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West Coast Green Building Codes: CalGreen, OEESC and More

February 8, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Electric streetcar San Francisco

The west coast of the US – California, Oregon and Washington – has always been seen as being progressive and forward thinking is many ways. They have held up that reputation with their building and energy codes, too. California was the first state in the US to adopt a statewide, mandatory building code. The California Green Building Standards Codes, or CalGreen, took effect in January 2011. It applies only to new construction of low-rise residential, public and commercial buildings, including … [Read more...]

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Green Building In China

January 11, 2012 By Leave a Comment
China Bejing rooftop garden

In 2010, China surpassed the US as the biggest emitter of greenhouse gasses. It also surpassed India as the largest cement consumer in the world. China consumes more electricity, most of which is coal generated, than the US, and 16% of China’s water goes to construction. At this pace, energy consumption is expected to reach 35% of the national total by 2020. The economy is growing quickly, and millions of people are relocating to urban areas every year. This means housing and work places are … [Read more...]

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Green Building Slowly Comes to Russia

January 4, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Green building Russia

Until recently, Russia has been behind the rest of the world as far as green building. A lack of interest coupled with no government or real estate industry involvement stalled the movement. With the current economic atmosphere though, industry professionals needed to expand their businesses and began to include green design. With international investors interested in Russia, a rating system needed to be devised to remain competitive. Hence, the Russian Green Building Council (RUGBC) was formed … [Read more...]

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Nan’s Top 5 Favorite BuildDirect Green Blog Posts of 2011

December 30, 2011 By 1 Comment
Green world

I love research. I’m an analytical info junkie. I love to surf, read and connect the dots. Researching for this blog for most of 2011 has been enlightening and humbling. I’ve discovered joy and conflict, moved into topics that I knew little about and expanded on topics I already understood. I’ve learned a lot and hopefully got you thinking. A big thank you to Rob Jones for hiring me in February and for giving me ideas and inspiration when I was dry throughout the year. Our emails are worth … [Read more...]

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BuildDirect Green Blog Retrospective 2011

December 28, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Social Green Living

Well, here we are almost at the end of 2011 after a year of posts about green building, sustainabilty, energy efficiency, and a great many other related areas here on the BuildDirect green blog. After a year at looking how the construction industry, independent builders, energy innovators, architects,  governments, and even individual citizens are helping to move the world into a smarter, more rational 21st Century, I thought it might be a good idea to reflect on some of the top posts on this … [Read more...]

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Green Building in New Zealand and Australia

December 23, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Photo: epcp

My older daughter went to New Zealand and Australia for three weeks the day after she turned 12. I’ve always resonated with NZ. It’s been a dream destination of mine since I was young, and I could hardly believe she got there before me! When she returned, her stories told me that NZ was progressive, which I’d suspected, while Australia was more traditional. She preferred Australia, and, knowing her values were very mainstream, this was in sync with my ideas of both places. Alternative … [Read more...]

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Green Building in Scandinavia

December 21, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Scandinavian flags

Scandinavia has a reputation for being socially and politically progressive. There is national health care, solid economic growth, little poverty and high incomes, and aggressive taxation. The Nordic countries invest in science and technology, so they are ahead of others in the tech industries. They are forward thinking when it comes to green building, too! Sweden Sweden, by far, is the most environmentally conscious country in Scandinavia and all of Europe. After the ‘oil embargo’ of … [Read more...]

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Green Prefab Housing Ideas

December 16, 2011 By 4 Comments
Illustration of proposed Nashville, TN prefab housing project. (image: David Hunter)

My favorite thing to do is design houses. I’ve been a wannabe architect since I was 6. My partner and I will be combining households within the next year, and we are going to build a house, so I’ve been planning! Since we will be running a vegetable farm, I wondered how much time I would actually have to design and oversee the construction. Prefab housing came to mind, so I did some research. Prefab housing means less waste, less impact Prefab building is done in a factory, and sections are … [Read more...]

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Green Building In Latin America

December 14, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Brazilian

Like everywhere else in the world, people in Latin America are becoming aware of climate change and the importance of preserving the environment. They are beginning to understand that buildings are energy hogs and detrimental to their quality of life. Green building is coming to the surface as the solution. Architects and municipalities want to reduce energy use, water use, and waste while ensuring there is minimal environmental impact. Natural light and ventilation means less air conditioning … [Read more...]

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Green Building In Europe

December 7, 2011 By 1 Comment
Eiffel Tower and flowers

Europe is way ahead of the US in the green building arena. Their homes use 1/3 the energy that ours do. Aside from energy efficiency, they also take into consideration sustainable construction, low CO2 emissions, recyclable materials, indoor air quality and human comfort. It’s not just about energy. Since the 1900s, architects have been designing buildings to meet minimum energy requirements. New and young architects today understand environmental issues and create sustainable buildings. 20-20-20 … [Read more...]

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