Green Home vs Hurricane Debris Blast Cannon

Jeff Alexander of the Insulated Concrete Form Association and Greenblock invited us out to a demonstration of just how durable green building can be. With the tools and talents of the University of Florida's department of Hurricane Research on tap, the demonstration would simulate a direct blow from a piece of lumber flying at 50mph. To compare, a pair of ICF walls would be tested against stick frame and hollow cinder block walls to demonstrate the clear advantage of a solid concrete solution.

Environmental Groups Move to Block California Green Building Standard

Environmental groups are fighting the State of California's attempts to incorporate green building practices into the standard building code. Find out why inside.

Just days before coming to vote, environmental groups like the Sierra Club are moving to stop new legislation in California that would make energy efficiency and water conservation part of the standard building code. Critics say that this code falls short of standards set by some municipalities, and threatens to dissolve a major portion of the green building industry, specifically green certification schemes like the US Green Building Council's LEED program.

American Cities Embrace Green Buildings

PHOENIX, Arizona, November 17, 2009 (ENS) - More than one in five large U.S. cities surveyed by the American Institute of Architects has a policy of promoting green buildings, and the number of cities building green is on the rise. The AIA survey shows that 138 cities have green building programs, compared with 92 cities in 2007 – an increase of 50 percent.

All but one of the 25 most populated metropolitan regions in the United States are built around cities with a green building policy, the survey found.

Wyndham Vacation Ownership on Being Green

Julie MacPherson takes a moment after the USGBC-CF LEEDership awards to talk about what Wyndham Vacation Ownership has done to deserve recognition from the green building community. Their new facility takes a collaborative approach to office work, promoting open spaces when employees can easily share ideas and communicate in person rather than resorting to messaging and phone calls, all while reducing energy and water consumption by as much as 30%.