Environmental Design + Construction - April 2009 - (Page 64) STUDIO By Amanda Sturgeon, AIA, LEED AP Crisis into Opportunity Surviving + Thriving TURNING A CRISIS INTO AN OPPORTUNITY. Signs in the marketplace indicate that green building is continuing to thrive amid the economic crisis. A key philosophy behind President Obama’s economic stimulus package highlights the current economic situation as an opportunity to rebuild the country with a long-term vision. For Obama and many others, this long-term vision means building green to save energy over time, and it means creating a new green economy in which green building plays a central part. “We know that there are buildings — school buildings, in particular, but I think public buildings generally — that need to be retrofitted to make them more energy-efficient,” Obama said. “We will get that money back so that not only are we creating jobs, but we’re also making those operations more efficient and saving taxpayers money over the long term.” Obama’s words are music to the ears of green building enthusiasts since a long-term vision to building is the core philosophy of green building. Connecting this long-term vision with the nation’s social perception of what building is has been the major obstacle to green building. Building for the long term is a prevalent theme beyond the White House. “Rebuild & Renew” is the name of the American Institute of Architect’s plan for restoring our economy, and many states are using the same theme in proposed legislation. Leaders in California and Washington state are outlining increases in their public It is those mandates along with the federal and state commitments to energy efficiency that will provide a much-needed boost to green building. The timing could not be better. The LEED rating system has been in the marketplace for 10 years and, as a result, the expertise in green building is thriving; the cost of green building has diminished as the learning curve has decreased, and there is a wealth of readily accessible case studies of most building types. Saving energy through building green is a logical idea, but it was not always a priority in booming economic times. In the fury of a building boom, the focus has mostly been on building fast with maximum profit. The high oil prices of 2008 brought a social realization that saving energy is a prudent concept. In the next five years, we will see our existing and new building stock change drastically; we will see accountability for energy used and a new awareness in the national population about the importance of saving energy. The opportunity for green building is finally here. OBAMA’S WORDS ARE MUSIC TO THE EARS OF GREEN BUILDING ENTHUSIASTS SINCE A LONG-TERM VISION TO BUILDING IS THE CORE PHILOSOPHY OF GREEN BUILDING. construction projects in an effort to boost their local economies. At the same time, we are seeing increasing mandates at the state level that require those projects to be built green. AMANDA STURGEON, AIA, LEED AP, IS THE NATIONAL CODIRECTOR OF PERKINS+WILL SUSTAINABLE DESIGN INITIATIVE. WITH MORE THAN 10 YEARS OF SUSTAINABLE DESIGN EXPERTISE, STURGEON HAS CREATED SOME OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL AND SUSTAINABLE BUILDINGS IN THE COUNTRY, INCLUDING THE FIRST LEED PLATINUM PROJECT IN WASHINGTON STATE. IN 2007, HER PROJECT WORK WON THE INNOVATIVE LIVING BUILDING CHALLENGE AWARD, AND IN 2008, SHE WAS THE RECIPIENT OF THE BETTERBRICKS ARCHITECT AWARD. 64 ed+c A P R I L 09
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