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 by aleida, on April 27th, 2010  Image courtesy of BrightTALK webinar Right at noon on April 22, 2010, BrightTALK presented the roundtable discussion Ghirardelli Goes Green. Moderated by Deanna Meredith, the Senior Marketing Manager for Willdan Energy Solutions, the panelists were Jane Echlin, the General Manager of Ghirardelli Square and the Developer Representative for Fairmont Heritage Place located in Ghirardelli Square, Darren Nix, the LodgingSavers Program Manager with Ecology Action, and Dr. Densen Cao, CEO of the CAO Group. The discussion was specifically centered on the transition of the historic Ghirardelli sign that sits atop Fairmont Heritage Place to an LED system.
“Ghirardelli Goes Green started last year with a focus on our trash and recycling program, but has morphed into us reviewing other areas here at the property … where we and our tenants can make an impact,” says Echlin. They have tracked gas and electricity use for each tenant through the ENERGY Star website. An assessment of the carbon monoxide emissions in their parking garage concluded they could turn off some fans. And then they organize an actual event – that coincides with Earth Day – attended by various participants who showcase ways that the public can reduce energy use.
Last year, Echlin and her team actively started looking at alternative, lower wattage lighting systems. The property had historically had problems with maintenance with the old type of bulb, which would be affected by the salty air and often go out. But when they started looking at the options “we were confused by the amount of product out on the market and knowing which were reliable products, which were going to last, etc.,” says Echlin. For professional advice, she reached out to Willdan Energy Solutions and PG&E.
Read more event review: BrightTALK GBS3 session 4 
by aleida, on April 27th, 2010  Image courtesy of BrightTALK webinar BrightTALK’s Green Building Summit on April 22, 2010 continued with Bridging Ecological Research and Urban Design: Ecological Design and Planning, presented by Alexander J. Felson from Yale University School of Architecture and Forestry and Environmental Studies.
Felson first did a fast-paced overview of the lack of rigor within sustainability, stating that “often what passes as sustainability are in fact predictions of actions or conditions that are expected to lead to sustainability.” He identified these as necessary questions to ask when it comes to sustainability:
- Which system, subsystem, or characteristics are to be sustained?
- How long are the systems to be sustained?
- When can we assess whether the system has actually been sustained?
So in his work, Felson has been pushing the notion of linking science to practice. He admits it’s not a new concept. Some of the ways in which the two have been linked are:
- monitoring and developing metrics – technology
- applied ecology/urban ecology
- translating ecological science into practical use (ecosystem services)
“There has also been a move to explore multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary, and transdisciplinary partnerships as a way of addressing these ideas of linking science to practice and really playing more of a management role,” says Felson.
He goes on to present case studies of “designed experiments”: “a creative combination of traditional ecological research methods with urban design to create functional experiments with invested cultural meaning.” He speaks about:
- wetland remediation cells that can be introduced to parking lots around the United States;
- the LiB-E (Life Information Beacon – Ecology) Project, a web-based community engagement board that would gather information from community members to quantitatively assess the lifestyle decision-making patterns and their implication on sustainable practices;
- saltwater irrigation along New York’s East River waterfront;
- Million Trees NYC 2008, a reforestation project set up as the largest urban forestry study in the country that hopes to answer how best to incorporate the required rigor and statistical criteria for experimentation with public use patterns;
- the Tuxedo Reserve, a conceptual storm water management project incorporating high-value vernal pools and home to the marble salamander, a species of special concern. The project linked ecological practice with master planning and local land use law.
To watch the full presentation, please visit here.
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by aleida, on April 26th, 2010  Image courtesy of BrightTALK webinar BrightTALK’s Green Building Summit on Thursday, April 22, 2010 continued with a presentation titled Sustainable Federal Buildings: Mariposa Land Port of Entry, AZ, presented by Melissa Farling, Brian Farling, and Eddie Jones, all three from Jones Studio, an architecture firm based in Phoenix, Arizona. They gave us an overview to some of the considerations that are going into the redesign of one of the largest ports in the United States.
The Mariposa Land Port of Entry is just one of thirty-three ports of entry along the United States – Mexico border. Located in Nogales, Arizona, “Mariposa’s facility annually processes more people than LAX and JFK combined. It inspects $12.85 billion of merchandise, and 45% of the produce consumed in the US crosses Mariposa,” said Jones. Yet the facility struggles to do its job. These numbers are continually increasing, and during harvest season, trucks already have a wait time of up to 10 hours. But at least they have designated paths to follow; pedestrians have to use worn dirt paths to get to and from the port. “The traffic queues, congestion, exhaust fumes, and dessert temperatures combine to create a toxic environment and an unpleasant experience for customs and border patrol agents, [United States citizens], and Mexican citizens.”
Built in 1973, the port is in need of a major redesign. “One of our most daunting challenges was to redesign the port to move traffic more efficiently, while saying architecturally, “Welcome to the U.S.A.” The project is pursuing a “whole system” approach – one that minimizes the use of resources and impact on the environment while providing security and a welcoming environment. Inspired by linear rail yards, the redesign includes a clear area for southbound traffic into Mexico, two designated areas for northbound traffic (one for personal vehicles, and a much larger one for commercial trucks), and two safe and distinct lanes for pedestrians. Lastly, an “oasis” has been carved out for port employees. Designed at the scale of a small downtown main street, it will provide a safe zone where employees can enjoy the outdoors and de-stress.
Read more event review: BrightTALK GBS3 session 2
by aleida, on April 26th, 2010  Image courtesy of BrightTALK webinar To mark the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, BrightTALK, the on-line webinar service, went all out with a week-long schedule packed with a total of 54 sessions. Of the eight presented on April 22, seven focused on green building. Kevin previewed the day’s line-up here. I started the day with The Economics of Green Building, presented by George Elvin, Ph.D., the Director of Green Technology Forum and an Associate Professor of Architecture at Ball State University.
The main theme of the presentation was, as he put it, “saving the planet without breaking the bank.” (Why do people insist on this ridiculous notion of “saving the planet”??) He touched upon these six major topics:
- no- to low-cost LEED credits
- tax incentives
- high ROI investments
- fist cost vs. life cycle cost
- economic benefits
- green project financing
The forty-eight minutes that Elvin had for this session prevented him from doing an in-depth look into any of these topics, yet he managed to pack in a lot of information. I’ll take a cue from him and focus only on what he presented for item number one. For it, Elvin provided some of the results of a survey from earlier this year that asked practitioners to identify what they considered the most low-cost LEED credits that they achieved in a building.
Read more event review: BrightTALK GBS3 session 1
by kevin, on April 25th, 2010 
Last week I posted a blog where I pondered whether virtual conferences would ever replace live face-to-face ones. It was my way of introducing a preview for the BrightTALK Green Building Summit held on Earth Day. We’ll be posting reviews of individual educational sessions over the next three days. This week, I’ll be flying to Bentonville, AR to attend the second annual NWA Green Expo. I’ve been invited to attend, review, and write about the event. Where last week seemed to be about virtual participation, this week I’ll be engaged physically.
One thing that sets this trip apart from others I’ve taken is the fact that I will not be traveling with a laptop. Instead, the only devices I’ll have with me are an iPhone, a new iPad, and a camera. It will be the lightest business trip I’ve ever taken. I will readily admit that I’m a gadget hound. On April 3rd, the first day the iPad went on sale, friends called and emailed, anxious to hear my first impressions. They were assuming, of course, that I would be an early adopter. Although I was far from being the first person in line, they were, as it turns out, quite correct. I did have an iPad by the end of the first day.
The majority of my work is somewhere else, so I accumulate frequent flyer miles quickly. I deliver thirty presentations throughout the country in a busy year, and ten in a slow year. I haven’t had a slow year in a long time. Even though a laptop is technically portable, lugging it through airports, dealing with it during security scanning, and carting it around with other luggage gets old fast when you’re doing it every other week. The potential to travel with a devise significantly lighter, even if slightly less capable, is worth trying. So my event reporting will be an experiment to see if it’s even possible to conduct business without a laptop.
I’ll be arriving in Bentonville, home of Walmart – one of three primary event sponsors, Thursday afternoon. Conference and expo start early the next morning. Part of my coverage includes limited access to the featured speakers. I’m hoping to conduct short interviews with each of them over the two and one half days I’ll be in town. Since my time will be short, I have to make certain I maximize my time with each. I’ll be preparing over the next three days so that I don’t ask dumb questions or ones that don’t lead to useful insights. I’m envious of people who make interviewing look easy, because I know it is not. When the interviewer is uncomfortable, nervous, or self conscious the interviewee can easily tell, and it totally changes the conversation energy.
Read more event preview: NWA Green Expo
by aleida, on April 19th, 2010  Image courtesy of Interstyle web site “This movement is all about collaboration.” So said Tammy Schwolsky, CEO of Residential Energy Assessment Services, Inc. (REAS), while giving us a sneak peek at her ZENERGY House the day before its grand opening (we covered that event here). Kevin had asked her what single aspect had surprised her the most during the two-year house renovation project, and without hesitation she said that it was how everyone really needed to work together to accomplish truly sustainable results. We encounter that sentiment quite often in our conversations with artists, designers, fabricators, and all the other professions whose practitioners are actively working in the sustainability movement. Yet of everyone we’ve talked to and worked with, few individuals embody that sentiment better than Robyn Palmen, Architectural Sales Manager at Interstyle Ceramic & Glass.
Several years ago, when we started looking for recycled glass tiles, our knowledge of that entire category was rather limited. We were very much still learning what questions to ask manufacturers about their products to determine whether or not they would support our pursuit of sustainable strategies. We found Interstyle right at that time, and from the onset Robyn was welcoming of our inquiries, enthusiastic about keeping us informed about new developments, and mindful to check in with us often to make sure we were well stocked with samples and product details.
I realize that you may be reading this and thinking, “What’s the big deal? That’s her job.” And all that may be trivial, but I often found that, in reaching out to other companies, I usually hit a brick wall: messages were never returned and e-mails went unanswered; or if I did manage to speak with someone, I would either get vague answers or be promised information that later would not be delivered. A few months ago I wrote a little about an experiment that Interstyle did for us (read that post here). It was Robyn who took our design specs and got that sample through their shop, all before we ever specified any of their tiles. Now, this post is not about Robyn specifically, but I find it difficult to speak of Interstyle without mentioning her because, to us, her approachability is a reflection of the company, their values, and their integrity in the sustainability movement. And when we combine that with the incredibly beautiful products that they design and manufacture, we must admit that we are huge fans – we just love what we see.
Insterstyle Ceramic & Glass is a family-owned company based in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada. It was founded in 1977 by Ernesto and Georgia Hauner. The Brazilian husband and wife team had once ran Mobilinea, a modern furniture company. Their emigration to Canada had forced them to leave that company behind. Once in British Columbia, they decided to delve into the world of ceramic tile and, thus, continue their entrepreneurial proclivity in their new home.
Read more stories of sustainability: Interstyle Ceramic & Glass
by kevin, on April 18th, 2010 
While others debate whether we’re living through the final days of print media, I wonder if some day virtual conferences will replace physical ones. Are the webinars of today comparable? Do they offer an equally compelling exposition or learning experience? Actually I’m not entirely certain that’s a fair question. Although similar, the two venue types are so utterly different it’s difficult to make comparisons.
A year ago I might have thought it unlikely that a webinar could equal a face-to-face conference. But two things have changed my opinion. First, over the past twelve months I’ve endured terribly disappointing lectures at some of the biggest events. There are few things more frustrating than traveling long distances and paying good money for event registration, flight, rental car, hotel, and meals only to be tortured by painful presentation skills and horrendous graphics. It’s even worse when delivered by someone you respect and were looking forward to. Second, I’ve attended several well produced and informative on-line sessions. There’s still some disparity between virtual and face-to-face events, but technology and web speed are helping to narrow the gap. I can say with absolute certainty that my office chair is far more comfortable than any stackable convention chair. My couch is even better.
Even though a traditional conference is experienced live, I usually feel a strange detachment from the speakers. If the event is large enough, I might be seated several hundred feet from the podium. If the speaker is sufficiently interesting, attendees will swarm the stage, making it impossible to actually meet the person. Even with a computer between speaker and attendee webinars can be more intimate with a conversational tone.
A good example is the webinar hosting service BrightTALK. To celebrate Earth Day last year they organized their own virtual educational program called the Green Building Summit. I was invited to present a session about the environmental impact of buildings. It seems odd to use these words, but I actually met a number of interesting people. BrightTALK held a mini summit focused on sustainable building design earlier this year, where I also presented. It too was a well attended and an informative day of educational sessions (we posted about it here, here, and here).
Read more BrightTALK Green Building Summit 3
by kevin, on April 13th, 2010
Is there a word to describe that phenomenon where something is invisible to you until someone points it out, then you become hyper aware of it? You know what I mean. Your best friend buys a car you’ve never heard of or seen before, and suddenly you see that car everywhere. That’s how I’m starting to feel about water issues. I can’t tell whether I’m now more aware, or if I’m seeing increased discussion of the topic because it represents a potentially dire crisis needing attention. As an example, when entering a bookstore over the weekend I was met with a whole magazine rack filled with the latest National Geographic; a special issue about water. I see water everywhere now.
Less than a year ago I hadn’t yet delivered a presentation exclusively about water. Water was part of a larger slide show I’ve been giving around the country, but I didn’t have enough material for a dedicated lecture. Then I met Joseph Treves and Sherri Akers who were organizing the Mar Vista Wise Water Use Expo (I posted about it here). Mar Vista is a very progressive bedroom community in Los Angeles aggressively pursuing knowledge and looking at how to transform their neighborhoods into more sustainable communities. They asked me to develop a short, but powerful, show just about water. The three of us crafted a compelling message concerning excessive water usage in southern California, how changing climate conditions are impacting supply potential, and the very serious need for conservation. When delivered it was one of the briefest shows I’ve ever done; a mere twelve minutes. But based on reaction it was one with significant and lasting effect. From it, I’ve met more fascinating people than all of my previous shows combined.
Janie Thompson was in attendance that evening. She’s told me several times how my show convinced her to rip up her lawn and stop eating meat. Although that kind of reaction was not my intention, it’s nice to hear. Too often I think audiences forget what’s been said the minute they leave the venue. But Janie was so moved by the entire event that she decided someone had to start generating awareness in her own community of Encino. That person turned out to be her.
Read more 2010 Valley Water Expo
by kevin, on April 12th, 2010  Image courtesy of Ecor web site Some of the most interesting developments today in sustainable building materials might be occurring at offices and laboratories within federal agencies. One example is the Forest Products Laboratory (FPL) in Madison, WI. This century old government lab, operated by the U.S. Forest Service through the U.S. Department of Agriculture, has conducted remarkable scientific research on wood products and their potential commercial application. During the late 1980s a research general engineer named John Hunt began experimenting with dimensional fiber products. His primary focus was wet formed molded hardboard panels made from bio-based low yield wood, recycled paper, and agro fibers. His ground-breaking work led to a number of commercial products with names like Spaceboard and Gridcore.
In 1992, Robert Noble created Gridcore Systems International (GSI), licensed the patented Gridcore technology from the FPL, and developed a business plan to commercialize the proprietary process of molding cellulose fibers into three dimensional structures to create high performance panels from recycled resources. Although an interesting and unusual material, Gridcore was not the first, or only, product of its kind. It’s lineage can conceptually be tied to similar products made from pressed straw, wheat, paper, and byproducts of agriculture.
Seven years after its founding the company shuttered their Long Beach, CA manufacturing facility and halted production. “We made a strategic mistake in trying to position the product as a commodity product to compete with others such as plywood and MDF,” says founder Robert Noble during a recent interview, “and attempted to compete with those on price.” Engineered wood panels live in a category where price alone typically drives purchasing decisions. GSI found it difficult to communicate the environmentally favorable attributes of their product in such a selling climate.
Read more product preview: Ecor®
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Earth Day origins
In 1999, Advertising Age magazine compiled a list of the best advertising campaigns of the century. Many of their selections occurred in the 1960s; an era that many consider an advertising golden age. The AMC television series Mad Men quite accurately depicts New York’s Madison Avenue during that time period. Atop the magazine’s list is Volkswagen’s Think Small campaign that launched late in 1959 and ran for more than a decade. The campaign slogan, Think Small, was the work of Julian Koenig while at the firm Doyle Dane Bernbach. Koenig is a legendary copywriter who eventually co-founded the firm Papert Koenig Lois. He’s responsible for the now famous tag line – Timex: It takes a licking and keeps on ticking. His genius was making the complex look easy. He was a master at boiling down product attributes to their essential and developing catchy memorable phrases that resonate with audiences. His work seems effortlessly timeless.
Julian Koenig
He is also credited with naming an event celebrating its fortieth anniversary today – Earth Day. The story goes something like this. Koenig was a member of the Earth Day organizing committee, the event was planned to take place on April 22, Koenig’s birthday – Earth Day rhymes with birthday – that easy. Thank goodness organizers didn’t go with their initial name – National Environment Teach-In. Fortunately, smart marketing won. The name is as memorable and meaningful today as it was forty years ago.
Late in 1969, U.S. Senator from Wisconsin Gaylord Nelson delivered a presentation to a small group in Seattle, WA where he proposed an idea for a national teach-in dedicated to environmental issues. Coastal damage caused by a devastating oil spill near Santa Barbara, CA earlier that year left a lasting impression which moved him to action. The activism and demonstration tinged decade of the 1960s was coming to a close, but Senator Nelson knew that environmentalism interest begun with Rachel Carson’s book Silent Spring was beginning to gain momentum. In his opinion, the pace wasn’t fast enough and national awareness of natural depredation needed a jump start.
Read more Earth Day origins