Upcoming Policy Podium for Net Metering!

By Anthony Lucivero, Advocacy Fellow


Greetings, USGBC MA community!

We are very excited for our new “Policy Podium” series of events.  Our first Policy Podium will be a meeting of minds about net metering in Massachusetts and how it can drive our communities towards sustainability. Items of discussion will include comparative solar project costs and financing, present and future cost impacts to ratepayers, grid modernization, and the costs of distributed generation solar. 

We will have four panelists leading the discussion:

  • David Colton, Easton Town Administrator
  • Charles Harak, National Consumer Law
  • Tim Roughan, National Grid
  • Matt Shortsleeve, Solect Energy

This event will be on Thursday, 2/25 at 50 Milk St, Boston, MA (room TBD) from 8:30am – 10:00am

Click here to visit our event page for more details and registration! Hurry, this event is sure to fill up! 

Thursday Night: Going out Sustainable!

By Grey Lee

It's that time again! Time to get together with colleagues to share a great meal and make new connections. Every year our emerging professionals organize a great evening out on the town.

 

Please join the USGBC on Thursday February 11th @6:30pm for our Annual Sustainable Dinner at the Commonwealth Restaurant; co-hosted with the Illuminating Engineers Society (IES).

 

We will enjoy a delicious & sustainable meal of the freshest locally sourced ingredients created by Chef Nookie; along with an educational presentation on the health effects of artificial lighting by our sponsor Jane Slade, RAB Lighting.

 


Welcoming our newly elected Board Members

By Grey Lee, Executive Director


Congratulations to our new directors:

Julie Conroy | Senior Environmental Planner, Metroploitan Area Planning Association (MAPC)— As Senior Environmental Planner at the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC), Julie develops policy documentation and regulations for environmental protection in numerous Massachusetts cities and towns.  

Darien Crimmin | Vice President of Energy & Sustainability, Winn Development— At WinnCompanies, Darien is responsible for managing a range of energy efficiency projects and sustainability programs across Winn’s residential portfolio. 

John Markowitz | Vice President- Infrastructure Finance at MassDevelopmentExperience– John currently works for MassDevelopment, the Commonwealth's Development Agency, financing infrastructure for large scale real estate development projects across the Commonwealth, including from project inception to stabilization and beyond.

Johanna JobinDirector, Global EHS & Sustainability at Biogen— Over the past 10 years, Johanna has supported and participated in a number of green building projects, including several projects that have achieved LEED Silver or higher, in the U.S. as well as Europe and India. 

Sarah BrylinskySustainability Manager, MIT Office of Sustainability— Sarah works in the MIT Office of Sustainability as a Sustainability Manager, where she is responsible for guiding the strategy of the campus. 

Steven Burke | Sustainability Manager, SMMA— Steven is a Sustainability Manager at SMMA, an integrated, multi-disciplinary design, engineering, and commissioning firm, where he guides green building certifications on projects of many different types and sizes.

Samira Ahmadi |  Director of Energy Services, AHA Consulting Engineers— Samira's practice at AHA Consulting Engineers, Inc. focuses on sustainability and energy performance analyses for new construction, pursuing LEED certification and energy-upgrades, and Life Cycle Cost Analyses of existing building retrofits for utility incentives and government founded initiatives.

You can read about each of our new directors on our Board page here!

Brownfields Redevelopment Training

By Celis Brisbin, Programs Manager



Join LISC for a LEED approved continuing education credit training sponsored by the Mel King Institute for Community Building!

The Mel King Institute for Community Building fosters vibrant and thriving Massachusetts communities by advancing the skills, knowledge and leadership ability of professional practitioners and volunteer leaders in the community development field. Mel King trainings focus on four topic areas: Community Organizing and Planning, Economic Development, Nonprofit Governance, and Real Estate Development. 

The upcoming Brownfields Redevelopment training will dive into how to tackle the challenge of contaminated land that developers encounter. It is intended to give these developers the tools and information they need to move forward with identifying their options early in the process, selecting the appropriate professionals to assist them, identifying available financial resources, conducting an assessment of the sites, deciding whether and how to proceed with development, and remediation of the sites. This training will be led by expert:

  • Kerry Bowie (Mass Department of Environmental Protection)
  • Ambrose Donovan (McPhail Associates LLC)
  • Jeff Porter and Colin Van Dyke (Attorneys at Mintz Levin)
  • Russ Tanner (Madison Park Development Corporation)
  • Jane Carbone (Homeowner's Rehab, Inc.)
  • Aaron Wasserman (The Neighborhood Developers)

The event will take place on February 24th from 9:30am-2:30pm (9:00am registration start) at Mintz Levin, One Financial Center, 38th Floor, Boston, MA 02110.

  • $50 for MACDC members
  • $70 for non-members

To register, go to melkinginstitute.org/events/brownfields-redevelopment

To register for LEED CE credits, go to http://www.usgbc.org/education/sessions/brownfields-redevelopment-9987928

We hope to see you there!

LEED Green Associate, Join us in Feb!

By Celis Brisbin, Programs Manager


Come to our Green Associate course on Thursday, 2/18/16 in Boston!

Are you serious about your dedication to sustainable building? Then you should definitely have your LEED Green Associate accreditation! And we'd be happy to help you prepare for your Green Associate Exam. In fact, we're hosting an exam preparation course which would be perfect for you next month! This is also the perfect opportunity because we will be transitioning to an updated version of LEED next year, and this will give you a better grasp of the updated certification information for the new version. 

Already a LEED Green Associate or Accredited Professional? Invite a friend or colleague who still needs their accreditation!

Register here!

 

The full day comprehensive course covers the following topics:

Chapter #1 – Introduction

This 1-hour chapter will explain the LEED Green Associate credentialing process and serve as an introduction to LEED, sustainability, the USGBC, the GBCI and the LEED rating system.

Chapter #2 – Location and Transportation / Sustainable Sites

This 1-hour chapter will focus on site issues such as connectivity, transportation, erosion, landscaping, and heat island effect.

Chapter #3 – Water Efficiency / Energy and Atmosphere

This 1-hour chapter will focus on water issues (plumbing efficiency, irrigation, process water, etc.) and energy and atmosphere issues (demand, efficiency, renewable energy, ozone depleting substances, etc.)

Chapter #4 – Materials and Resources

This 1-hour chapter will focus on procurement and waste diversion.

Chapter #5 – Indoor Environmental Quality

This 1-hour chapter will focus on indoor environmental quality issues such as indoor air quality, occupant comfort and green cleaning.

Chapter #6 – Innovation / Regional Priority / Certification Process

This 1-hour chapter will explain the LEED certification process and the Innovation and Regional Priority categories.

Chapter #7 – Exam Review

This 1-hour chapter will focus on exam format and registration and strategies to pass the exam.

Chapter #8 – Exam Review

This 1-hour chapter will focus on sample exam questions.

Meet Our Members: Molly Cox

By Ryan Duffy, Communications Fellow


I recently joined the Residential Green Building Committee in January. I am very excited to be a part of such an active and motivated team! I will be the new Communications Coordinator for the group, and report on projects we are working on and any relevant events we host or attend.

 

As a recent college graduate from Colby College in Waterville, ME, I am thrilled to be working at CivicSolar, a full service distribution and design company. As an Account Manager, I assist installers with the design of their solar PV systems, and supply the materials for them. I first became interested in the solar industry during my time in Denmark, where I studied within the European Sustainability Program. This experience was invaluable, as it made me realize my passion for the solar industry. I realize now, more than ever, how important this field is.

 

I am dedicated to learning more about the residential green building space, and I am certain my work at CivicSolar will overlap with the Committee goals, as we explore topics such as Net Metering, PACE and Net Zero efforts.

A few seats left: Annual Sustainable Dinner

By Celis Brisbin, Programs Manager

Please join the USGBC on Thursday February 11th @6:30pm for our Annual Sustainable Dinner hosted by the Commonwealth Restaurant. We have a good group of green building practitioners already signed up, many from USGBC MA and IES. We guarentee table talk will be enlightening!

We will enjoy a delicious & sustainable meal with the freshest locally sourced ingredients created by Chef Nookie along with an educational presentation on artificial lighting by our sponsor Jane Slade, RAB Lighting https://www.rabweb.com/:  

Light & Health – Starving for Darkness

Since the industrial revolution and the invention of the electric lightbulb, we spend more and more time bathed in artificial light. How do the artificial light and lack of darkness impact our bodies, and how does the illumination of our exterior environment impact wildlife? 

 

REGISTER HERE

When:  February 11th, 2016 6:30 PM   through   8:00 PM
Location:  11 Broad Canal Way, Cambridge, MA 02142

Chapter Members $ 40.00
Non-Members $ 55.00

 

Free & Discounted Tickets for Upcoming GLOBALCON Expo

By Ryan Duffy, Communications Fellow

On March 9-10, the 27th annual GLOBALCON Expo will be held in Boston's Hynes Convention Center!  Along with this year's expo will be a conference, seminars, and workshops that allow attendees to discover new products, techniques, solutions and services, and network with industry professionals.

USGBC MA has obtained free tickets to the Expo for any of our Members that wish to attend, and we also have a handful of remaining discounted tickets to the full conference for a special rate of $595 (which is a $300 discount).  This package would include: admission to the multitrack conference sessions, a pass to attend the exposition, a copy of the Show Proceedings, as well as luncheons in the exhibit hall.  

Lastly, if you plan on attending the exposition, make sure to stop by our booth!  We are also looking for volunteers to man the booth if anybody is interested.  Here is more info about the event, taken from the website:


WHY GLOBALCON

Decision makers from business, industry and government must now seek integrated energy solutions — solutions which assure both a secure and affordable energy supply to meet today's and tomorrow's needs, and effective management of energy and overall operational costs. The GLOBALCON Expo will emphasize four critical areas of leading edge technology and related services:

✓ Energy Management, HVAC and Smart Building Systems
✓ Renewables, Alternative Energy and Onsite Generation
✓ Lighting Efficiency and Integrated Energy Solutions
✓ Plant and Facilities Management

Presented By…

GLOBALCON 2016, presented by the Association of Energy Engineers, is designed specifically to facilitate those seeking to expand their knowledge of fast-moving developments in the energy field, explore promising new technologies, compare energy supply options, and learn about innovative and cost-conscious project implementation strategies.

Hosted By…

National Grid, Platinum Sponsoring Partner to USGBC MA, is committed to delivering safe and reliable energy to customers and communities across Massachusetts, New York and Rhode Island. They work closely across the energy industry, connecting tradespersons, contractors, regulators, and energy supply representatives to deliver quality services to their customers.

Register Now for Hacking LEED: v4 Innovation and Performance!

By Ryan Duffy, Communications Fellow

Register now for Hacking LEED: v4 Innovation and Performance on Tuesday, March 8, 2016, from 10:00am to 1:00pm! 

Hosted by the USGBC MA Chapter, this course will cover how to use the updated and mandated LEED v4 to raise the bar on energy & environmental performance in buildings, how to transition from the current LEED 2009 system to the LEED v4, how pilot credits and innovation credits fit in, and how legacy projects registered in v2009 are subject to changing requirements even now.  This year, LEED v4 is here and you'll be using it, so learn from practitioners who are already waist-deep in the v4 waters. 

The best pricing for the BuildingEnergy Boston ends January 29th, so don't miss the earlybird registration!  

You can register here.

 

 

Only a few weeks until the event, hope to see you all there!

Next Week: Annual Sustainable Dinner

By Ryan Duffy, Communications Fellow

Please join the USGBC on Thursday February 11th @6:30pm for our Annual Sustainable Dinner at the Commonwealth Restaurant; co-hosted with the Illuminating Engineers Society (IES).

We will enjoy a delicious & sustainable meal of the freshest locally sourced ingredients created by Chef Nookie; along with an educational presentation on the health effects of artificial lighting by our sponsor Jane Slade, RAB Lighting https://www.rabweb.com/:  

Click here to register

Light & Health – Starving for Darkness

Since the industrial revolution and the invention of the electric lightbulb, we spend more and more time bathed in artificial light. How do the artificial light and lack of darkness impact our bodies, and how does the illumination of our exterior environment impact wildlife?