change.  Re-Stream is cognizant of this fact, noting that the built environment has contributed more than 70% of total landfill content.  Re-Stream knows that thoughtfully repurposing and recycling from this waste source can have a positive impact on the environment now and for future generations.

Re-Stream is committed to helping clients execute successful business practices backed by years of experience in logistics solutions, and an extensive network of partners to ensure all physical assets be re-used and or recycled, in a cost-effective manner, on any schedule clients choose. Their services include: recyling program development, decommissioning, relocation purging, electronics recycling, secure shredding, relocation rental products, and asset recycling. Its products include crates, dollies, carts, bins, and moving supplies to ensure that clients have a seamless transition when relocating. 

Read more about Re-Stream on its website

Exciting (but not Surprising) News– Boston is Leader in Green Building

By Ryan Duffy, Communications Fellow


This just in from the EPA New England Regional Office: Boston Makes the Top Dozen of U.S. Cities with the Most Energy Star Certified Buildings!

BOSTON – Today the EPA released its a list of U.S. cities that had the most certified Energy Star buildings in 2015. As you could probably expect, Boston is included in this list, and “recognized for its continuing commitment to cut greenhouse gas emissions and save money through energy efficiency.”

In 2015, we were number 11 position among the list of top 25 U.S. metropolitan areas.  Boston had 157 buildings that were Energy Star certified. This is equivalent to cutting greenhouse gas emissions from 38,000 passenger vehicles, and saving more than $75 million in annual utility bills.

The cities that triumphed over us were Washington DC, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Atlanta, New York City, Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, Denver and Phoenix. 

“Every year, more cities are turning to energy efficiency not only to protect the environment, but also to strengthen their local economies.  Boston is demonstrating that energy efficiency is a cost-effective way to improve public health and build a brighter future for their youngest residents,” said Curt Spalding, regional administrator of EPA’s New England office.

From the EPA

Energy use in commercial buildings accounts for 16 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions at a cost of more than $100 billion per year. Since 1999, more than 27,000 buildings across America have earned EPA’s Energy Star certification, which signifies proven superior energy performance. On average, these certified buildings use 35 percent less energy and are responsible for 35 percent fewer carbon dioxide emissions than typical buildings. These buildings have saved more than $3.8 billion on utility bills and prevented greenhouse gas emissions equal to the emissions from the annual electricity use of more than 2.6 million homes. Many common building types can earn the Energy Star, including office buildings, K-12 schools, hotels, and retail stores.

For more than 20 years, American citizens have looked to EPA’s Energy Star program for guidance on how to save energy, save money and protect the environment. Behind each blue label is a product, building, or home that is independently certified to use less energy and cause fewer of the emissions that contribute to climate change. Today, Energy Star is the most widely recognized symbol for energy efficiency in the world, helping families and businesses save $300 billion on utility bills, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions by two billion metric tons since 1992.

You can view the report here!

Quotes taken from EPA New England Office, photo taken from Energy Star website.

Over 100 Household Name Companies Backing Substantial Paris Agreement (National)

By Ryan Duffy, Communications Fellow


This Article originated from National.  Check out the original version here!

Earth Day 2016 will be a truly historic event. At the United Nations in New York City, more than 150 countries will sign the Paris Agreement that was forged at COP21. The signing by so many, this quickly, is unprecedented. By signing the agreement, countries large and small, rich and poor, will give their consent to be bound and the agreement will “enter into force.” A strong global climate agreement and the transition to a low-carbon economy are in the best interests of the global economy and future generations.

We are proud to stand alongside over 100 other companies in formally welcoming the Paris Agreement, congratulating world leaders on reaching this ambitious climate change accord and encouraging timely implementation of the climate commitments laid out in the sgreement. We are pleased to be joined in the congratulatory statement and call for a “Low Carbon USA” by USGBC members including Autodesk, Colgate Palmolive, Dupont, Enernoc, General Mills, HP, Hilton, JLL, Johnson & Johnson, Kingspan, Mortenson Construction, National Grid, Nike, Pacific Gas & Electric, Perkins + Will, Philips, Schneider Electric, Sealed Air, Starbucks, Thornton Tomasetti and Vermont Energy Investment Corporation.

Across the globe a majority of people—and government officials—now recognize the threat of climate change. Science, education, media and increasingly severe natural disasters have made this real. But that awareness alone is unlikely to have enabled the agreement. The upsurge in implemented clean energy and energy efficiency has been critically important in showing that decarbonization is a real option and can be achieved hand in hand with a strong economy and necessary development. To get there, governments have led by example and flexed policy levers to support research and development (R&D) and drive new markets; the finance world has responded with record-breaking investment; corporations have responded with innovative technologies and bringing ideas to scale.

Historic as it is, the Paris Agreement is a starting point for the accelerated transformation we need. We recognize that the hard work has now only just begun. We must now focus our efforts and attention on the agreement’s proper implementation. Governments will need to boost R&D and adopt more reaching policies, such as the Clean Power Plan; more investors will need to prioritize clean energy and sustainable attributes in their portfolios; and businesses will need to keep innovating and putting solutions into the marketplace. And closer to home, each of us has a role, as a citizen and voter, and in our own lives.

Wherever you fit in, all of us have a role to fulfill. For tomorrow, let’s pause to appreciate the historic moment, and get back to work. We can’t afford to waste any more time.

Thoughts on Building Tech

By Ryan Dings


Speaking at our forum's panel we heard from Ryan Dings. Ryan is connected to a variety of organizations as a counsellor and consultant, including some our bronze event sponsors.

Ryan is has been involved in building tech for a number of years, and is also the Chair of the Social Innovation Forum based in Boston. He wanted to share some of his main points from his commentary during the Building Tech Forum here on the blog.

 

Building technology is an exciting – and relatively new – field. For all the progress we've made making buildings smarter and greener, we are just at the beginning stages of what we can do to transform the built environment.

 

From my perspective, building technology simultaneously presents a huge opportunity and helps us solve a growing challenge.

 

First, the huge opportunity.   The key industries of our economy are rapidly digitizing. In many respects, software runs our lives. Despite being a trillion dollar industry, construction is a laggard. In December 2015, McKinsey released a great report listing the most digitized industries. The usual suspects are on top of the list. And at the bottom, right above agriculture and hunting, is construction.

 

We've made great, incremental steps in improving the quality of building performance, and we need to keep making those steps. But building is still complicated, really complicated. On the residential side, where I've spent most of my time, the process of building a home is downright taxing.

 

And here's where digitization comes in: for us building technologists, there's an opportunity where you can dramatically simplify the construction experience – and I think for  our industry, especially on the residential side, that opportunity is right there. In the next 5-10 years, maybe sooner, you'll see someone grab it by digitizing the industry and simplifying the construction experience in a new and profound way.

 

Now, to the growing challenge. In many parts of the country, there's a shortage of construction labor. As an industry, we may have to adapt – requiring us to think about building in entirely different ways. Building technology can help facilitate that adaption, and overcome the challenges presented by labor constraints.

 

More importantly, celebrating our people will help us overcome this labor challenge. For all of the benefits building technology can provide, it will not erase the fundamental and beautiful notion that buildings are built by people, and those folks should be embraced as heartily and fully as each advancement in building tech. Technology will not displace craftsmanship, and both are equally worthy pillars of this industry. If we celebrate the people and the technology that creates our buildings, there's no doubt that our future will deliver a greener and smarter built environment.  



What's in store for Boston due to Climate Change?

By Grey Lee

Climate Ready Boston is a long-term climate preparedness planning process for the Greater Boston region. Phase One will be completed by the summer of 2016 and includes:

  • Development of a climate projection consensus of future climate change hazards faced by the Boston area in 2030, 2050, 2070, and 2100.
  • An integrated vulnerability assessment that aims to identify critical resiliency focus areas and their climate vulnerabilities.
  • A portfolio of potential solution strategies for the critical resiliency focus areas identified

 

A Better City's Challenge for Sustainability is hosting a meeting to support the City's Climate Ready Boston program.

 

This meeting will bring attendees up to speed on the completed climate projection for Greater Boston and walk through the vulnerability assessment process.

 

Next, some special guests representing a leading nation in climate resiliency will help answer the question “What can I do to adapt?” A group of deployable flood defense equipment providers visiting from the Netherlands will be presenting their technologies and will be available for Q&A after the presentation.

 

Register Now!

 


 

When

Tuesday May 3, 2016 from 8:30 AM to 10:00 AM EDT
 

Where

Atlantic Wharf
280 Congress Street
Fort Point Room, 2nd Floor
Boston, MA 02210