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Green Building
Biophilic Building Design Held Back by Lack of Data
Biophilic design is still at the bleeding-edge of green building design and hasn’t taken off yet. The obstacle may be the lack of data on the impact of biophilic design on health and well-being. Or perhaps it’s because there still hasn’t been that one model site that makes current practice irrelevant. ... [read more]
Homes Struggle With Lighting Efficiency
When it comes to homes, lighting has become a luxury of the modern age. Architects have steadily grown to gorge themselves on light fixtures. Without a doubt, nice lighting can certainly look cool, but it is easy to go overboard. Light a circulation path here, throw in some accents there, before we know it we end up with over 62 lights... [read more]
New American Frontier: The Braddock Initiative
Earlier this week, we published our report on CNU20 that took place in West Palm Beach. In it we deduced that New Urbanism is at a critical pivot point in its evolution. Conceived as an alternative to sprawl, which was the predominant development model for the second half of the 20th century in the United States, New Urbanism has matured... [read more]
Federal Green Building Code Creates Unnecessary Risks and Costs
Someone recently asked me why I was baffled about the Department of Defense's decision to use both LEED and a green building code. Here are two reasons: 1. The policy is a waste of taxpayer money.2. The policy unnecessarily increases risks for government contractors.LEED + Green Building Code =... [read more]
Energy Efficient Homes On Rise, But US Will Lag
image via Shutterstock
Market dynamics will drive strong growth in the residential energy efficiency sector through the remainder of this decade, though largely outside the United States. Says who? Says new cleantech market analysis from Pike, which forecasts that the construction of new energy efficient homes (and retrofits of existing buildings) will... [read more]
New housing forecast mostly good for walkable communities
The housing price recovery has begun, says a new report from The Demand Institute, a think tank recently launched by Nielson and The Conference Board to track consumer demand. Among the findings that are promising for more sustainable development patterns, the strongest segment of the market “comprises populous urban or semi... [read more]
Affordable Housing Goes Green in Georgia
The Northwest Georgia Housing Authority (NWGHA) has been actively helping Georgia’s residents to find safe and affordable housing for sixty years and in the past few years it has progressed into a leader in quality housing, as well.NWGHA is composed of eleven public housing communities.They recently worked with Lord, Aeck & Sargent (... [read more]
Shipping container "cities" bring creative, funky approach to green construction
This started out as an article on prefabricated modular housing, which can bring the construction price of new homes down considerably and lends itself well to use of green materials and straightforward replication. There’s a multi-part series on green prefab construction, including the history and evolution of the industry... [read more]
The right approach to green, inclusive revitalization
When it is done well - with inclusion, affordability, environmental and cultural sensitivity, and attention to great placemaking - few things are as good for our communities as reinvestment in aging neighborhoods. It’s the ultimate win-win-win: improving environmental quality and people habitat while absorbing new... [read more]
Green Roofs Will Cover Toronto
Man, those Torontonians! They continue to impress us with their aggressive green infrastructure policies. Back in January of 2010, Toronto became the first North American city to make installing green roofs on new commercial, institutional, and multifamily residential developments compulsory – now that requirements will apply to... [read more]
New Guide for Appraisers Factors Energy Efficiency Into Property Valuations
The Institute for Market Transformation and the Appraisal Institute have collaborated and released an updated guide that features details in rating energy performance on property value. Energy efficient properties will see an increase in appraisal values as a result.Today, at the ACEEE Energy Efficiency Finance Forum in Boston, the... [read more]
Harvard Achieves a Record 75 LEED Certifications
Harvard continues to be a national leader in education, making significant advances to their sustainability goals by having more LEED-certified buildings than any other campus in the US. [read more]
Sustainable Cities Collective
What's New on
Kaid Benfield is director of sustainable communities and smart growth at the Natural Resources Defense Council in Washington, DC. More »
Chris Cheatham is a LEED Accredited Professional and green building authority who frequently speaks to groups and associations. More »
Jared Green is Web Content and Strategy Manager at the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) More »
Rodrigo Herrera Vegas is a writer for for one of Argentina's main newspapers, La Nación, and a radio show host. More »
Warren Karlenzig Warren Karlenzig is the founder and president of Common Current. More »
Geoff Wilkinson is the Vice Chair of the Building Standards Faculty of the Chartered Institute of Building.i More »
Chuck Wolfe Chuck Wolfe is a lawyer, professor, and photographer who blogs at MyUrbanist. More »
- YOU
- TheCityFix - produced by EMBARQ
- Green Buildings Alive
- Kaid Benfield
- This Big City
- polis blog
- Tyler Caine
- Centre for Cities
- Next American City
- Waverly de Bruijn Klaw
- julian dobson
- Vanessa Francis
- Rodrigo Herrera Vegas
- Kristen Jeffers
- Warren Karlenzig
- Jason King
- Mark Lovett
- Adam Mayer
- Daniel Nairn
- Foster Pepper
- Project for Public Spaces
- Douglas Reiser
- Jim Russell
- Neil Takemoto
- Grown in the City
- ECPA Urban Planning
- Jovan Vucetic
- Geoff Wilkinson
- Chuck Wolfe
Transformation Through Technology: Delivering Better Public Services
When: Thu, 2012-05-24 08:00
Webinar: ISO 20121 - Sustainability & Event Management
When: Thu, 2012-05-24 08:00
Sustainability and Affordable Housing: an Interactive Charrette
When: Sat, 2012-06-02 11:00
Tourism and Sustainable Futures: Beyond 2015
When: Fri, 2012-06-15 09:00
Public Sector Leadership: driving cultural change
When: Thu, 2012-06-21 14:36
Youth Policy Summit on Urban Sustainability at UC Denver
When: Sun, 2012-06-24 12:00
“Ever since it appeared in The Road. Braddock has been on my radar for some time. They have been working hard up there for a long time. Very good to see the community pushed into the spotlight. Looking forward to watching this series of articles!”
“I don't walk by choice. My vision forced me to give up my car years ago. I won't lie, I miss being able to drive. I hate the bus, though Santa Clara's VTA is one of the best systems in the country. But I am able to get around. And I walk to shop, sometimes as far as 3 miles away. Sometimes I take the bus back, sometimes I just walk back. This changes ...”