The Most Sustainable Show Yet: Greenbuild Sustinability Report Released

Kimberly Lewis
Senior Vice President, Conferences and Events
U.S. Green Building Council

It’s no surprise that after 10 years of green meeting experience, the 2011 Greenbuild International Conference and Expo held in Toronto has proved to be the most sustainable to date.

Today, we are excited to share our 10th Anniversary Greenbuild Event Sustainability Report, the culmination of a decade of tremendous growth, learning and success.

Rubbermaid bins incorporated waste streams: paper; plastic, cans & glass; organics; and landfill. 

In 2011, we set an unprecedented goal of 90% waste diversion at the conference, which we were ecstatic to exceed by diverting 95% of conference waste from landfills. We successfully eliminated ground shuttles between hotels and the convention center and encouraged walking. We also “walked the talk” by busing 35% of USGBC staff attendees to Toronto from our headquarters in Washington, DC, and walking or utilizing public transportation on-site. We rigorously vetted the sourcing of our show materials, merchandise and food and beverages, and worked to measure and report our efforts and impact with more detail and transparency than ever before.

Green Jobs Summit at Greenbuild 2011 Calls for Mobilization around this Common Sense Economic Solution

Maggie Comstock
Associate, Policy
U.S. Green Building Council

The hustle and bustle of Greenbuild 2011 is now behind us, and we’ve all returned to our respective homes and jobs to continue “troublemaking.”

And one area where we need to continue to stir the pot is green jobs. On the Tuesday of Greenbuild, we convened a Green Jobs Summit of more than 40 prominent experts throughout the clean energy economy to brainstorm the successes and challenges experienced in the promotion of the green jobs agenda.

The Opening Session of the Summit highlighted several keynote speakers who represented a range of stakeholders, including Ken Neumann, National Director of Canada for the United Steelworkers, Bob Peck, Public Buildings Service Commissioner at the U.S. General Services Administration, and Dan Esty, Commissioner at the State of Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. They each outlined the successes to date that they have observed in their respective roles, and also the opportunities for further action.

The eight breakout sessions illustrated that all professionals have a role in this movement. Whether you work locally or globally, in tech or communications, as a skilled laborer or a financial executive, the Green Jobs Summit demonstrated the uniquely important roles of all of these stakeholders. View the session topics and speakers here.

Eco-entrepreneur Majora Carter capped the Summit with an inspirational and motivational call to action. By expertly weaving her personal experiences and “ah ha” moments into her greater message, each attendee internalized her amazing life story and realized that they too could do more, be more and affect real change.

Yes, “green jobs” is a nebulous term (even a flashpoint in certain circles where hanging on to the status quo, old economy jobs, is a full time job in and of itself), but we troublemakers can all agree on this: No matter your job description, professional level or geographic location, YOU contribute to this important movement. YOU are the living proof that green jobs are real and thriving. YOU are the champions for change in our government and beyond.

Though the Summit is over (until next year), green jobs remain perpetually topical and timely. The President’s American Jobs Act outlines a plan for rebuilding our nation’s infrastructure and modernizing America’s underperforming schools. These campaigns would create hundreds of thousands of jobs and underline the importance of energy conservation in supporting the economic bottom line. Read more about how the American Jobs Act affects the green building and energy efficiency sector on our website.

Visit the USGBC Green Jobs website for resources and information on the role of green buildings in job creation and economic growth. Also view the recent McGraw-Hill Construction study which revealed that the green building market supports 661,000 green jobs in the U.S.!

We need to work together to underscore that all jobs are critical in our current economy, but green jobs are also about the future — both literally, in terms of new technologies that define our movement, and in the broader view terms of what’s next for our society and our planet. Given our troublemaker status, we’re the best group of all to move this critical agenda forward.

Project Haiti Takes Center Stage at Greenbuild 2011

This is a cross-posted entry from the blog at hoklife.com.
Access the original entry »

HOK is the USGBC’s official design partner for Project Haiti, a pro bono effort to build a LEED-certified orphanage and children’s center in Port au Prince. Sustainable Design Director Mary Ann Lazarus and a team from HOK recently returned from Toronto, where they shared the Project Haiti story at Greenbuild 2011. Read on for Mary Ann’s guest post and an amazing video from the USGBC:



Imagine it: 15,000 people in the Air Canada Hockey arena, lights flashing, music playing, Jumbotrons running. Cue USGBC CEO Rick Fedrizzi for the introduction of the new Project Haiti video. The video features the recent site visit by the USGBC and HOK team members and meeting with the terrific clients, Gina and Lucien Duncan from the children’s center.

I was quite overwhelmed to be projected at mega-scale to this crowd of great green leaders from across the globe and humbled by everyone’s positive reaction. The video’s goal is to communicate the tremendous opportunity to support the children’s center effort as well as share the inspiration that the project provides to all involved. And it does just that!

Check it out – it’s well worth the five minutes of your time. And think about supporting Project Haiti as well. Pass it on.

Learn more and support Project Haiti »
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Celebrating Excellence in the Green Building Movement: USGBC's Leadership Awards

Ashley Katz
Manager, Communciations
U.S. Green Building Council

USGBC’s Leadership Awards have become synonymous with the organizations and individuals who signify vision, leadership and commitment to the evolution of green building design and construction. This year’s batch of winners is no different – recognizing leaders in the private, public and non-governmental organization (NGO) spheres. In fact, Rick Fedrizzi said it best:

“As the most influential green building leaders in the world, their achievements are bedrock to our mission of transforming the built environment.”

Celebrating this crop of industry trailblazers at Greenbuild has become an annual USGBC tradition. Join us at the Greenbuild Leadership Awards Luncheon on Oct. 6 as we rally around the successes of the green building movement by honoring these leaders.

The 2011 Leadership Awards recipients are:

Organizational Leadership in the Private Sector: Wells Fargo Bank
As longtime users of LEED, Wells Fargo is a participant in the newly launched LEED Volume Program for Operations and Maintenance, committing to pursuing high-performance for banking and office locations across its portfolio.

Individual Leadership in the Private Sector: Anthony E. Malkin, Malkin Holdings
Through his real estate business, Malkin has been a leader in existing building energy efficiency retrofits, including the $550 million makeover given to the “world’s most famous office building – the Empire State Building. The 80 year old building just announced that it earned LEED Gold, making it green building icon.

Organizational Leadership in the Public Sector: Council on Environmental Quality, the White House
CEQ’s organizational leadership, spearheaded by its Chair, Nancy Sutley, has moved President Obama’s green jobs agenda forward, by pushing for strong investments in high performing green buildings and schools that will help create jobs, build resilience, advance sustainability and stimulate long-term growth. Read Rick Fedrizzi’s take on Obama’s American Jobs Act.

Individual Leadership in the Public Sector: The Honorable Michael Bloomberg, Mayor of New York City
Bloomberg catapulted the “Big Apple” into a beacon for the green building movement, making it safer, stronger and greener. As chair of the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, Bloomberg made it possible for the largest cities around the world to adopt and implement similar, innovative sustainability policies.

Bloomberg will take to the stage at the Closing Plenary at Greenbuild on Oct. 7, where he’ll also be honored for his leadership.

Organizational Leadership in a Non-Governmental Organization: Dell Children’s Medical Center of Central Texas (DCMCCT)
Take a virtual tour of the first LEED Platinum hospital in the world, and learn how the Dell Children’s Medical Center of Central Texas (DCHCT) is making a difference every day in the lives of the children its serves.

Individual Leadership in a Non-Governmental Organization: Kelly Caffarelli, The Home Depot Foundation
Kelly Caffarelli’s leadership enabled USGBC to fully engage the affordable housing community in the development of LEED for Homes. Her leadership has paid off, as nearly 50% of LEED-certified housing units are affordable.

International Leadership Award: Deutsche Bank AG
With a company-wide goal of carbon neutrality by 2013, Deutsche Bank has worked to reduce its corporate footprint while providing the tools and resources to help others do the same, through investing in alternative energies and low-carbon technologies. This past year, the company earned LEED Platinum for its own headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany, which is designed to reduce water consumption and CO2 emissions by 74% and 89% respectively.

President’s Award: Greg Kats, Capital E, Good Energies; and Lynn N. Simon, FAIA, LEED AP Simon & Associates, Inc.
Jayni Chase, Chair of Green Community Schools, a program of the MGR Foundation, was honored as the first recipient of the Center for Green Schools Excellence award for her work as a pioneer in transforming schools into sustainable places to learn, work and play. Jayni is one of the original leaders of the green schools movement, and serves as a valued member of the Center for Green Schools’ Advisory Board. She has been a true champion in making green schools a reality for the millions of Americans who go to school every day.

Congratulations to this year’s winners!

Experience Canada at Greenbuild: Or, How a Peameal Bacon Sandwich May Change Your Life

Ashley Katz
Media Manager
U.S. Green Building Council

Are you headed to Toronto and eager to take in all of the sights and sounds the city has to offer?

You’re in luck— Greenbuild is packed with opportunities to experience the architectural, political and financial capital of Canada, while learning about its long legacy of green building leadership and innovation through on and off-site educational sessions, speakers, tours and walking the exhibit hall floor.

Take a tour inside the inner workings of Toronto’s greenest buildings. Tour a green art gallery, green roof, or a green office. Indulge in the area’s best restaurants and cafes (Peameal bacon sandwich, anyone?) Greenbuild is chock full of opportunities to think outside of the convention center.

Once you’ve explored everything within city limits, head back to the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, and learn about Canada’s green legacy and plans for the future in the home of the Toronto Maple Leafs, beginning with an address by former Canadian Prime Minister Kim Campbell at Wednesday night’s opening plenary, one of the many highlights of the evening Opening Keynote & Celebration. Be sure to take advantage of the shoe check-in located on Level 600, South Building and Level 100, North Building, where we’ll watch your walking shoes while you network in your loafers or heels at the conference.

Set your Greenbuild Scheduler to catch one of seven “Best of Canada” education sessions taking place throughout the show and convening the country’s green building and business leaders to discuss everything from local green building codes to the greening of Toronto’s central business district. Then walk the Greenbuild show floor to learn about innovative products and services from over 150 Canadian exhibitors.

Don’t forget to learn about the two Greenbuild Legacy projects that explore and celebrate teaching children about healthy, sustainable, urban food—the Chimney Court Children’s Greenhouse and the Gateway Gardens Project, both located in Toronto.

And once you’ve walked, biked, bused and subwayed through the very pedestrian-friendly city, take a tip from Treehugger contributor and Torontonian, Lloyd Alter, who’s begun a laundry list of local favorites and things to look for in his series, “Building Up To Greenbuild” for more itinerary ideas.

Game Changer: Greenbuild in Canada

Thomas Mueller
President
Canada Green Building Council

As October draws near and final preparations are underway, I wish to speak on behalf of the CaGBC to express our pride in hosting Greenbuild 2011. It’s actually quite fitting that the first Greenbuild outside of the United States be held in Canada because it demonstrates the close partnership between the USGBC and CaGBC that has been built over many years of advancing LEED and green building in North America. The success of our cooperative relationship is evidenced by the approximately 500 million square feet of LEED projects that are registered or have been certified in Canada since 2004.

Greenbuild will be a wonderful opportunity for delegates from all over the globe to see why Canada is a green building world leader. Some of the greenest projects in the world are in Canada including Dockside Green in Victoria and the 2010 Winter Olympic venues and villages in Vancouver. Toronto is the leader in green office construction and renovation. The Royal Trust Tower, the RBC Centre and the Telus House Toronto are among the greenest office buildings in North America. These LEED projects are leading the market transformation and tenant demand for green office space in Toronto and elsewhere in Canada.

As well as being a world-class centre for entertainment, business and culture, Toronto has shown strong leadership and private and public sector commitment to green building. Policies such as the Toronto Green Roof Policy, Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Corporation, Infrastructure Ontario’s LEED policies and TRCA’s Living City Campus are leading pieces of green building regulation and demonstration projects in North America. Large developers such as Tridel and Minto and landlords including Cadillac Fairview, Oxford Properties, and Brookfield all have significant green building portfolios in the city.

But there is no doubt that Greenbuild will be a game changer for Toronto and for Canada by taking green building to the next level in terms of industry and government recognition and international trade. The conference demonstrates that green building is an industry sector of the future, bridging the gap between business and the environment, providing significant opportunities to reduce environmental impacts, improving the health of Canadians, furthering economic growth and increasingly providing international trade opportunities between Canada and the US.

While at Greenbuild, make sure you visit us at Canada House to better understand the growing and increasingly sophisticated green building industry in Canada; a rich market for new services, products and technologies that continue to evolve and shape the new green economy.

See you there.

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