Why Build Sustainably?
The main objectives of sustainable design are to reduce, or completely avoid, depletion of critical resources like energy, water, land, and raw materials; prevent environmental degradation caused by facilities and infrastructure throughout their life cycle; and create built environments that are livable, comfortable, safe, and productive.
Buildings use resources (energy, water, raw materials, etc.), generate waste (occupant, construction, and demolition), emit potentially harmful atmospheric emissions, and fundamentally change the function of land, and the ability of that land to absorb rainwater into the ground. Building owners, designers, and builders each face unique challenges to meet demands for new and renovated facilities that are accessible, secure, healthy and productive, while minimizing any negative impacts upon society, the environment, and the economy.
This tool is a game-changer
bringing clarity to the carbon footprint of your building designs
BEAM stands for Building Emissions Accounting for Materials. It is a tool that allows architects and builders to analyze material carbon emissions. BEAM focuses on the structure, enclosure and partition assemblies as these sections of the building make up the majority of the material mass. Katja has completed the BEAM v1.1 Estimator Course and is able to provide clients with the knowledge necessary to make conscious material choices.
LEED CERTIFICATION
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LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is the most widely used green building rating system in the world.
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Available for virtually all building types, LEED provides a framework for healthy, highly efficient, and cost-saving green buildings.
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LEED certification is a globally-recognized symbol of sustainability achievement and leadership.
Living Building Challenge
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The Living Building Challenge (LBC) is a certification program that defines the most advanced measure of sustainability—providing a framework for design, construction and the symbiotic relationship between people and all aspects of the built environment.
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It is one of most rigorous performance standards in the industry, as it requires net-zero energy, waste and water of every project.
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Each facet of the Living Building Challenge is performance-based, so every building must measure for 12 consecutive months after completion before receiving certification.
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When projects achieve this level of performance, they can claim to be the ‘greenest’ anywhere, and will serve as role models for future construction.
